Sick of food or tap water
In Asia, Africa and South America, food may be less safe than at home. For example, you can get typhoid fever from the tap water at your tropical destination. What is it and when is a vaccination wise?
Typhoid fever is a contagious gastrointestinal disease. The cause is a certain type of salmonella bacteria, the Salmonella typhi. It is rare in the Netherlands, but you can come into contact with it abroad.
Infection
You contract this salmonella bacteria if you ingest food or drink that is contaminated with it. This is often due to poor hygiene. The bacteria is in the stool of someone who has typhoid fever or carries the bacteria. If the person doesn’t wash his hands properly after going to the toilet and then prepares your food, you can get it too. The bacteria can end up on the hands via a toilet seat, tap or doorknob and via the hands in your mouth.
Symptoms
If you are infected, you will become ill after an average of eight to fourteen days. You develop a fever that slowly rises, diarrhea or constipation, cough, headache and abdominal pain and you have less appetite for food. Sometimes red spots appear on the skin. After a while you may start to feel drowsy. You can become very ill and even die from untreated typhoid fever.
Preventing typhoid fever
If you are going to an area where there is a lot of typhoid fever for two weeks or longer, it is wise to get vaccinated in good time. This can be done by means of an injection that offers protection for three years. You can also take a series of three capsules, which will work for about a year.
Vaccination against typhoid fever is not 100 percent effective. If you are vaccinated, the risk of getting it is less, but you can still get infected. Strict hygiene measures are therefore recommended in high-risk countries:
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Wash your hands regularly with soap and water. At least before eating and after going to the toilet.
- Do not drink tap water, only water from sealed bottles that you are sure have not been opened before. The locals may drink tap water without any problems, but that is no guarantee that the tap water is safe for you. In countries where typhoid fever is prevalent, residents have built up antibodies against the bacteria. They are not bothered by anything, but tourists do.
- Do not use ice cubes, as these are often made from tap water.
- Avoid salads, raw vegetables, unpeeled fruits and uncooked dairy products. Peel fruits yourself.
- Only eat foods that have been freshly cooked or baked and are fully cooked. This certainly applies to meat, fish and shellfish.
Antibiotics
If you get typhoid fever, you will need antibiotics. In oral form or given through an IV in the hospital. As long as you carry the bacteria, wash your hands often and thoroughly with soap and water. Prepare food in a hygienic way and clean the toilet daily. This prevents you from transferring the bacteria to others.
After experiencing typhoid fever, you are temporarily immune to it. However, you can still get sick from the Salmonella typhi bacteria.
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