How to Prevent Holiday Illnesses

There are many reasons to maintain the gift of a good immune system, ranging from healthy ambition to practicality.

Any traveller would rather avoid the inconvenience of lost days (or sometimes weeks) resulting from preventable illnesses on holiday. For a few unlucky passengers, airlines are known to have refused boarding to those suspected of certain illnesses, particularly contagious diseases.

Awareness of the tips in this article will help travellers stay healthy, plus maximise the holiday enjoyment, and avoid inconveniences.

Starring travel expert Judith Chalmers, the video below features some important medical items to consider when travelling abroad.



Amongst other things, Judith recommends taking:

• Headache tables – Taking these from the country of departure allows the active ingredients and dosage levels to be clearly stated. (The foreign equivalent may not be available in English).

• Diarrhoea medicine - Overcomes the infection and restores the body's electrolyte levels when this common holiday blight arises.

• Insect repellent - Helps stave-off insects which can introduce medical complications.

• Sun cream - Extends the period of expose to the sun before burning and sun stroke may take effect. Never underestimate the harmful power of the sun.

Significant numbers of travellers succumb to stomach problems while venturing abroad, often due to contact with contaminated food or water sources. This can include swimming pools, tap water, ice cubes and bath water: Anything ingested orally carries a risk of illness if hygiene standards at the holiday location are inadequate.

Follow these tips on how to prevent holiday illnesses:

1. Keep clean!
Hand washing regularly, minimises the spread of bacteria to typical contact points like door handles, tables, taps, buttons and levers. Raising a hand to touch the face is a frequent route which infections can be contracted.

2. Eat fresh!
Avoid buffet food which is kept on hot plates for long periods at warm temperatures, because the chance of exposure to bacteria, spores, and insects increases. Instead, choose freshly cooked meals straight from the kitchen.


3. Beware hidden water...
If a country's water standards are known to be low, be cautious and avoid ingesting it. This extends to ice cubes in cold drinks, washed salads, and swimming in unhygienic pools.


4. Cover up.
Sun cream is only secondary protection, the best method for avoiding sun stroke, sunburn, and possible long term risks, is to monitor the duration spent under the sun's UV exposure. Shade and clothing offer more effective primary protection.


5. Elemental maintenance.
Maintain a good immune system by eating well, getting the vitamins and minerals crucial to its function. Allow enough sleep for the body to repair and rejuvenate itself fully, and steer clear of toxins which attack the immune system, making it less efficient. For example; tobacco, alcohol, and drugs. An individual's wellness determines when different people get exposed to the same bacteria, some get ill, and others do not.

Further Information

1. Which Holiday Health Advice - Useful selection of holiday health problems and solutions.
   
   
2. Medical Travel Insurance Guide - Excellent advice for those seeking medical cover as part of their holiday insurance.
   
   
3. BBC Guide to Health on Holiday - Covering specific topics which are relevant to health concerns worldwide.

Techonrati tags; medical conditions, holiday health issues, food poisoning.

Advice on Stomach Problems Abroad

Health issues are least welcome during a holiday experience, but thankfully medical travel insurance can cover the financial expenditure involved. Knowledge and advice regarding frequently occurring illnesses can help too.

Indiscriminate health problems which can strike anyone on holiday are common diarrhoea and stomach-bug type illnesses. These can so often wreck travel plans, for example, a case of food poisoning preventing day trip excursions which have already been paid for: Travel insurance would cover such a loss.


Holiday illnesses may not be restricted to just a dose of bad luck for the occasional traveller. For example, over 1,000 holidaymakers were affected by infected food and water supplies throughout an entire resort in the Dominican Republic, which subsequently led to a significant legal compensation claim by the ill and hospitalised tourists.


Below we explore the different types of common infection and their properties:

• Cryptosporidiosis is caused by a water-borne parasite which is strongly resistant to chlorine treatment. It is found world wide and can be contracted from contaminated bathing water or drinking water.

• Gastroenteritis causes intestinal and stomach problems including abdominal pains, vomiting, and dehydration. This infection is common and bacteria may be caught from infected food.

• Norovirus is a highly contagious virus which can be spread from person to person, or even from coming in to contact with unhygienic surfaces. It is also caught from infected water and food sources resulting in stomach disorders. Due to the proximity of passengers at sea, cruise ships are particularly monitored for Noroviruses.

Travel insurance for medical issues experienced at sea, on land, during a holiday or business trip, provides the reassurance necessary when the above illnesses strike.

Not having to worry about the repayment of medical fees might also reduce stress and aid the immune system's recovery time!


Technorati tags; ;Cruise ships, holiday health, medical travel insurance, food poisoning.

Medical Travel Insurance

Everybody knows someone who has needed to claim on their medical travel insurance whilst on holiday. It is a fact of life that although we like to pretend we are invincible, sometimes injury and illness occur, often at the most inopportune times.

Health issues occur with shock randomness, perhaps involving pre-existing medical conditions, sometimes new complications, and even issues arising from travelling abroad, e.g. A car crash on the wrong side of the road.

Being liable for perhaps tens of thousands worth of medical costs, transportation fees, and medical care, in a country which operates its health services in a different format, would spoil anybody’s holiday. Medical travel insurance allows consumers to relax in the knowledge if the worst happens; they're covered.

In the UK, from 2006, the European Health Insurance Card (EHIC) replaced the E111 paper, entitling card holders to basic health care equivalent to local European residents. Note that having an EHIC card is helpful but not comprehensive.

The requirement for health insurance still remains, because not all eventualities are covered by the EHIC and in some countries the agreement is not free health care, but for a partial reduction in medical costs there. Repatriation on medical grounds is not included with the EHIC, and is a further reason to posses a valid insurance policy.

Specialist Medical Travel Insurance

Sufferers of existing medical conditions and pregnant women are particularly advised to double-check the detail in their medical travel insurance quote. These categories are higher risk groups for insurers, and so levels of cover vary significantly. Some insurers will even exclude cover in certain situations. (e.g. If more than 28 weeks pregnant).

The good news is that some insurance companies offer dedicated products specifically for people in these categories.

Insurance Providers:

For travel insurance for pre existing medical conditions visit GoodToGoInsurance.com.

http://www.free-spirit.com - Free Spirit is a specialist insurer providing tailor-made travel insurance for people who have pre-existing medical conditions.

http://www.sevencorners.com/insuranceplans/travelmedical - Eligible medical expenses will be waived for pre-existing conditions.

http://www.medicitravel.com - For people with pre-existing medical conditions.

http://www.travelbility.co.uk - Insurance for the disabled or people with pre-existing medical conditions.

http://www.snowbirds.org/html/medipac - Canadian Snowbird Association - Medipac Travel Insurance.

Compare Medical Cover

To compare the wider market in medical travel insurance try a comparison engine, some allow for quotes to be returned relating to preferences with or without pre-existing medical conditions:

http://www.moneysupermarket.com/c/travel-insurance

Check a detailed quote from each insurer and ensure familiarity with the the level of insurance cover.

Policy Documentation

In the event of a medical emergency, the hospital needs to see the policy to assure themselves that the expenses of the medical treatment will be honoured. Therefore it is advisable to carry a copy, or at the very least have an email with those key policy details on, because ultimately when health incidents occur abroad, insurers will play a critical role.

Technorati tags; holiday health issues, medical travel insurance, pre-existing conditions, specialist medical insurance, travel insurance.