Jennifer (Sunrise, Fl, Usa) on 08/13/2011:
I went to Morocco this summer and was not as careful as I should have been about avoiding contact with the water. By the end of the trip, I had a classic case of traveler's diarrhea (caused by the presence of E. Coli in the water). My stomach started to bother me and a few days after I left Morocco, I was experiencing excruciating cramping, had liquid bowel movements about 11-12 times per day, had a burning/queasy feeling in my stomach, had chills, could not eat, and was generally miserable. Every anti-diarrhea medication that I tried or was prescribed (I tried 5) had absolutely NO effect on me. It wasn't too long before my fiance's parents knew ALL about my bowel problems (to my embarassment), so my fiance's mom gave me apple baby food which seemed to help a little. I suffered for another 3 days, and on the final day I had to travel home for over 24 hours, including a 11-hour flight, and with my condition it seemed like it was going to be a disaster.
the trip I looked up remedies on EC and bought some ACV (couldn't buy the kind with the mother, because I was not in the US at the time). I took the ACV about 3 times that day and the cramping and nausea disappeared and the frequency of my bowel movements greatly decreased. When I got back to the US I was able to take some ACV with the mother, took some coconut oil in chai (which contains cinnamon), ate some applesauce with cinnamon, and in one day my problem was completely GONE, finally putting an end to my 10 days of suffering. Thank you EC!!!! And readers, PLEASE do not drink the water in developing countries ;)
N.B.: Coconut oil might have been effective in my case because my diarrhea was caused by a bacterial/parasitic infection, but coconut oil generally has a laxative effect on most people, so use with caution!
