Eating while visiting the U.S. (sorry, a bit of grossness)

I'm wondering if my experience with this is unique.

Before I moved over the U.K. whenever my DH would visit me, he'd get really sick within three days. I mean really ill: nausea, bloating, constipation, the works. I just thought it was because he had an ultra sensitive gastro-intestinal system or something and it was just his issue.

Now, for the most part, I have an iron stomach. I hardly ever get sick, only had two cases of food poisoning in my life, etc. But every time we go to visit the U.S. (or anywhere across the ocean, actually) like clockwork, after three days I start to get sick too. And it's not like we eat healthy here but once we travel, we go nuts, because we don't well here either. Especially DH.

Does anyone else have the same experience? And any tips on how to deal with it? Any foods to avoid?
I don't even care that much that we both put on weight when we go, no matter what we eat. It's just the bloating and the general feeling of malaise that gets me. We're planning to go to the U.S. for six weeks this summer, and the idea of feeling like I swallowed a baloon for the entire trip is, to say the least, daunting.

Help!

The only thing I can say is stock up on Windeze and Zantac or something like it.  I have this problem and it takes about a week for my system to reacclimatise to where ever I am.  It can be the food, the water and any number of things that causes it. 

You could avoid gassy foods as well, but I have found it happens to me no matter what I eat or even when I try to eat quite lightly for a while. 

For what it's worth it happened to me when we first moved to the UK as well.

Six weeks sounds like a nice trip! 

Hi there,

Two ideas:

1.  When I visit the US, I get sick too, but I had thought it was due to jet lag (as when I get stressed or tired, I get IBS type symptoms and this seemed to feel similar).  However if you're saying this happens for more than a few days, it's probably not jet lag.

2.  If there is something in the food not agreeing with you, I personally recommend this product (and no, I'm not a shareholder, it's just that it's a brilliant product that deserves to be more widely known):  http://www.travelan.com/

My husband took this before each meal during our three week trip to India last year, and were the only people in our tour group never to get ill (everyone else went down with tummy troubles at various stages).  We had some left over, and a couple of weeks ago, I ate some bagged vegetables without washing them first (learned later that they were flown in from Kenya) and I got very sick within just 4 hours - I vomited so much I couldn't even keep water down for the next few hours.  However, I crushed up a leftover Travelan pill into a fizzy drink and managed to keep that down and thereafter I was miraculously cured of apparent food poisoning.....

Good luck!

My husband thinks it might be cheese that's the problem, but we don't really eat that much cheese.

I'll look at the travelan website and check it out.

If I read this wrong then please just ignore me lmfao.

If you're going from eating one way too going all out and eating things that are bad for you that you normally don't eat then that's the problem. It makes your stomach upset when you start eating things you haven't eatten in awhile or don't normally eat.

Try getting some activia or some sort of yogurt for irregularity...it might help. Gas pills help too...they help with bloating.

Thing is, we don't eat that differently. Not like we're going from vegetarian to dinner of cow with a side of sheep. We eat like crap here and we eat like crap there except here we're fine and there we get really ill.

Last time I visited the folks, for the first week I ate like an angel: upped my servings of fruit and veg and even tried to cut out the fat and the like. Didn't make a dent! I still got sick.  :\\\'( 

DH got the idea that the problem is American cheese (as in cheese made in America, not the Kraft slices type thing.) I'm not sure where he got that idea but at this point I'm willing to try anything even if it means giving up pizza for the duration.

I just don't get it. I ate American food for 15 years. I've been in the U.K. for less than 3 and I go back a couple of times a year too. I really shouldn't have such a weird reaction to the food, right?

Honestly, this would be pretty funny if our trip this summer wasn't for work. Hubby can't work optimally if he feels ill all the time. Not to mention the constant complaining makes me want to kill him.

Are you sure it's the food? Could it be something else? altitude? atmosphere?

Oh my gosh...that was sooooooooooo DH when he visited. He felt though that it was the long flight that caused it. His remedy...eat Taco Bell. It would work everything out within a few hours.

Are you sure it's the food? Could it be something else? altitude? atmosphere?

You know, it could be. For some reason we get dehydrated a lot quicker in the U.S. and have to up our water intake. Maybe we not upping it enough?

Terri, you can bet we'll be trying your remedy next time.

I was always intestinally...weird, visiting DF in London. Not so on the South Coast. I put it down to the drinking water.

hmm...

I don't know. Maybe like Britwife said...something different.

What about jetlag?...Dehydration?...

I know when I visited or Adam visted I didn't drink tap water (yes I know it's not a 3rd world country but still..lol) we got bottled water at the store.

I hope you figure it out before your next trip!

My sinuses always take a beating and my eyeballs dry up when visiting the US because of the availability of air conditioning.

Hiya,

With the amount of flights between the US, Canada, London and back home in India my family, friends and acquaintances - this subject pops up every so often. There's varying reasons for which all the Doctors and medical professionals in our family should be able to agree on but dont!

I'd put forward that it isn't the 'food' as such although it 'could' be a reaction to something common to both countries that your consuming. It's more likely a combination of the effects of flying, tiredness, hydration levels, immunity strength and dietary consumption.

What Penguin said is true, when your stomach gets used to a type of dietary intake, a 'change' can cause issues - as you say you're eating like crap here and there, then that puts forward the notion it's a certain product or maybe even ingredient that's causing an issue. for example, I was in NYC in Xmas 96 and on an evening out I was drinking bottled budweiser - everyone kept harping on about the USA brewed stuff is better - and also Budweiser on tap. I did of course have too much and the next day I woke up with the first 'hangover' I've ever had with symptoms of a pounding headache! I 'never' get hangovers like that - so I put it down to some ingredient within the drinks I didn't agree with!

I'd also agree with the atmospheric pressure differences as well - they are known to cause issues.

Have a delve a little more into any online reports and sites discussing this and you may find out more.

Cheers! DtM! West London & Slough UK!

When we moved back to the US last summer, we were having the same problems and by elimination - realized it was the beef!  It's not the beef in every restaurant or store, but so many of them.  So we found a meat market that sells beef without  growth hormones and such and have quit eating beef at restaurants - and everyone's belly is happy again.  We stay away from Mcd's and those type of restaurants.  Also have trouble with places like Lone Star Steakhouse and Mimi's.   So maybe you need this...happy dining!!

Meat in general was gonna be my other guess.  We usually stay in hotels, but this time we're hoping to get an apartment with a kitchen so we..well..I can cook. I'm thinking about going organic or free range for the duration and maybe that'll help some?