Delhi belly vaccine on the way

Delhi belly, Montezuma’s revenge, travellers’ diarrhoea – call it what you will, but an upset stomach has long been the scourge of visitors to the world’s more exotic locations; until now, it seems. Scientists has reportedly developed a vaccine against the condition; Dukoral is expected to be on the European market within a year having already been licensed in more than a dozen countries around the world, including New Zealand and Canada. According to The Independent, the vaccine, which is taken as a drink before travelling, provides up to three months’ protection against E.coli, as well as acting against cholera. The newspaper reports that as well as proving to be a boon or travellers, it could save as many as 85 per cent of the 500,000 lives lost each year to diarrhoea. It quotes one specialist in travel medicine as saying: “I have patients who have taken all the necessary precautions – drinking purified water, eating fully-cooked and hot food and peeling their own fruit – and they have still have been affected by travellers’ diarrhoea. Dukoral provides the best protection against the common causes of the condition.” The Independent also cites a recent study in The Lancet, which showed British travellers are the worst-affected of all visitors to developing countries, with more than half of all visitors to Kenya and India affected. Experts blame this on the failure of British tourists to wash their hands enough. Report by Tim Gillett, News From Abroad