Game On Kontra Diarrhea

I read a circulating story on a social networking site about a little girl who got diarrhea on board a ship. After a long night, she didn't make it on land due to severe dehydration.

Loose watery bowel movement. High Fever. Abdominal cramps. These are just some of the first symptoms to know that your child has diarrhea.

Diarrhea may be a symptom of another illness or disease such as food poisoning. It is also described as Acute Gastroenteritis due to inflamed stomach and intestines, and mostly for infants and children, diarrhea is a disease caused by Rotavirus.

Fact: Rotavirus comes from the Latin word Rota which means wheel as it has a wheel-like appearance under a microscope.

Despite science advances in the modern medicine and Diarrhea being a preventable and treatable disease, still,  children under the age of five are so susceptible, making it the second leading cause of death.

GSK and PFV Rolls Out Kontra Diarrhea Campaign

GSK, one the world’s science-led healthcare companies, in partnership with the PFV (Philippine Foundation for Vaccination), officially launched the “Game On: Kontra Diarrhea” campaign last October 10 at Romulo Cafe in Makati. 

Fact: Rotavirus is a genus of double-stranded RNA viruses in the Reoviridae family and can be found on 

The campaign aims to emphasize the gravity of the disease and a holistic approach to its prevention.

Breastfeeding. More about breastfeeding here.

Improvement of hygiene. Rotavirus is anywhere. It's readily transmitted from contaminated surfaces - public places, even at home. What I do is bring my alcohol spray and sprint any surface with it. Even the table when dining out, and when one hand was sprayed, everyone in the car will follow the lead - open their hand and spray alcohol. Taking a bath everyday, avoiding putting fingers inside the mouth --- still not enough!

Clean water supply. Avoid drinking straight from the tap, stagnant water including long stocked bottled water.

Proper handwashing.  Wetting the hands just not enough. Wet the hands, soap it and cleanse it thoroughly. We wash hands as frequently as possible. We wash our hands properly including tips of nail beds , wrists and the spaces between our fingers. We also dry it out by wiping it with napkin or air dryer because wet hands can trap germs easily. But still, that's not enough! 

and Vaccination. First off, just in case your kid's having diarrhea right now, and you're reading this to seek help, don't. Do not self-medicate your kid. Consult your doctor now.

In my personal experience as a mom, our babies needs the Rotavirus Vaccine. Dabi and Cloyt both had their Rotavirus Vaccines and it saved us for a couple of times already. Having the vaccine will not 100% save you from having Rotavirus Diarrhea, but it sure did lessen the long bought. 

When Dabi got the disease, we chat and call via phone his pedia, since Dabi is still active (he got Rotavirus Vaccine early on) we just made sure that he's well hydrated.

Cloyt had one diarrhea episode. I took him to his pedia because unlike Dave, he's energy was down, the pedia treated his fever with paracetamol and made sure he's hydrated. He's not keen in drinking Pedialyte, so we (for the sake of hydrating him fast) gave Gatorade instead just to be sure his fluids are replenished. It's best not to give dark drinks like chocolates and ice cream so you can monitor if the stool is passing blood. 

If you have limited resources around, mix in a glass full of clean water a teaspoon of sugar with a pinch of salt as first aid before consulting your doctor.

World Health Organization reported that Diarrhea kills more than half a million of under five years old each year. In the Philippines alone, 14 children die everyday due to Rotavirus causing severe, dehydrating Diarrhea. What's worst is that it's highly contagious and can spread through fecal-oral route! 

Children may survive acute diarrhea but according to studies, it can impair their growth. Decreased school performaces, delayed school age, loss of IQ by up to 10 points, fitness impairment, and even irritated bowel movement syndrome.

Don't let the unimaginable happened, prevention is ten times better than cure. Vaccinate your infant as early as early as possible with Rotavirus Vaccine via drop liquid medicine and b

“We want to inform and empower mothers all over the Philippines to give their children a better chance to a brighter future. Rotavirus diarrhea can seriously impact on a child’s growth and development. A holistic approach—breastfeeding, access to clean water and sanitation, handwashing, and vaccination—has been considered to give Filipino infants and young children a chance against this lifethreatening disease. Helping protect our Filipino children from vaccine- preventable diseases such as diarrhea has always been a continuing commitment and advocacy of the PFV,” said Dr. Lulu Bravo, Executive Director of the PFV. 

Vaccinating a child against rotavirus has been considered generally safe and effective.

Implemented national rotavirus vaccination programs in various countries showed that the rotavirus vaccine lessens hospitalization rates and decline in the number of diarrheal deaths.

“Diarrhea has been a long-standing health issue around the world and in the Philippines. The time is now for us to act on it by increasing awareness amongst the public on the serious consequences of diarrhea among children,” said Sriram Jambunathan, General Manager of GSK Philippines. 

“We will continue to help raise awareness on childhood diarrhea in some of the communities in the provinces with the highest diarrhea cases. All of us—industry, doctors, policymakers, and the civil society-- need to work together to help ensure that our children remain healthy and protected from diarrhea,” urged Jambunathan. 

This year, GSK commemorates its 50th year in the Philippines and commits to continue helping Filipinos do more, feel better, live longer. The Game On: Kontra Diarrhea Caravan will be in Agusan on October 17, Iloilo on October 23, Manila on October 25, and finally in Dagupan on November 5. To know more about the childhood diarrhea and how to prevent it, consult your doctor or community health worker.