If you are planning to holiday in a Bali villa, there will be several health and well-being benefits that you will accrue, however, there is unfortunately one medical issue that could arise regardless of whether you stay in a villa, a hotel, or decide to go camping.
That medical condition has several names and often the specific name given to it may depend on where you are in the world.
It has been called Delhi belly, tourist race, Montezuma’s revenge, the pharaoh’s curse, and appropriately for where we are discussing, Bali belly.
A more common name for those on holiday is traveller’s diarrhoea, although for this article, and to avoid wasting words writing it, we will simply call it diarrhoea.
Diarrhoea is a word that conjures up all kinds of emotions and often it will be an unpleasant memory that everyone would rather forget, as almost always having diarrhoea most definitely would not have been a pleasant experience.
Regardless of what caused any bout of diarrhoea, the outcome is almost certainly a similar one, which we hope you will forgive us for not explaining in graphic detail.
When you visit Bali, you will inevitably be eating and drinking food and drink that you do not usually eat at home, and you may eat more than you usually do.
As such diarrhoea can strike. It is especially a risk if someone drinks tap water which we most certainly advise you not to do when visiting Bali.
However, if, despite taking precautions, someone on your holiday does, unfortunately, suffer a bout of diarrhoea, thankfully there are some steps they can take to wards recovery.
Below you will see we have outlined some of the most effective.
Take Plenty Of Fluids: One of the biggest risks that diarrhoea creates is dehydration, which itself can lead to more severe medical problems. Anyone suffering from diarrhoea must take in fluids even if they feel unable to eat anything.
Ensure Any Water Drunk Is Safe: One of the fluids most readily available is water, however, there is an important caveat. Tap water in Bali is not yet at a standard that makes it safe for drinking, therefore, any water which is drunk by, not just the person suffering diarrhoea, but your entire holiday party, should be bottled.
Eat Based On Appetite: It might be the case that family and friends either encourage the person with diarrhoea to eat or conversely, tell them not to eat. The best advice is that they should eat if they feel up to it, and eat an amount that their appetite tells them to.
Take Medication Which Contains Loperamide: Some over-the-counter medications may be available in local pharmacies. Specifically, you are looking for those which contain loperamide. Note, that any medication with loperamide will treat the symptoms but not the underlying causes.
If Symptoms Persist, Seek Medical Advice: Further to the previous point about loperamide, should the diarrhoea continue or the person continues to be unwell, it is imperative that they seek medical help from a local GP to investigate this and for additional treatment to be administered.
An important point is that all of these are based on adults having diarrhoea. If unfortunately, it is a child under six years of age, you are urged to seek medical advice given the increased risks to their health that diarrhoea can create.