Travel

Start preparing for your trip four to six weeks before you go. Read the latest health advice for the country you’re travelling to and check the travel safety updates with the Foreign & Commonwealth Office.

You may need travel vaccines or, if diseases such as malaria are a risk, you may need to start protecting yourself well in advance. Prepare a kit of travel health essentials, including sunscreen, medications, painkillers, antiseptic, insect repellent and anti-diarrhoea pills. These will be useful wherever you’re going.

Sexual health experts advise taking condoms with you to avoid the risk of buying fake, and potentially unsafe, brands when you get there. Make sure your vaccinations are up to date and check whether you need any extra travel vaccines depending on your itinerary, Says Lynda Bramham, senior nurse advisor for Medical Advisory Services for Travellers Abroad (MASTA). 

Here are a few essential items to pack with you on your travels:

• First aid kit
• Antiseptic
• Sunscreen
• After sun lotion
• Insect repellent
• Condoms
• Antihistamines
• Anti-diarrhoea pills
• Rehydration sachets

Skin cancer is one of the most common cancers in the UK, and it’s a growing problem. Each year, around 2,600 people die from skin cancer.  Skin cancers are caused by damage from the sun’s ultraviolet (UV) rays. Protecting the skin from the sun can help prevent these cancers. Whether you’re on holiday or at home, you can protect yourself by following Cancer Research UK’s SunSmart messages:

• Spend time in the shade between 11am and 3pm.
• Make sure you never burn.
• Aim to cover up with a T-shirt, hat and sunglasses.
• Remember to take extra care with children.
• Then use factor 15 or more sunscreen.

Report any changes to moles or any unusual skin growths to your GP.

Travel insurance is a vital must have for you holiday. Make sure your policy covers your destination and the duration of your stay, as well as any specific activities you might do. 

If you think you may be at risk of developing deep vein thrombosis (DVT), seek advice from your GP.

How can I prevent DVT?

• On long haul flights, get up from your seat to walk around and stretch your legs whenever you can
• Drink regularly but avoid alcohol
• Wear loose, comfortable clothes
• There is evidence to suggest that compression stockings are effective in reducing the risk of developing DVT

To get over jet lag quickly, adjust to your destination as soon as possible. For example; set your watch to the time at your destination as soon as you board the plane and try to eat and sleep according to appropriate times in your destination.

Many infectious diseases are transmitted through contaminated food and water, and insect bites. You can reduce your risk of these diseases by following some basic guidelines:

• Don’t consume unpasteurised milk, cheese, ice cream and other dairy products, or raw or undercooked seafood
• Don’t drink tap water or use it to brush your teeth in countries with poor sanitation. Use filtered or bottled water instead
• Don’t put ice in drinks. Bottled fizzy drinks with an intact seal are usually safe, and so are boiled water and hot drinks made with boiled water
• Don’t eat salads, uncooked fruits and vegetables unless you’ve washed and peeled them yourself
• Don’t eat food that has been kept at room temperature in warm environments, or that has been exposed to flies

Try not to go to areas that are highly infested with biting insects. Malaria mosquitoes bite between dusk and dawn, so being indoors during these hours can reduce the number of bites. Research shows that products containing the chemical DEET are the most effective insect repellents and are safe when used correctly.

Mosquitoes can bite through tight clothing, so wear loose-fitting long trousers and long sleeves in the evenings in malaria hotspots. Sleep under a mosquito net to avoid being bitten at night and carry a small sewing kit so you can repair any holes that develop. 

Travellers’ diarrhoea is the most common illness in people travelling from the UK to developing countries. TD is caused by eating or drinking contaminated food or water. Foods most likely to cause TD are those that have not been thoroughly heated or that have been left out at room temperature.

You can reduce your risk of TD by following good food and water hygiene practices. If you develop TD, drink regularly to avoid dehydration. In most cases, TD will only last a few days but you may want to pack medications. 

Website
NHS: preventing diarrhoea

Having asthma should not prevent you from travelling and enjoying your holidays. Planning ahead is key to having a great time away and dealing with any potential problems with your asthma. Health experts advise preparing for a trip four to six weeks before you travel.

Things to avoid

• Smoking rooms
• Scuba diving 
• Confinded spaces

Top tips

Carry all of your medication in your hand-luggage incase your checked-in luggage goes missing You can carry essential medicines of more than 100ml on board, but you’ll need prior approval from the airline and airport and a letter from your doctor or a prescription. All asthma medicines taken on board should be in their original packaging, with the prescription label and contact details of the pharmacy clearly visible.

Travelling with a long term condition such as cancer isn’t straightforward, but many difficulties can be avoided with good planning. Discuss your travel plans with your doctor to assess whether you’re fit to travel. Different types of cancer have different treatments and often require you to take specific precautions when you travel.

Health experts advise preparing for a trip four to six weeks before you travel.

You can carry essential medicines of more than 100ml on board, but you’ll need prior approval from the airline and airport and a letter from your doctor or a prescription.
Some people with cancer, particularly some types of lung, stomach and bowel cancer, have a higher risk of DVT. Some travel vaccines cannot be taken or may be less effective if you have a particular type of cancer or cancer treatment. If you’ve had chemotherapy and a stem cell transplant, you may have your lost immunity to diseases that you were previously vaccinated against. Therefore, you may need new jabs.

Having diabetes should not prevent you from travelling and enjoying your holidays. Planning ahead is key to having a great time away and dealing with any potential problems with your diabetes. Health experts advise preparing for a trip four to six weeks before you travel.

Things to consider as part of your preparation include:

• Diet
• Whether you’re at home or abroad, make sure you still eat healthily
• You should be able to choose foods from local menus and still eat a balanced diet. Overseas travel is also an ideal time to try different foods
• If you’re flying to your destination, don’t order a special diabetic meal on board. These are often low in carbohydrate so they’re generally unsuitable
• On long haul flights, take some healthy snacks with you as airline meals tend to be smaller than average meals
• In some countries, blood glucose is measured differently from the UK

Bring a letter from your GP explaining your need to carry syringes or injection devices and insulin. Some GPs charge for writing a letter. If you travel frequently, ask them to write it in such a way that it can be used more than once.

Carry all your diabetes medicines as hand luggage, in case your checked-in bags go missing or your medicines are damaged in the baggage hold. Diabetes UK advises against storing insulin in checked-in luggage as the freezing temperatures in the hold may damage it. If you have to take insulin in your checked-in luggage, place it in an airtight container or in bubble wrap, then a towel, and pack it in the middle of your suitcase. When you arrive, check that the insulin hasn’t been damaged in the hold. Look out for crystals and test your blood glucose levels more frequently.

Most people with a heart condition are able to travel, as long as they feel well and their condition is stable and well controlled. If you’re recovering from a heart condition, such as a heart attack or heart surgery, it’s often best to wait until you’ve fully recovered before you travel.

Your GP or heart specialist can advise you on whether you’re fit enough to travel by air. Health experts advise preparing for a trip four to six weeks before you travel.

Pacemakers and ICDS

If you have a pacemaker or an implantable cardioverter-defibrillator (ICD), bring your device identification card with you. Tell security staff that you have a pacemaker or ICD as it can set off the security metal detector alarm. Ask to be hand searched by security staff or checked with a hand-held metal detector. The metal detector should not be placed directly over your device.

Children often get motion sickness more than adults. Early symptoms of motion sickness include hot flushes, dribbling and paleness.

What to pack

Several medicines are available to reduce or prevent symptoms of motion sickness. You can buy them from pharmacies or get them on prescription. Anti-sickness remedies containing hyoscine are the most effective medicines for motion sickness. There are several brands of medicines containing hyoscine and they come as a soluble form for children.

• Avoid staring at moving objects, such as waves or other cars. Instead, look ahead a little above the horizon at a fixed place
• Keep motion to a minimum. For example, sit over the wing of a plane or on deck in the middle of a boat
• Avoid heavy meals before and during travelling. It may be a good idea to avoid spicy or fatty food
• On long journeys, it may help to have a break and get some fresh air, drink some cold water and take a short walk
• Ginger can improve motion sickness in some people. It can be taken in ginger biscuits, ginger tea or as tablets before a journey

Rehydration Sachets

Rehydration sachets help replace fluids and salts lost through diarrhoea, vomiting and too much sun. You can buy sachets of rehydration salts from your pharmacy and add them to water. They provide the correct balance of water, salt and sugar. Your doctor or pharmacist may also recommend rehydration drinks for your child, if you are worried they may become dehydrated. Do not use homemade salt or sugar drinks. Always consult your pharmacist.

Mosquito net

A mosquito net is vital for sleeping in malarial countries. When buying a net, make sure it is impregnated with permethrin. Permethrin is a contact insecticide, which will kill insects landing on the net and, therefore, increase the net’s effectiveness. Generally, nets will need to be impregnated again with permethrin after six months of use. Carry a small sewing kit so you can repair any holes that develop in the net.

Anti-Malarial drugs

Visit your GP, pharmacist or practice nurse four to six weeks before you leave to find out what malarial cover you’ll need. They will also have up-to-date advice about the cover you need, and which strains of malaria are resistant to which drugs.

Emergency medical supplies

Kits available from pharmacies, including sterilised and sealed syringes, sutures and needles, can be useful when visiting developing countries, where hospitals and dentists may not have properly sanitised equipment.