My wife earned a free trip to Mexico last year, and she's done it again for this April.

I rarely get sick, and when I do, I always have milder symptoms than everyone else. But that did not hold true in Mexico. I took standard precautions, and still got a terrible case of Montezuma's revenge. It was so bad that just the thought of returning makes me feel a little queasy... even to the point I've thought of suggesting she pick a friend to take instead.

Some people were talking about things they did to prepare that they claimed made them less susceptible. I don't recall the details but I think they said they took Pepto daily a few days before and every day while they were there, and they took probiotics before going.

Is that a real thing? Would those things help? Do I just need to be more cautious and diligent? ANYTHING to avoid it again would be appreciated!

I have an iron stomach, so I dont really do anything different. But friends that travel with me internationally usually start a probiotic a week or so before and do the Pepto thing you mentioned. One friend takes immodium at the first sign of being ill. I dont know if that is much help though. Just have to take proper precautions about using bottle water for everything and making sure food is always cooked properly.

Papaya Extract. It is a natural digestive enzyme. Take 1 pill in the morning with breakfast and one in the evening with dinner. Might start a day or two ahead of time. Eat plenty of fiber because they can clog you up as well, but never had an issue in Mexico when taking these. Ex wife's family went once, and everyone took these but her brother. Her brother spent the flight home in the bathroom but no one else got sick.

https://www.amazon.com/Papaya-Leaf-Extract-600mg-10/dp/B00IA275HG?th=1

Don't drink tap water (they don't drink it either) and avoid all roadside restaurants, smoothies, ice creams, etc. If it's a hole in the wall, avoid ice as well.

Don't drink tap water just bottled water and avoid things that aren't cooked fully

Something tells me it is also just part of your system. I've eaten from street vendors in Playa, Cabo, Tulum etc and never had a problem. I do avoid the tap water but outside of that I never have an issue. Perhaps it's because everything I eat is cooked and not raw.

Like you I rarely get sick, but managed to get a stomach bug right when my wife and I got to Mexico (my daughter had it two days before we left, son got it when I did).

Fortunately we had some Zofran (anti-nausea medicine) that I was able to take that kept me from getting too bad. If you don't have any get your doctor to give you a few - they last 8 hours each. Much better than pepto.

We were staying at a nice all-inclusive and they checked on me often and kept asking if I wanted to see a doctor. I'm guessing they like happy guests, but also don't want to deal with a dead US citizen. They want to keep you alive and well.

Go and enjoy the trip! Or let me take your place…

It's a very nice resort, and I feel like I was being very careful, but I do tend to love ice, I wonder if I slipped up that way?

It was an all inclusive, a bunch of couples were there, one night we split into the guys and girls and a couple of the guys at my table got it, none of the wives did. Might be coincidence but we suspect something that night did it.

I'm going to look into he Papaya extract, and definitely will bring Zofran, not sure why I didn't think of that already. We always have that on hand.

Thanks... and I was only partly serious about not going, I definitely going!

Only one answer here. I always get stomach bug when I'm in Mexico. Last few visits I take antibiotics while there that they usually give you when you get stomach issues. Works like a charm. Probably not the healthiest option but it works and I'm going to end up taking them anyway so why not.

Avoiding ice is the hardest part for me. Most of the resorts have a filtration system but that doesn't mean it works. I will only eat ice that comes directly out of the bag. If it comes from anywhere else, I pass. It's not always the easiest because you hafta hit them with the sin hielo before they crack open your drink and start pouring it but we're there for probs 2 months a year and I haven't had any issues knock on wood. You also have to be careful with salads and other non cooked greens because you can get sick from the water they were washed.

Avoid eating salads/produce at anywhere other than a resort as well. You just dont know how they have washed it.

If it's a half decent resort, their water will be filtered. Honestly, if you've already gotten it once that may be a good thing. I normally use bottled water, but I do drink from the tap (at the resort) quite frequently and don't have issues. I've also been down there 15+ times so maybe there is some kind of immunity.

It's sort of like COVID you may get and you may not, but even if you do it's not a big deal.

Throw in some yogurt and butt putty or bring some probiotics if you're worried.

Honestly, I don't think there is any rhyme or reason to it. There are the obvious things like avoiding tap water, but sometimes your body just doesn't respond well to certain foods abroad. I can eat street food in Bangkok with no problem and then will randomly get sick from McDonalds in Saigon. I've been living abroad in different countries for over a decade and I still can't predict what food will get me sick..

The ice should be fine - all the resorts use filtered water - they don't drink the local water either. Some things just make us react differently.

I found some meds in my closet the other day when I was going through old medicine bottles - one was essentially for "traveler's diarrhea". Not sure how freely a doctor will write the prescription. I was going to Costa Rica so that's why he wrote it. Never needed it and have never used it. I tend to be somewhat cautious of what I eat - usually just whatever the resort has.

I did get ecoli poisoning at a resort in Puerto Vallarta. All of my symptoms pointed to appendicitis. Told me to prepare for surgery that afternoon. They took me for an MRI and said it wasn't my appendix but that I had a really pissed off colon.

About a week after my official diagnosis, the health department called me and wanted to know EVERYTHING that I had eaten in the last week. I was like "Sir, I spent 7 days at an all-inclusive resort in Mexico. The better question is what I DIDN'T eat". He didn't care. He must have asked me 100 questions. We were on the phone 30 minutes.

Zpack (Azithromycin) for traveler's diarrhea. Get it prescribed ahead of time if you are traveling internationally.

I always Go with only drinking high proof alcohols when I'm in Mexico. Antiseptic.

It's just science

Don't drink the water, don't eat the food,
tell the señoritas you ain't in the mood.

Giant packs of depends and dude wipes. Just roll with it

I think there's a common misconception about the ice. No one, including locals, drinks tap water because it will make anyone sick. So they do not make ice using tap water anywhere, because it would make everyone sick. Bottled water and ice factories are a huge industry there. Probably a good idea to stay away from any ice-based treat from a street vendor (even though it's made from clean water) simply because the conditions are unsanitary compared to what we are accustomed to.

Everyone there also goes through a process of disinfecting all of the produce that they buy (basically putting produce in a bowl of filtered water and then putting in drops of Microdyn disinfectant for 10 minutes). I would be surprised if they didn't do this at resorts, but maybe it's not always properly done.

I don't have any answers, but it shouldn't be related to the ice.

This is probably the world's dumbest question, but I'll risk it: If the tap water is so bad that it even makes the locals sick, why don't they do something about it? I assumed it only affected people from other countries because they weren't adapted to it!

No idea. My wife is adopted from there and lived there and we live there part time and no one drinks the water. Everyone has the big 5 gallon jugs.

The ice that will get you sick is the ice that comes out of the refrigerator. Only used bagged ice don't use ice that comes from a non filtered source and don't wash anything in tap water and put it to your mouth if it isn't sanitized before. That includes silverware etc.

Costs money and takes infrastructure to make it drinkable