Healthy Travels
Traveling abroad this year? Take these precautions to protect your health before, during, and after your trip. By Rear Adm. Joyce Johnson, D.O., with James A. Calderwood Jr.

Before you head out on an overseas trip, take into account your current health and medical history. (For example, a heavy smoker with heart disease will be challenged at high altitudes.) Getting medications abroad can be difficult, so be sure to refill any prescriptions, and remember to pack them in your carry-on luggage.
 
Before you leave, make sure your vaccines are current. While no vaccines are routinely required for most international travel, cholera and plague can be required for travel to or from endemic or epidemic areas. Depending upon your destination, other recommended vaccinations might include yellow fever, typhoid, tetanus, polio, and Hepatitis A and B. A yellow World Health Organization International Certificate of Health can help you maintain your vaccine record. Your regular health care provider or a specialized travel medicine clinic (available in many communities and at some military bases) can provide advice about vaccinations and medications for special circumstances — high altitudes, malaria prophylaxis, seasickness, traveler’s diarrhea, and other concerns.

On long airplane flights, keep your circulation going by walking and by moving your feet and legs in circles, flutter kicks, etcetera, when in your seat. Support hose can help prevent swollen feet. Airplanes are dry, so drink lots of water and juice, and remember that caffeinated beverages and alcohol don’t help to hydrate and can disrupt sleep and complicate jet lag.

Once you’ve arrived, your behavior can be the best preventive medicine. Follow the usual precautions with food and water. Avoid uncooked fruits, vegetables, and salads that might have been contaminated by human hands or unclean water. More than one in four travelers to tropical areas develop traveler’s diarrhea, so don’t let a restaurant’s exclusive appearance or high prices tempt you. One lapse can ruin the rest of your trip — and that of your travel companions. If someone in your group gets diarrhea, everyone must use extreme care with sanitation and wash hands often to prevent spreading the illness. Access to clean running water can be unpredictable, so bring wet wipes. Many insects, such as mosquitoes, spread disease. In addition to malaria prevention medication (taken during travel and for several weeks afterward), prevent insect bites with long clothing, repellent, and netting.

Car accidents are a major cause of injury and death abroad. Seat belts are rare, speed limits and drunk-driving laws vary, and auto maintenance and road conditions can be spotty. Take special care if you’re renting a car, especially in destinations where drivers use the opposite side of the road.

Plan before you leave, use caution while traveling, and have a great trip.