Traveling can be fun and adventurous as it exposes one to different people and cultures. Traveling can be pleasant to people who are adequately educated about their destination and take measures to ensure the journey is a hitch-free one. Being an ignorant traveler may be disastrous. Knowledge, they say, is power. Be well informed about your destination. Here are some important health tips to know when one has to travel.
Be Well Informed about your Destination
It is important to carry out an extensive research about one’s travel destination so as to be well prepared for any possibilities. There are a lot of questions to be asked. What’ the food there like? Will it be hot or cold this time of the year over there? Are there wild animals there? If yes, what precautionary measures can one take? Is there an epidemic at the moment? Is it a war zone over there? These questions are very necessary and it is important one finds real-time answers to these questions. One may read international news online, check social media for recent information on the state of affairs of the destination country, visit and make inquiries from the travel destination’s tourism board or inquire from residents of the country on intends to travel to.
Keep the Immune System Healthy
It would not be a bad idea to eat foods that would further boost the immune system. Healthy snacks and supplements would sure come in handy. A healthy immune system is good for a traveler; this would help them fight diseases better, as there may be diseases one could contract from one’s travel destination. Yogurts, dried cherries, raisins, citrus fruits, almonds, oranges, and dark chocolate can help boost one’s immune system.
Get Injections and Medications for Emergencies
One must visit a doctor before traveling to get prescribed injections and drugs for possible viruses or bacterial diseases one may most likely contract in the travel destination. It is also important to get vaccinated months before traveling, so as to build a strong resistance to illnesses and diseases most rampant in the country one plans to visit.
Have a Well Equipped First Aid Kit
Having a well equipped first aid kit is important in case of emergencies. It is possible for one not to get immediate medical attention when in a foreign country, so being prepared is in the traveler’s best interests. One must have items like plasters, different sizes of sterile gauze dressings, sterile eye dressings, triangular bandages, tweezers, crèpe rolled bandages, safety pins, scissors, disposable sterile gloves, alcohol-free cleansing wipes, digital thermometer, sticky tape, skin rash cream, insect repellers or sting relievers, antiseptic cream, and painkillers. One may also have aloe gel for sunburns, oral rehydration salts, antibacterial ointment, laxative, and an antihistamine.
Wear Appropriate Clothes for the Weather
Wearing appropriate clothes for the weather of the travel destination is important. If it is cold, wear clothes to protect the body from getting pneumonia. If it is hot in the travel destination, wear hats that would protect the head and face from the heat. One must, however, hydrate always in order to avoid dehydration. Failure to hydrate may cause heat stroke. Sealer bottled or canned drinks are good choices of drinks to go for in a foreign country as one does not know how hygienic the water is. If sealed drinks are not available, it is advisable to purify the water before drinking.
Watch What you Eat
Be careful of what you eat; being a foreigner in a strange country may make one oblivious to the fact that some of the foods sold may not be fit for ingestion. It is also possible that one’s body would reject foods it is not accustomed to. So, it is advisable to stick to fruits. If one must eat the local food, look for food eateries that are filled with locals, the food would be most likely good and stomach-friendly.
Jet Lag
Jet lag is a sleep disorder caused by traveling across time zones. This disorder is temporary and can be treated by the traveler. Jet lag is hardly unavoidable but there are tips to help one adjust and ease into the new time zone. Here are some tips to help alleviate jet lag:
- Preparing one’s mind in the flight to the travel destination would help the psyche of the traveler. By doing this, one would start adjusting to the time of the travel destination.
- Avoid sleeping the moment you get to your destination. One may nap for an hour and wait until it is bedtime before sleeping. Sleeping immediately one gets to the travel destination throws one off balance and time.
- Taking a stroll and getting a little bit of fresh air would help incredibly.
- It is advisable to avoid drinking alcohol right before one’s flight. It upsets the body during and after the flight. Hydrating on water only would help the body and help prevent feeling awful during and after the flight.
- Getting enough sleep on the flight is advisable as it makes it easier to adjust when one arrives at the travel destination. It calms the body and makes sure it is well rested before arrival.
Side Effects of Traveling
- Traveling for an extended period of time may affect one’s personality. Traveling around the world and interacting with new people, their culture, beliefs, and principles may change one’s personality. An individual may become more agreeable, open, through or careful, energetic or depressed.
- One may experience acne, as a result of the low humidity that often occurs on the flight. Acne or pimples would most likely clear up after the flight.
- A tourist would most likely eat almost everything they come in contact with. Food is part of the culture of people and tourists love to associate themselves with new cultures. So, indulging in local foods would most likely be irresistible. It is a vacation, cut yourself some slack and live in the moment.
- Female tourists may experience irregular cycles, it is nothing to worry about. Being under immense stress can throw one off her cycle. It would normalize when the body is relaxed.
- There is something called ‘traveler’s constipation’. This is a thing. This can happen because of the change in diet and can rudely disrupt one’s bathroom tendencies.
- One may get headaches and fatigue because of the air pressure on the plane. Oxygen is not properly circulated on planes because of the air pressure and can lead to altitude sickness. This is not a nice thing to experience.
Benefits of Traveling
- One gets more exposure and experience of other cultures. Traveling gives you a better understanding of new cultures, people and their history. It would most likely improve one’s social and communication skills. You get to learn new languages, meet new people and learn new things.
- Traveling eases stress and enables one take a break from their reality. It takes an individual out of their comfort zone and helps them appreciate the little things that matter.
- Traveling helps people loosen up, tolerate and accept the fact that there are uncertainties in life. This could change one’s life and attitude to life.
- Traveling would most likely build a tourist’s confidence.
- One gets to have a real-life education and experience. You get to learn from vast cultures firsthand.
- Memories are important, creating happy memories with loved ones helps build stronger bonds and relationships. Documenting these memories can also be fun, as it would be a reminder of the good times shared.
Bottom Line
Traveling is beneficial to one’s health, as it helps an individual loosen up, have fun, learn new things and accept new cultures. It is also important to be aware of the possible dangers of going to a strange place. Educate yourself about the travel destination, in order to avoid surprises.
