Posted on 08/20/2010 11:28:27 AM PDT by djf
As part of ongoing efforts of some FReepers to help people prepare, I figured this is good info.
Let's start with a simple question:
What is the biggest cause of infant mortality worldwide?
A) Accidents B) Malaria C) Aids D) None of the above
The answer is D. None of the above.
The worldwide number one cause of death in infants is diarrhea. This causes dehydration and can lead to convulsions, kidney failure, blindness, and coma.
Diarrhea is also a very significant problem in adults, especially in third world countries where access to potable, clean water supplies is limited or nonexistent.
The culprit? A disease, a bacteria, that has probably over the history of man killed way, way more than all who have ever died in wars or famines. Vibrio cholerae, or cholera
Do not FOR A SECOND think that it can't or won't happen in the US. A one week general power outage no matter what the cause, and you would start to see these things.
Now there are effective antibiotic treatments for cholera, it responds very well to tetracycline, for example. But there is a cheaper and more accessible method that has come into use over the last few decades that has saved literally probably 100 million lives. It is ORT, or Oral Rehydration Therapy.
Thing is if you keep the body from getting dehydrated, your own immune system and bowels will be able to overcome the cholera infection. Oral rehydration therapy effectively allows/helps you to live long enough to get rid of the bug!
And it's easy to make! But to be effective, it MUST be made at the proper ratio. Anything else, missing ingredients or improper ratios will just go through you like, well, crap through a goose! And you won't get better, you might even get worse.
You need:
1 Litre (abt 5 cups) of clean, sterile water. If you have any doubts about the water, simply boil it and let it cool before using.
1 level teaspoon of salt.
8 level teaspoons of sugar
Mix all ingredients and make sure it's all dissolved.
From the articles I've been reading, it seems that the best approach is to try to administer about 1 cup per hour for as long as it takes to get some improvements. Be ready to be persistent the first few times because vomiting is one of the things that go along with cholera/dehydration.
I am not sure, but some of the national drugstore/retail outfits may have pre-packaged ORT you can buy.
So that's about it! Any FReepers who have additional info about ORT mixing/using/availability, please post away!
2-liter soda bottles make great containers for water storage, but I’ve learned that juice bottles do not. It’s nearly impossible to remove all the sugars from the plastic, and they would contaminate the water. I have a FEMA link with that info around here somewhere.
I use OJ bottles and cider jugs. Never had a problem. Pretty much I don’t think a little algae growing in a water bottle is gonna kill ya.
And you still have the option of boiling it.
Preparedness/Survival ping!
Stick a cork in it Ping!
Have a pleasant weekend.
Thanks. Just printed it out and filed in the SHTF File.
I’m sure that would be useful for any dehydration problems, not just in infants.
I’ll be writing the recipe down and storing it in my recipe box.
I keep a hard copy of them. I don’t want anything on a computer that would be irretrievable should TSHTF.
That’s a great idea. Being hermetically sealed, they would keep for quite a while.
I haven’t seen them around. Where in the grocery store do you find them?
Actually, it is. Part of the reason I wrote this is because earlier in the week I caught a nasty flu bug, and was getting dehydrated, so Wednesday morning I mixed up some, and immediately felt better after I drank about half.
I found them by the energy drinks.
Hmmmm. I wonder about probiotics.
I’ve heard there was a nasty stomach virus going around. My neighbor is just getting over it.
I’ll look for them there.
Probiotics are a great idea, but this is for emergency situations. Probiotics are for more long term intestinal health.
To be safe have your water tested for Cryptosporidium
Giardia lamblia and the rest,,,
> Waterborne diseases < is a good place to start,,,
Crypto collects on water filters and membranes that cannot
be disinfected,,,
Nasty stuff out there...
btrl
The worldwide number one cause of death in infants is diarrhea. This causes dehydration and can lead to convulsions, kidney failure, blindness, and coma.Thanks djf. This is diarrhea, not merely loose bowels (which are not the same thing).
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