Stay on top of your health on the road to enjoy the trip to the fullest.
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With tickets booked, excursions planned and hotels decided upon, nothing ruins a planned getaway like an unexpected illness. Whether it’s from heat exhaustion, unknown insects, close quarters on public transit or the general impact on the immune system that accompanies grueling travel days, wandering the globe is not without its risks. Staying on top of your health by considering these key factors is a smart way to make sure you are able to enjoy every facet of your itinerary.
Stay hydrated
Travel can affect your hydration. Between the drying air of planes, the extra exposure to the sun, and the avoidance of drinking water that may be contaminated, dehydration is an easy way for travelers to end up under the weather. Monitoring your intake with the help of an app may be one solution to address this common issue.
Practice good hygiene
Washing hands and showering off are key parts of any routine, but it’s important to remember that when traveling, a heightened level of awareness can come in handy. Transportation and tourist destinations mean things like commonly used handrails and shared airspace for breathing in whatever others may have.
Wash fresh foods
Whether it’s fresh, juicy mangoes, alluring summer apricots or a fruit that you may not even be able to name, one of the best benefits of travel is getting fresh fruit close to the sources. The ripeness and flavor will be incomparable to what is available on grocery store shelves; however, the risks associated will be greater as well. Fruit sold on the street is not subject to the same kinds of standards we are used to from buying food at the grocery store and can be contaminated with the same kinds of microbes one tries to avoid from drinking water, due to coming in off the fields. Rinsing fruit off with bottled water is a must to remain vigilant against pesticides and bacteria that would irritate your system.
Ingest water safely
Even when a country’s aquatic infrastructure standards are okay, there can be elements present in the water that are unfriendly to your system. The baseline level of contaminants that locals are used to can cause a visitor days of distress. To avoid this, stick to drinking only water that comes straight from a bottle or has been boiled in a clean container. Slip-ups can happen when travelers neglect to think about things like ice in drinks or frozen confections like slushies served on the street.
Visit a traveler’s clinic
In some countries, diseases that have been eradicated or that simply are not present in your home environment can thrive. To make sure you know what to expect, are adequately protected and can identify symptoms, visit a traveler’s clinic before departure and get up to date with any inoculations that are necessary to be protected in unfamiliar environments.
