If You Travel, You'll Probably Get Food Poisoning. Here's How to Make it Happen Less Often and Be Less Horrible.

After eight years of international travel, we've learned a few things.

The problem with nomading as a couple is that you can both eat the same food, so if you come down with food poisoning, you get it at the same time.

And then, when you’re experiencing the worst of its consequences, you’re stuck in an apartment or hotel room with only one bathroom.

I could go into more detail about the fateful weekend Michael and I spent in a Mexico City apartment in 2019, but perhaps the less said about that, the better.

If you travel, you’re almost certainly going to get food poisoning eventually. Somewhere between 30% and 70% of international travelers experience diarrhea during or directly after a trip.

And that’s not “ever” — that’s the likelihood per trip.

And while food poisoning can happen anywhere — in any country, in any kind of restaurant — the risks are definitely higher when traveling to lower-income countries such as those in Africa, the Middle East, South America, and Asia (excluding Japan).

Different countries have different standards of sanitation — and different foodborne illnesses. Your body may react differently to these things than the locals.

I said before I wouldn’t go into detail about my and Michael’s fateful, one-bathroom weekend in Mexico City, but some specifics on this topic are necessary.

What we think of as “food poisoning” is generally caused by one of the thirty-one known food pathogens: bacteria like E. coli and Salmonella, viruses like norovirus and hepatitis A, and parasites like Giardia and, ewww, tapeworms.

Depending on exactly which of these pathogens you’re unfortunate enough to encounter, symptoms typically include diarrhea and/or vomiting, plus stomach cramps, fever, and/or body aches.

This lovely state of affairs will likely last anywhere from a few hours to a week.

And let’s be honest, shall we? When someone says, “I don’t like to travel,” most of the time, what they really mean is: “When I traveled in the past, it has done ridiculous things to my body, and it’s just not worth it to me to go through that nightmare ever again.”

And I get it. Since I became a digital nomad eight years ago, I’ve had four serious bouts of food poisoning — which is about the same number I had in the entire five decades before I started indefinitely traveling the world.

Each of those times, I came seriously close to losing the will to live.

On the other hand, it’s been at least two years since I’ve had a serious pathogen-related encounter. Michael hasn’t been quite so lucky, but I still think this means that over the years, he and I have picked up a few pieces of useful advice:

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How to Reduce the Likelihood — and Seriousness — of Food Poisoning

Food pathogens are mostly invisible to the naked eye, but that doesn’t mean there aren’t usually strong visual indications of a potential problem.

Avoid unsanitary conditions 🚫🦠🤢

Duh, right? But still: if you’re eating out, does the restaurant look clean? How does everything smell? Is there refrigeration for the food? Functioning heat trays for the buffet? Clean water for washing?

And keep in mind that it’s not only spoiled food that causes food poisoning; it can also be that the food handler hasn’t washed their hands after using the bathroom.

Here are two big, obvious tip-offs:

• The person handling the money is the same person handling the food.

• The restroom is not clean or well-maintained — an indication that the kitchen may not be cleaned regularly either.

Ultimately, professionalism is everything.

Know your tap water 🚰❌

Before traveling anywhere, you should always research the quality of the local tap water — then, depending on the quality of that water, take whatever precautions are necessary. And err on the side of caution; if there’s a serious problem, use bottled water to brush your teeth.

(Do make sure your bottled water is professionally sealed, but we’ve never had a problem with this.)