STAYING HEALTHY
Author: Dr. De Frey
Source: Travel Doctor
The best-laid travel plans can go awry if you fall ill while travelling. By taking the following precautions you can minimise your risk to a great extent …
Prevent insect bites
Many diseases, like Malaria, Dengue and Japanese Encephalitis, are spread through insect bites.
Prevent insect bites by:
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- Using insect repellent with 30%-50% DEET.
- Wearing long-sleeved shirts, long pants, and a hat outdoors.
- Remaining indoors in a screened or air-conditioned area during the peak biting period for malaria (between dusk and dawn).
- Sleeping in beds covered by nets treated with permethrin, if not sleeping in an air-conditioned or well-screened room.
- Spraying rooms with products effective against flying insects, such as those containing pyrethroid.
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Be careful what you eat and drink
Diseases contracted from contaminated food and water are the leading cause of illness in travellers.
Follow these tips for safe eating and drinking:
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- Wash your hands often with soap and water, especially before eating. If soap and water are not available, use an alcohol-based hand gel (with at least 60% alcohol).
- Drink only bottled or boiled water, or carbonated (bubbly) drinks in cans or bottles. Avoid unsafe tap water, fountain drinks, and ice cubes.
- When possible do not eat food purchased from street vendors.
- Make sure food is well cooked and still piping hot when consumed.
- Avoid dairy products, unless you know they have been pasteurised.
- Diseases from food and water often cause vomiting and diarrhoea. Ensure you take diarrhoea medicine with you for self treatment of mild cases.
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Other health tips
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- To avoid animal bites and serious diseases (including rabies and plague) do not handle or pet animals, especially dogs and cats.
- If you are bitten or scratched, wash the wound immediately with soap and water, apply iodine and seek medical attention to determine if mediation or anti-rabies vaccine is needed.
- To avoid infections such as HIV and Viral Hepatitis do not share needles for tattoos, body piercing, or injections.
- To prevent fungal and parasitic infections, keep feet clean and dry, and do not go barefoot, especially on beaches where animals may have defecated.
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Upon your return
If you have visited a malaria-risk area, continue taking your malaria prophylaxis after your return as indicated by your doctor. Malaria is always a serious disease even deadly. If you become ill with a fever or a flu-like illness either while travelling in a malaria-risk area or after you return home (for up to one year), you should seek immediate medical attention and make sure your doctor is aware of your travel history.