Dear all,

My family will be trevling to India in November. I am now thinking about what to eat when we are there...

I am originally from India but I don't live there any more. So I still need to be extra careful about water/produce there.

So here's my problem. When I asked my doctor regarding travel advise for us, she said o avoid all produce in India. Like, not to eat any fresh fruit. She said we can have well cooked vegetables, breads, coked rice/ lentils etc., but nothing raw.

Which means I have nothing to eat.. so what am I supposed to eat when I am there for three weeks. I don't want to consider fasting as I will be super busy travling and sightseeing.

Any ideas? Has any one traveled to places like India/China/Pak etc if so, what did you eat?

Take care
A Iyer

Many Thanks for your help

I'd go against the advice of your doctor, and eat Fresh Fruit. Many
people there live on a fruit diet.
I've always wanted to go to India. The Sadhus and Babas are strongly
calling to me. Many, when they feel the 'end' is approaching, take the
'Big Trip North', going on foot to the Himalayas, drinking only Water
until the body drops......WY

I'm not telling you to do this - but if I were you I'd probably go and eat local fruit anyway. :-) I've been there and we were told not to even brush our teeth with the water, but I did and I never had any problems. Some of my very American friends did get sick though, but none of them were healthy eaters...

I think if you're already pretty healthy, you will probably be fine. But don't take my word for it.

Sarah
[goingbananasblog.com]

I would eat fruit,
but I would use something sterile to wipe it with, maybe whiskey?
It is in many ways a poor country without sinks and soap in restrooms, etc.

On a seven day visit eating and drinking as the locals do I was fine. It was on the eve of departure that a hotel meal, heavily spiced masking an "off" ingredient, made me ill. The locals know what's good.

I agree with happyway, I would use either vinegar or quality alcohol followed by a quick rinse in pure water to polish off the skins of whatever you're going to eat if you're worried about it.

i travel to india often for work. its tough. eat only in very highly rated places. do not eat from street vendors or small "local" places. Try to imagine how the food you are about to eat has been handled. The more food is handled in any country (including US) the more likely it is to be be infected especially if it isn't cooked. I eat only veggies and fruit that have skin or are not washed in local water. unfortunately i often don't eat much green while i am there but i bring raw green bars with me

Take grapefruitseed extract oil with you. (hope it's still allowed on the plane). Make sure you clean your fruit (or veggies) with it before eating them. Just rub a little on your food and you should be good to go. You can also put some bottled water in a bowl, put a few drops of it in there and soak your raw foods. It is anti-viral and anti-fungal. If by chance, you do develop stomach upset or become ill, just put 10-15 drops in a glass of water and drink it down. Drink it at least 2x per day. It helped me on numerous occasions when I was traveling in China.

Best wishes and have a safe and fun trip.

[www.pureliquidgold.com]

...also you may just have to eat "cooked" on occasion until you return to the states. just stay present and enjoy your trip - wouldn't worry about it. sometimes you have to make those choices when the food options are minimal. you do need to eat afterall.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 07/16/2008 02:05AM by rawangel.

I would eat fruit that you can peel: mangos, papayas, tangerines, etc. For fruit that doesn't have a peel, or if you want to eat greens, I would take some food-grade hydrogen peroxides, dilute it in water (to kill the bacteria in the water) and use this sterile wash to clean and disinfect your produce.

But if you want to be really safe, keep to the fruit that you can peel.

I mean, remember when everyone was yelling about, "DON'T EAT THE TOMATOES!!!!!" not that long ago?

I think a bit of discretion (some kind of veggie rinse), common sense, and chatter with the locals should help you find something palatable.

Also, trust your body--if something tastes really off or makes you feel odd, stop eating it.

don't understand all the clamor about peeling the fruits
because if water is the problem
the water will go into the roots and eventually wind up in the tissues of the fruit

if it was just simple as peeling it
i don't see a problem whatsoever

peel it

the suggestion from rawangel seems pretty good
grapefruit seed extract is quite powerful ( at least in taste LOL

I knew an merchant marine seaman 45years of port calls world wide,
he told me when on grain run to India He would put a drop or two
of Iodine in some drinking water and you will not get sick from the foods.
This was common practice I was told by him.
I am also aware that Iodine is poison.
washing with grapefruit extract or lime sounds like a good route to me

I haven't been to India as a raw foodist, yet. However, when I was there and eating cooked foods, I carried around alcohol swabs/towlettes and wiped down fruits and plates/utensils. With the fruits, I then rinsed them with bottled water. I didn't get sick at all while I was there and I partly believed it was from all of the fresh pineapple juice I was drinking. Just about every day I had at least one glass of fresh pineapple juice.

When I go back as a raw foodist (I'm hoping to make the trip befoer the end of next year), I'll be sure to come and ask how you did, A lyer. I hope you have a lovely time!! If you are up for mono mealing, I ate the bananas without ever wiping them off and they were the best bananas I had ever eaten! The foods tasted so much better to me while I was there. I can only imagine how much better things will taste as a raw foodist!

Lots of love to you,

Wendi
XOXOXO