In Reply to: Upset tummy posted by charliebali on Thursday, 18. November 2004 at 13:41 Bali Time:
& many locals often say unless you get at the really realy bad stage that Lomotil can be the worse thing for you.What it does is totally bungs you upinside -it's a short term solution & really does NOT help your body.It DOES alleviate the symptoms but keeps the bugs inside you BUT you are NOT working on the actual problem.What many locals suggest is Charcoal tablets which many forumites have used.
You can buy them in Bali for about 6,000 rupiah at any Apotik & am trying to put this politely as possible.I'm sure someone with a medical background can explain better than me.I think Charcoal tablets absorb the bad bugs & you pass/get rid of them a hell of lot quicker than using Lomotil & in effect feel a hell of lot better a lot quicker.
I am certainly NOT saying Aussie Angel has what I'm about to describe & I hope she feels better really soon - but personally I feel many Aussie's & Westerner's maybe don't eat a diet that is as quite as high in fibre as it should be so they don't "GO" as often as their body means for human being's to them to GO.(I bet heaps of you are laughing to yourself by now ).The Balinese or any Asian diet has a LOT more rice/noodles & fibre than many people here are used to & I personally feel that many people make the mistake of thinking that their increase in regularity IS Bali Belly.Maybe this is not what everyone agrees with but it's what I think.
I rarely have stomach problems at home but every single trip DO notice a very slight change in my body but maybe I eat a tad differently than others.All I can say I swear by charcoal tablets & far prefer to buy my supply in Bali.Going back about a year ago I think someone said they had to pay about $15 for them in Australia.