Stomach Flu hits France Early

[mercalia]

"A sickly epidemic is sweeping France three months earlier than usual leaving tens of thousands laid up in bed with stomach bugs.

The epidemic normally hits France every year, but normally around January. This year however it has struck with a vengeance three months earlier."

warning to any one going there


https://www.thelocal.fr/20161018/stomach-bug-epidemic-hits-france-three-months-early

[al_yrpal]

It strikes me practically every time I eat there. French restaurant hygene standards are crap.

Al

[Ank@eel]

It strikes me practically every time I eat there. French restaurant hygene standards are crap.

Al

A rather sweeping statement. What about the thousands of visitors who enjoy delicious food and suffer no I'll effects?

[al_yrpal]

How do you know they dont suffer ill effects? I have been all over the world, and to many third world countries and never suffered food poisoning. Yet i have suffered it three times in recent years in France. I have been served Moules that stank, the whole restaurant turned around to watch. I didnt eat them and sent them back. The waiter was shamefaced. I repeat French restaurant hygene standards are crap!

Al

[reohn2]

Merc
Tel us a happy story
I know you'll have to dig deep into your reserves anti EU mind but give it a go,you never know it juussstttt might cheer some one up

[661-Pete]

What exactly is stomach flu?
Food poisoning is not connected to the influenza virus.

[661-Pete]

Merc
Tel us a happy story
I know you'll have to dig deep into your reserves anti EU mind but give it a go,you never know it juussstttt might cheer some one up

You know, "The Local" is an English-language online newspaper mainly aimed at English-speaking expats living in mainland Europe. Would 'merc' really be one of its target readership? Oh the irony!

As such, I occasionally scan it for snippets, but, having a certain competence in the French language, I prefer to get my news about France from publications in French. They are usually better-informed - and France, luckily, does not have anything comparable to the Daily Fail....

[mercalia]

Merc
Tel us a happy story
I know you'll have to dig deep into your reserves anti EU mind but give it a go,you never know it juussstttt might cheer some one up

dont you know we are in the end of days? there is NOTHING to cheer up with. Many here are damned? Any way didnt you like the Fiver story?

[pete75]

It strikes me practically every time I eat there. French restaurant hygene standards are crap.

Al

A rather sweeping statement. What about the thousands of visitors who enjoy delicious food and suffer no I'll effects?

You should remember that keen Brexiters will use anything they can to denigrate EU countries - including,it would seem, their own weak stomachs.

[661-Pete]

Any way didnt you like the Fiver story?

Yes I did. Especially where he uses his skills and intuition to rescue Hazel, and then defeat the evil General Woundwort....

[reohn2]

dont you know we are in the end of days?

I was completely unaware of that rare fact,as I was similarly unaware of French stomach flu until you kindly let us all know

there is NOTHING to cheer up with.

Oh dear I didn't know you'd given up cycling,and wot with you so recently retired too

Many here are damned?

To what,more bad EU news

Any way didnt you like the Fiver story?

I absolutely loved it dear,more of that lovely way to use our practically worthless currency would be incredibly practical

[mercalia]

Merc
Tel us a happy story
I know you'll have to dig deep into your reserves anti EU mind but give it a go,you never know it juussstttt might cheer some one up

You know, "The Local" is an English-language online newspaper mainly aimed at English-speaking expats living in mainland Europe. Would 'merc' really be one of its target readership? Oh the irony!

As such, I occasionally scan it for snippets, but, having a certain competence in the French language, I prefer to get my news about France from publications in French. They are usually better-informed - and France, luckily, does not have anything comparable to the Daily Fail....

well "the local" has many editions - Sweden, Denmark, Germany, Austria, Norway, Switzerland as well as French and I dont speak or can read those languages so I have to make do with an "expats" fare. Is it though only for expats? For all you know I may be an ex pat come home to live in a real country

I think this thread was moved ?

[Audax67]

What exactly is stomach flu?
Food poisoning is not connected to the influenza virus.

Gastroenteritis, usually passed on person to person rather than person to food to person.

As a juicy detail, some of the surface proteins on some viral strains that cause it resemble some of those on beta cells. This can fool the immune system into attacking the beta cells along with the virus, resulting in severe Type 1 diabetes. This happened to the son of a friend of mine. It can also happen if you get yourself vaccinated against gastroenteritis before going abroad: that happened to a colleague's brother.

@al: I have eaten in French restaurants a couple of times a month for the last 30+ years and have never had a stomach upset from it. You can get greasy spoons everywhere.

[661-Pete]

Shall I tell a tale to cheer everyone up? Many many years ago, when I lived in Bradford, I used to cycle daily past a rather tacky-looking greasy-spoon cafe. One day I heard a story about the place - at third or fourth (or more) hand. A customer goes in and buys a couple of beef sandwiches to take away. He eats one but thinks it tastes a bit funny, so he opens up the other one, and lo! and behold! three maggots are happily crawling across the beef.

The second half of the story, I got at second hand from someone who said he worked for the Environmental Health department. Yes, he said, the cafe was indeed prosecuted - and acquitted. What had really happened, it transpired, was this: the guy had indeed bought the sandwiches but not eaten them the same day: instead he had left them in a warm room with flies about, for several days before setting his gnashers into one of them.

Things are not always what they seem.

For the record, yes I have eaten in lots of French restaurants (not as often as Audax but then I don't live there), and no accidents so far.

[Vorpal]

I've eaten in many French restaurants. I used to work there for a couple of weeks at time. The only trouble I ever suffered was the utterly disdainful looks from the staff when I requested vegetarian food.

As for The Local, I read the Swedish, Danish, and Norwegian editions, but anything controversial, I check against multiple sources, before passing any information on. Many of the stories are written by volunteers, and at least some of them do not seem to be well fact-checked. Additionally, some of the writers seem to have some fairly strong biases.