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How To Recover Quickly From A Stomach Bug
Plus: the extra benefits of Hindu squats
The 10almonds Team
December 10, 2023
Today’s almonds have been activated by:
❝Health is a journal your body keeps about you❞
⏰ IN A RUSH?
Today’s 30-Second Summary
If you don’t have time to read the whole email today, here are some key takeaways:
Stomach bugs are not only unpleasant, but also make eating (including healthy foods) difficult. Watery broths are a great starting point for replenishing fluids, sodium, and other nutrients. Skip the dairy, though!
Some medications are safe; others can make things worse (see main feature for details)
Apple cider vinegar is not a cure-all, but is a great first-line home remedy for several reasons (again, details in main feature!)
Being unable to easily participate in spoken conversations is not just an inconvenience; it’s also a [causal, fixable] risk factor for age-related cognitive decline.
Today’s sponsor, Hear.com, are offering the most cutting-edge dual-processing technology in hearing aids that isolate and separate speech from background noise.
Read on to learn about these things and more…
👀 WATCH AND LEARN
The amazing benefits of the Hindu squat (12:45)
If you’re not already doing this squat variation, we highly recommend it:
Hindu squat menu:
Want to watch it, but not right now? Bookmark it for later 🔖
🦠 MAIN FEATURE
How To Recover Quickly From A Stomach Bug
Is it norovirus, or did you just eat something questionable? We’re not doctors, let alone your doctors, and certainly will not try to diagnose from afar. And as ever, if unsure and/or symptoms don’t go away or do get worse, seek professional medical advice.
That out of the way, we can give some very good general-purpose tips for this one…
Help your immune system to help you
So far as you can, you want a happy healthy immune system. For the most part, we’d recommend the following things:
…but you probably don’t want to be exercising with a stomach bug, so perhaps sit that one out. Exercise is the preventative; what you need right now is rest.
Hydrate—but watch out
Hydration is critical for recovery especially if you have diarrhea, but drinking too much water too quickly will just make things worse. Great options for getting good hydration more slowly are:
Peppermint tea
(peppermint also has digestion-settling properties)
Ginger tea
See also: Ginger Does A Lot More Than You Think
Broths
These will also help replenish your sodium and other nutrients, gently. Chicken soup for your stomach, and all that. A great plant-based option is sweetcorn soup.
By broths, we mean clear(ish) water-based soups. This is definitely not the time for creamier soups.
❝Milk and dairy products should be avoided for 24 to 48 hours as they can make diarrhea worse.
Initial dietary choices when refeeding should begin with soups and broth.❞
Other things to avoid
Caffeine stimulates the digestion in a way that can make things worse.
Fat is more difficult to digest, and should also be avoided until feeling better.
To medicate or not to medicate?
Loperamide (also known by the brand name Imodium) is generally safe when used as directed.
Antibiotics may be necessary for certain microbial infections, but should not be anyone’s first-choice treatment unless advised otherwise by your doctor/pharmacist.
Note that if your stomach bug is not something that requires antibiotics, then taking antibiotics can actually make it worse as the antibiotics wipe out your gut bacteria that were busy helping fight whatever’s going wrong in there:
A gentler helper
If you want to give your “good bacteria” a hand while giving pathogens a harder time of it, then a much safer home remedy is a little (seriously, do not over do it; we are talking 1–2 tablespoons, or around 20ml) apple cider vinegar, taken diluted in a glass of water.
❝Several studies indicate apple cider vinegar (ACV)’s usefulness in lowering postprandial glycemic response, specifically by slowing of gastric motility❞
(Slowing gastric motility is usually exactly what you want in the case of a stomach bug, and apple cider vinegar)
See also:
Take care!
❤️ OUR SPONSORS MAKE THIS PUBLICATION POSSIBLE
Hearing So Clear It Has No Peers
Have you heard the good news? A team of top German engineers has just unveiled the world’s very first hearing aids with dual processing, and the results are clear... Literally.
Why is this so special? Thanks to this cutting-edge German technology, these tiny devices capture speech and noise separately, resulting in groundbreaking levels of noise reduction and speech clarity.
Hear.com is so confident you’ll love their product, all devices come with a 45-day no-risk trial. They’ve already got 385,000 happy customers—and counting—and their award-winning customer service will help with anything you need.
Please do visit our sponsors—they help keep 10almonds free
🌎 AROUND THE WEB
What’s happening in the health world…
Carrot juice boosts immune response, cuts inflammation, new study reveals
Brown seaweed emerges as a potent ally in diabetes control
Survey finds Americans struggle to maintain healthy habits during the holiday season
A wearable ultrasound monitor that aids rehabilitation from injury
Science award for young Cameroonian women's work on herbal medicine
Leading public health groups urge high-risk patients to get flu shot
Needle-free ultrasound vaccine delivery
More to come tomorrow!
📖 ONE-MINUTE BOOK REVIEW
Bold Beans: Recipes to Get Your Pulse Racing – by Amelia Christie-Miller
We all know beans are one of the most healthful foods around, but how to include more of them, without getting boring?
This book has the answer, giving 80 exciting recipes, divided into the following sections:
Speedy beans
Bean snacks & sharing plates
Brothy beans
Bean bowls
Hearty salads
Bean feasts
The recipes are obviously all bean-centric, though if you have a particular dietary restriction, watch out for the warning labels on some (e.g. meat, fish, dairy, gluten, etc), and make a substitution if appropriate.
The recipes themselves have a happily short introductory paragraph, followed by all you'd expect from a recipe book (ingredients, measurements, method, picture)
There's also a reference section, to learn about different kinds of beans and bean-related culinary methods that can be applied per your preferences.
Bottom line: if you'd like to include more beans in your daily diet but are stuck for making them varied and interesting, this is the book for you!
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Wishing you a happy and healthy weekend,
The 10almonds Team