Healthy Travel

Summer holidays should be a time of relaxation and enjoyment - nobody wants them ruined by sickness. So here are some tips to stay well and healthy.

Air travel, especially long haul, can be very dehydrating. Ensure you drink plenty of water and avoid alcohol and caffeine, which are dehydrating. Before a long flight, I like to apply a good skin moisturiser too. A facial mist or water spritz can be really refreshing, especially when travelling to hotter climes.

I always carry snacks with me, such as nuts, seeds and vegetable crudités. Choose the less watery vegetables such as carrots, radishes, cauliflower, celery or cucumber with the seeds removed.

Exercise helps your body tune its circadian rhythm and restore a normal sleep cycle. Get a good night’s sleep and do some exercise the day before your flight. I like to do a full set of stretches in the airport terminal before boarding. Sitting in one position on a long haul flight can be detrimental to our health; there are some simple in-flight exercises we can do to generate body movement without disturbing fellow passengers. In addition to getting up and walking around the cabin, you can stretch the muscles in your neck with neck rolls. Lift up each arm above your head, bend it and with the other hand pull your elbow across behind your head. Lift each foot off the ground and then rotate it through the ankle, first clockwise and then anti-clockwise. Then flex the foot up and down. Contract the muscles in your bottom and hold for 5 seconds before releasing. If you can, pull each knee up towards your chest, hold and then release.

Flights are a great time to relax. Close your eyes, take a deep abdominal breath and become aware of your body. Tense and release the muscles in every part of your body starting with the feet and working upwards through the legs, arms, abdomen and finally the face. Focus on your breathing. It may help to listen to some relaxing music whilst you do this.

Reduce your risk of traveller’s diarrhoea by taking a few simple precautions. If you are not certain that the tap water is safe to drink or even brush your teeth in, stick to filtered, bottled, boiled or purified water. Avoid ice in your drinks. Avoid salads, uncooked fruits and vegetables (unless you have washed and peeled them yourself), dairy products (including ice cream), raw or undercooked shellfish and seafood. Ensure hot food has been freshly and thoroughly cooked.

If you get traveller’s diarrhoea, ensure you drink plenty of water and replace your electrolytes. Saccharomyces Boulardii is a probiotic which can be taken to both treat and prevent traveller’s diarrhoea.

Sunny holidays are a great opportunity to top up our levels of Vitamin D, which is synthesised through our skin from sun exposure. Depending on your skin colour and the amount of skin you have exposed (without sunscreen), you may need just 15 minutes (fairer skins) up to a couple of hours (darker skins). Be careful not to burn and apply sunscreen accordingly. If you experience sunburn, apply a layer of fresh aloe vera gel extracted from inside the leaf a few times a day.

I hope you have a wonderful time!