If you love to travel during the summer months, you’ll want to ensure you take every precaution to avoid getting sick. Nothing ruins a summer vacation like catching a cold or getting a stomach bug. Here at Medics USA, our primary care providers in Washington DC have put together a list of our top tips for staying healthy while you travel. If you’re a summer traveler, you’re going to want to take notes on the following information to make sure you’re happy and healthy for the entirety of your vacation. If you’re planning on traveling outside of the United States, make sure you call to schedule an appointment to ensure all of your vaccinations are up-to-date.
Avoid Getting Sick While Traveling With These Top Tips
Wash Your Hands
Washing your hands will be especially important when you’re going through the airport. It’s best to wash your hands after any interaction with another person, whether that’s going through security, purchasing something from a vendor, or boarding the flight and handing your ticket to the attendant. If you don’t want to constantly be going to the bathroom, consider carrying antibacterial hand sanitizer with you.
Don’t Touch Your Face
Because you will be touching so many things that other people have touched when you’re traveling, avoid touching your eyes, nose, and mouth. When germs find their way into your body through these avenues, it’s a sure-fire way to get sick. If you’re a face-toucher, just think about the fact that everything you have touched could be ending up in your body.
Drink Bottled Water When Possible
The bacteria in your stomach is used to dealing with the tap water in your everyday environment, but the tap water in other parts of the world is likely going to be different, and you may be sensitive to it. If you have bottled water available, drink that as much as possible. When you’re trying a restaurant, ask for some kind of bottled water there as well.
Consider Food Contamination When You Eat
If you don’t want to come back from your trip with a stomach bug or an illness, paying close attention to food is vital. If something looks like it isn’t cooked thoroughly or if you’re worried about the space that it was prepped in, avoid that food if possible. Cut into your food and examine it before you take a bite. If you’re concerned about meat and dairy products where you’re traveling, try to eat as much fresh food as possible, as long as it still has the skin on it, to compensate for the other food you may have to avoid.
Exercise If Possible
One way to ensure your body will continue working for you and will improve your ability to fight off infections is by working out. Exercise benefits your body in a number of ways, one way being that it strengthens your immune system and helps you to fight off sickness more efficiently. Walk whenever you can on your trip, and maybe even take some time in the morning to do some exercises in your hotel room or do a few laps in the hotel pool. This can also help you to fight off any jet lag you may experience.
Continue Your Normal Sleep Schedule
If you go to bed at 10:00 pm and wake up at 6:00 am when you’re at home, try to stick to your normal sleep schedule as much as possible. Sometimes people want to use their vacation to stay out late and sleep in, however, this will only make your jet lag worse, and it will make going home and going back to your normal routine even more difficult. Sleep will also help your body to fight off infections and illness when you’re traveling.
Be Cognizant Of The Sun
If you’re traveling far from home, it’s likely that the sun is going to feel differently than it does in your part of the world. Carry sunscreen with you wherever you go. Your sunblock should have an SPF of at least 30. Remember to reapply sunscreen every hour. Also, carry plenty of water with you wherever you go. The more sun you’re exposed to, the quicker you can suffer from dehydration, heat stroke, or heat exhaustion. Bring along hats, sunglasses, and clothes to cover up with when your skin has seen enough sun.
Get Vaccinated
If you’re traveling to another country, you’ll want to ensure your vaccinations are up-to-date and that you get any other vaccinations that are specific to whatever country you’re traveling to. This will help you to avoid getting sick and it will also help to ensure you don’t bring any kind of illness or disease back into the United States.
At Medics USA, our primary care providers in Washington DC can help you with all of your pre-travel care. If you’re traveling overseas this summer, we want to ensure you will be able to take precautions and protect yourself from getting sick. Call us to schedule your travel care services today.