Ever get sick from drinking the water?? I did (I think)

[jennymouse]

Originally posted by Wonderlandmom
Keep in mind that Sulfur(found in water) and Sulfa(as in the antibiotic drug) or two entirely different things !
Bladder infections on vacation are very common and usually a result of not going to the bathroom when you should(in line at WDW and you hold it), not drinking enough water, and wearing a wet swimsuit or shorts that got wet(rides). Not from drinking water.
The water in WDW tastes and smells bad at times, but it would not be offered if it was truely bad for you! Just bring your own or a filter if it disagrees with you. My water here is NOT at all like WDW. The state does not all use the same water supply. I know when we travel to various places in FL that each place is different.

I must not have explained myself...I DON'T think anything is wrong with the water. I think the symptoms I was having were due to not drinking enough water. I had a water bottle with me that I refilled with WDW tap & ice, and I was drinking alot of it....but, I was really perspiring alot too, so I don't think I was drinking enough. As much as I was perspiring, I could've drank the seven seas lagoon dry and it still wouldn't have been enough!LOL

 

[lvs_eeyore]

Are you sure it wasnt food poisioning?? Were you concierge? Is it possible that you all might have eaten in the same restuarant?? For several people to get sick like that it sounds like food poisioning.

 

[Miss Park Avenue]

lvs_eeyore.. where you asking about me? If you were, we never really knew what it was. They took tests of my daughter but I never heard the results. We live about 20 hours away from that hospital in New Brunswick GA. Great hospital though, the people there were so nice to us!

We just never really knew what caused it. The only thing we had to go on was the nurse there in Celebration telling us that Florida's water just barely creeps above the acceptance levels. And if it's dry, it can be worse. I don't know how true that info was. I'm sure they wouldn't let the masses drink bad water. We went over and over what everyone ate and drank trying to nail it down. I guress we just try to be careful with the water because of what the nurse said. I still do use tap water to brush my teeth. And we keep a close eye on my DD (now five) she will run and run and not stop to eat. I carry bottled water with me on a strap and insist that she takes sips every couple of minutes. I don't complain about the cost of the bottled water. I just accept it as part of the cost of keeping everyone healthy.

If your system is sensitive, though, I reccommend getting bottled water!

 

[dianna112198]

When I first got sick, I thought it might of been food poisoning or dehydration. I had a high fever, chills, cotton mouth, dizziness, and the toilet and I...well, we bonded that night. But a few years back, my mom and sis gor food poisoning from the chicken at the Japanese restaraunt in Epcot. They were really sick for, like, 3 hours then they were fine. I was sick for, like, 3 days. Also, I really didn't eat any chicken when I was down there ( I don't know what else you can get food poisoning from) It could have been a virus, but I just could't understand how so many people in the same building were getting sick (oh yeah, I forgot..when we first checked into our room there was a big wet spot on the floor and puke splatters (eww gross) in the trash can in our bathroom. Maybe the people there before us had a virus and spread it to the whole Tokelau building at the Polynesian. The whole reason I care so much about this was because 1.) I hate getting sick (it scares me to death and I feel like it's the end of the world. lol ) and 2.) It ruined my last day there and I want to do whatever I can to prevent this from happening to myself or anyone else in the future. Everyones input on this has been very helpful and informative, and I thank everyone for there responses!

 

[dianna112198]

Oh yeah, and we didn't stay concierge so we weren't all eating the same food, but that would have been a good explanation if we were. How much would that stink! Everyone getting sick from the concierge food. Yuck.

 

[spaztik]

(looks around, stands and applauds wonderlandmom and phamton loudly)

 

[Lora]

I've gotten "sick" on a couple trips to FL (not just WDW). It's amazing how your body reacts to water in different parts of the country. Of course, people always warn you about the water in Mexico.... but you just don't think about it here in the US.

 

[merryweather's twin]

We allways use bottled water and no ice in the drinks. I know the kids get some water from fountian drinks but it was the amount of sulfer that made our son so sick on our first trip(he was small and we made him drink from a fountain every time we saw one!). How do I know this you ask... Our Dr. is an AP holder and when he ran a 104-105 fever for 5 days and no tylonal or advil or anything else would help they ran every test under the sun.He had a very high mineral count in his blood... Sulfer was off the charts. He is alergic to sulfer and and sulfa ands amox- Penn . His allergy is so bad that if you feed him a bunch of dried fruit he will be sick about 24-48 hours later. I think the high minerals have to do with the way they get the water... they collect the rain water in the street side ditches and it filters through the ground and they bring it back up and use it. I do not think it is bad for most people... I do not think it has special germs or is bad for you BUT if you are sensitive to sulfer or hard water do not drink it when possible. I guess learned that if the water smells funny and tastes bad do not drink it!!! I am sure that it does not hurt most people but they do not remove the sulfer and it can effect some. Have a good day!

 

[SnowAngel]

My dh drinks A LOT of water and has drank it all over. The first night we were there, he got so sick to his stomach and was throwing up all night , sick the next day and started getting better. 5yo who also drinks a pretty good amount of water *likes it better than juice or milk) also got sick and threw up all over MK, the bus and the bed the second night. Oldest dd doesn't drink too much water and got a little sick by the third day. The baby and I who didn't drink any water didn't get sick.
We never heard the water was bad but after that trip before I read the water was bad dh and I are convinced never will we drink any of the water. Next time bottled water. Dh said the water tasted nasty (he doesn't drink it cold) and it did smell funny.
Bottled water and a filter Brita next time.

We love in No. Fl but have well water and a softener

 

[Wonderlandmom]

Wonderlandmom bows.
I must say that FL and Mexico's water supply have nothing in common. There are a lot of misconceptions and assumptions out there that are incorrect.
Dianna, sounds like a virus was spread. I too hate that kind of sickness ! Seeing that in a garbage can would make me sick!
There are SO many people at WDW and SO many sick people, that you cannot rule out viruses(I read TONS of trip reports that include persons sick before they even arrive!). Sensitive systems may play a part, but the H2O is not "bad". I think when people get sick on a trip, the just automatically blame water at WDW for some reason, and these misconceptions spread. Think of all the germs on those fountain spigots. And I don't like that water and try not to drink too much. I prefer a Diet coke with ice !

 

[SnowAngel]

Wonderlandmom, tell that to my dh
He will always be convinced of that water. Just mentions it and his stomach hurts. He rarely gets sick and has strong sickness tolerance so when he does get sick he's a sad case. It wasn't because of the taste either. He'll drink anything and eat anything that doesn't eat or drink him ...
But as you say it may it may be the water didn't agree with our family. It was only those who drank the water who got the stomach bug. I stick with my diet coke.

 

[Lora]

Sometimes water can bother you if if it's not bad...it's just different. Even when travelling between PA and CT or NY, my Day often would take his own water with him.

When I mentioned Mexico, I didn't mean to compare FL to Mexico in that way...

...and besides, Mexians bodies are used to their water too, and I've heard may get sick in the US.

 

[phillybeth]

I remember the days when it was impossible to find water except from fountains- no bottled water, no Brita filters. If you weren't a soda drinker (which I wasn't then and still not now) you were SOL. I know alot of people will not drink the water down the Jersey shore- I happen to like it. I like Disney water too. No one I know has ever gotten more than a mild case of the runs from the water at Disney- certainly not violently ill.
BTW, the bottled water at WDW is Zepyhrhills- a natural spring water from..... FLORIDA. Here is the blurb from their website

http://www.bottledwaterweb.com/bott/bt_350zphnat.html

It comes from one of the deepest water sources in Florida near the town of Zephyrhills, known as the City of Pure Water. It Originates from the "Pasco High", a geological formation deep below ground. Isolated from human or industrial contact because of its depth, a limestone, sand and silt aquifer naturally filters the water and gives it it's mineral balance.

 

[spaztik]

I've been to WDW more times than I can even begin to count (first trip: New Year's Eve 1979!) and have always stayed at one of the on-site resorts, most recently the Contemporary. I generally stay a full week.

I've never gotten even remotely queasy during any of my stays, and I'm a *HUGE* fan of drinking fountains. That may be evidence that I have a "tougher constitution" than most, I don't know. I have a couple of friends who have been ill while staying there but they never could find any one thing they might have done that their travelling companion didn't, be it eating, drinking or visiting somewhere the other person didn't.

I can't give up my water fountains anyway--I'd miss the talking fountains at Epcot

 

[musicfan]

Here's another theory -- it's from swimming in the pools.

We've been to WDW about ten times, and all but the last two saw us down with stomach/intestinal bugs by day 5. I finally realized that there were an awful lot of little kids wearing diapers/"swimmies" in the WDW pools, so we stopped using them.

BINGO! No one has gotten sick on a WDW vacation since!

 

[Jackie H.]

dianna,

I wouldn't rule out food poisioning. Lots of food can carry stuff to make you sick. Lettuce is a very likely thing to make you sick. I was sick once off of lettuce (Dr. told me from some sort of test) and I was sick for almost a week! And it was a lot like you described.

Also, I'll try not to be too descriptive, but if food handlers don't have clean hands....well, let's just say a local restuarant here put over 30 people in the hospital - some for over a week. (It went out of business almost immediately after that happened.)

My daughter seems to get sick every trip we take to WDW! She never gets sick anywhere else....if fact she is the healthiest one of any of us. My hubby would be the next healthiest and he felt pretty bad the last trip down. I have said my daughter is on a "puke all over the world" tour.....(she doesn't like this very much

Anyway, I wonder if the water could disagree with her? I have a case of bottled water for our trip in just over 2 weeks. I think I will be extra sure that she only drinks that!

 

[BibbidiBobbidiBOO]

There are LOTS of food you can get sick from. People handling the food can spread stuff as can spoilage. Some of these illnesses last for days(weeks), such as Shigilosis. I also think children swallowing pool water is worse than having a sip of tap water. My DS gets Diarrhea just from the excitement that a trip brings! He also gets is as a reaction to the chemicals in a pool !
As much as we like them at WDW, buffets are a very common place for food poisoning.

 

[SnowAngel]

I'm pretty sure my family didn't get sick from the pools as we didn't go swimming until the fourth day. They felt to bad til about then

 

[spaztik]

Originally posted by musicfan
Here's another theory -- it's from swimming in the pools.

Now THERE'S an idea. The chlorine and filtering system would take care of some/most things but you never know, there's always the possibility of something either in the water that the chlorine doesn't take care of or perhaps even growing in the standing water and puddles around the pools.

This is not, of course, an exclusively Disney problem but would seem to be a good "common denominator," since lots of us that stay at the resort also use the pool at least once during our stay.

Trip before last, the SO got a nasty eye infection after being splashed in the face with water from Kali River. I wouldn't at all be surprised if there was a cause-and-effect going on there.

 

[Disneydenise]

When I was little we went to the Jersey shore every summer and I got sick from the water every summer. It usually took 3 days. DD gets it at DW. We live in Jersey now so maybe we have a tolerence but we do drink more bottled water now too.