How medical advice differs in other countries. (Lighthearted but perplexing)

[KnopkaPixie]

The other day I was behind a woman in the queue at a pharmacy here in France. She had oral thrush. The pharmacist took quite a while talking to her about her treatment and the various medications she'd been given by the doctor then went into the general advice section of the lecture. The most important thing was not to eat, "Trop salé." (Too salty.)

I thought, "Pardon?" Surely it's the other way around, nothing too sugary and yeasty? It bothered me so I googled and sure enough at least in the English results - sugary and yeasty were to be avoided.

This happens all the time. I've heard an awful lot of strange medical advice in France over the years and the folk remedies of my Russian ex boyfriend for various illnesses were quite bizarre too. Putting your head over the boiling potato water to cure a cold because the vitamin c evaporated into the steam was a good one.

Have you ever been given strange medical advice abroad?

This thread is kind of inspired by the post about the Germans opening their windows all the time for "Luften"

On the other hand, if you're not a Brit, what are our bizarre medical beliefs/practices?

German houses are really air tight though, so it's good to air out the house a couple of times a day. It's written into rental contracts there I believe. It's pretty common practice in Switzerland too. Also most mornings if it's not raining you'll see a lot of duvets hanging out of the windows and balconies here.

Personally, I've always been a bit doubtful about seeing babies wearing amber necklaces, and drinking baby tee.

I think it's weird how in the US, pregnant women have so many unnecessary vaginal exams (seems like at every check up in the final months!). These exams serve no good actual purpose.

I've had 2 babies and nobody medical has ever even asked to see my nethers (2 ELCS), apart from to place a urinary catheter each time!

Never mind their inhumane maternity leave policies over there...

Chinese believe that you're not supposed to drink cold drinks when you're on your period (possibly while you are pregnant too). And there's this whole thing with "heaty" foods which if you have too much heaty food then it'll make you sick...oranges are supposedly a heaty food. But when you've just given birth you need heaty foods and shouldn't have cooling foods.

There's also the belief that after you've given birth your pores are more open and you shouldn't let water touch you as it will go into your body and give you aches and pains later in life. If you're following traditional Chinese confinement practices you won't shower or wash your hair for 30 days after giving birth! I think some people will wash using a special herbal mix but plain water is a big no.

I lived in France for a while and it took me a while to get used to the fact that a lot of medication came in the form of pessaries.

I mean, they're absolutely right, it is a more effective method of delivery, but it didn't come easy.

Also, saline nasal washes for everything. I am still quite hooked on this (brilliant when you feel the first tickle of a cold) and stock up whenever I visit.

there are a lot of first aid practies that differ too
I was told by a group of African women (various nations) to put instant coffee on a cut to stop it bleeding
it worked!

What is baby tee, please? I've googled and all the results are for tiny t shirts. Even if I add Germany, all I get is tiny t shirts with the German flag on them.

Putting your head over the boiling potato water may have a bit of science behind it but not to do with vitamin C

Cold viruses replicate most efficiently at a little lower than human body temperature. That is why you mostly get infected in nasal passages and lungs. The temperature here is slightly lower owing to the cooling effect of the air as your breathe in. So if you inhale warmer steamy air it warms up the nasal passages and makes them a less conducive environment for viruses to replicate. Obviously if you overdo it you could scald yourself though!

The same is true for pH. The anti cold sprays you get like First Defence work by decreasing the pH of the nasal passages which makes it harder for viruses to replicate.

In the Indian sub continent, the equivalent is turmeric. Any small cut is packed with a generous amount of turmeric, and it does stop the bleeding. It’s supposed to have anti-septic properties

Baby tea. Loads and loads of them.

This thread is very educational!

I remember feeling like I was asking for heroin for my teenage son who had a sore throat when we were out sightseeing on holiday in Germany - all I wanted was some paracetamol and Strepsils (or the German equivalent) and was told (in no uncertain terms) no, there was no need. Instead we were given some herbal pastilles for him to suck which did FA. Luckily I had some heroin back at the holiday house which I’d sneaked into the country.

Oh, so it's just herbal tea for babies.

We lived in a country that wasn't France but had inherited its Healthcare system from the French and a lot of the doctors still trained there.

The homeopathy! Someone would go to the doctors for a chest infection and come away with yes, antibiotics, but also homeopathic remedies and things like 'tonics'. Absolute snake oil.

You could get these really amazing over the counter antibiotics that you dissolved in water for utis though. Drink before bed, in thr morning, cured!

Yes.

I don't live in the UK but have spent some time there. No matter what is wrong with you, if you visit the dr you will have a virus. No more information than that.

Kid can have chicken pox - Ah yes it's a virus
Flu/upper airway/pnuemonia - Ah a virus

Why not just give a proper diagnosis rather than that general term.

In the UK advice would be to use a teabag because of the tannins, I would assume its the same with instant coffee

Tobacco also works.

When I lived in China, they didn't believe in any vitamin supplements at all during pregnancy and you got rid of diarrhoea with creosote tablets. When I was pregnant, I was told by a medical doctor at a "western medicine" hospital to cover my ankles to protect the baby. Someone I worked with wouldn't eat tofu one day because she had a cut on her nose and a doctor had told her that soy would make it keep bleeding.

In South Africa, there's a spring that is famed for helping people with mental illnesses, particularly mania/depression. It was closed down a few years ago and people were stopped from drinking from it, as the authorities tested it and discovered it had high levels of lithium in the water.

In Ireland, they tend to prefer Calpol suppositories for any small baby illnesses. I was shocked the first time, when a nurse at the hospital told me to get some for DD age 2 months (bronchiolitis). Every time we went to the GP or PHN with the baby, they'd suggest Calpol suppositories, no matter the illness. I'd never heard of them before! I stuck with the normal stuff in a bottle.

Eh?! The only time I’ve ever been told it’s a virus is when it’s a non-specific cold type virus.

Germany probably has a pastille for it.

I have cured several bad utis with German bladder and kidney tea. Tastes awful but it works.

Oh not quite advice but definitely perplexing, in America the endless pharmaceutical adverts are like something out of a dystopian nightmare:

"Do you have [breathing], [eyes in your head] and [fingernails]? Then you may have circadian rhythm disorder which can be confirmed by a doctor. Use Circadiax for circadian rhythm disorder, ask your practitioner about it today!"
[massive long list of side effects and other smallprint spoken very quickly]

@FlowerInTheSea also no watching tv or using a phone after giving birth. Ime there were so many ailments that could be cured with a glass of hot water.

Another one who lived in China for a few years. The answer to most minor complaints was to 'drink more hot water', which to be fair often did have quite positive effects!

in Spain I was given otc ibuprofen tablets of 600mg each - so 1.5 the standard UK 2-tablet dose

Not advice as such but a packet of paracetamol costing 39p here was upwards of £5 in the states last time we went

When my DD was born in Germany, I was given homeopathic drops as pain relief in labour.

And the babies were wrapped up in so many layers in a heated ward, you could barely see them.
They had stopped offering the British mothers the duvets (basically a pillow!) For their cots though... they only had the vest, fleece suit, cardigan, sleeping bag, hat, and mittens.

Went to the pharmacy in Spain for thrush. I’d been prescribed 2 oral tablets. Came away with said oral tablets, a pessary, probiotics and a ‘special lady area wash’. The Spanish pharmacy is a central part of the community, your pharmacist knows everything about you and your family’s health. They will also, if they know you well, hand over most things without a prescription 😂 But woe betide you go to a different pharmacy for something like diazepam. Because you will be treated with open suspicion and will be quizzed 😂

Also, as you can see from above, they are masters of the upsell.