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Ecuador Travel - Quito, Volcanoes, Galapagos Island
Located in the Andeas, Ecuador is a land of intrigue for travelers. Travel to Ecuador and you can trek the Amazon, climb volcanoes, or loaf on beautiful beaches. Perhaps the biggest reason to travel to Ecuador is a visit to the famous Galapagos...
Should You Purchase Travel Insurance?
The determination of whether you should purchase travel insurance is a determination of whether you want to assume nothing bad can happen during your travels, or whether should something bad happen you can adequately resolve these unforeseen events....
Travel Jokes
Traveling can be a humbling experience, particularly when you travel to a foreign country. Such experiences, of course, give rise to travel jokes.
Travel Jokes
1. Three brothers are sitting at the bar in a Moscow establishment. An older man is...
Travel to Turkey for the 2006 Total Solar Eclipse
Wednesday March 29th 2006 will be a very special day in Turkey. Shortly before two o'clock in the afternoon local time an eerie darkness will descend across the land. Birds will begin to roost and streetlights will flicker on as the sun slips behind...
Traveling on a Budget? Try These Money-Saving Vacation Ideas
If your spirit of adventure is larger than your travel budget, these money-saving tips might just put your next vacation within reach. 1. Swap homes with other vacationers If you prefer to mingle with the locals rather than other tourists, look...
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Travelling Overseas - Staying Healthy
Every year, millions of people visit developing countries. Of these, many are business people looking for new opportunities.
With a myriad of development potential available in the Asian region, business people are flocking overseas in order to get in at the ground floor. Many travel to these regions on a regular basis, exposing themselves to diseases ranging from differing strains of hepatitis to typhoid and polio.
Unfortunately, many of these diseases are not discriminating - they can be caught even when staying in 5-star accommodation. Also, some of them require long convalescent periods. For example, hepatitis A can mean an absence from work of up to 8 weeks, depending on the severity of the attack.
The problem facing business people and travellers is that often they have not been exposed to a wide range of infections. This means they have little or no natural immunity to diseases common in other parts of the world.
For example, even when staying at resort-standard hotels in areas such as Taiwan, the traveller still has a 1 in 300 chance of developing hepatitis A. Budget travellers increase their risk by as many as six times.
The sensible solution is to make sure you receive the recommended vaccinations for any overseas country you visit. It is important, however, to realize that for many vaccines to be totally effective, a series of doses over an extended period of time are required. For example, hepatitis B vaccines usually require a couple of months before they reach their full effectiveness.
Vaccination is not the only precaution that should be taken when travelling in a developed country. Many diseases are transmitted through food which has been handled by a carrier of the disease. This means that uncooked vegetables, salads, raw meat, shellfish, and drinks made with water or ice are
all potential health hazards, and should be approached with caution.
Other things that should be observed are the general cleanliness of the restaurant or food preparation area. A restaurant with no electricity, meat covered in flies hanging on hooks and perhaps a few stray animals wandering around is hardly likely to be a good risk!
There are also the risks that can be avoided much more easily. These include casual sexual contact, intravenous drug use and other skin piercing activities such as tattooing and ear-piercing.
It is also important that you mention to your doctor that you have been travelling overseas to developed countries if you develop any symptoms such as nausea, lethargy, fever or jaundice after your return. These can often be categorised as a flu or common virus, when in fact they may be symptoms of a hepatitis infection. With full travel details, the doctor will be more able to make a correct diagnosis and suggest necessary further testing.
With almost all health issues, the key to disease free overseas travel is common sense. If you are going to be visiting a developing area, take the time to ensure you receive the necessary vaccinations in plenty of time for your trip. After all, that small amount of forethought may prevent a great deal of trouble later on.
Copyright Felicity Walker 2005
About the Author
Travelling is a much loved past time for the author. Check out <a target="_new" href="http://www.worldtravelinfozone.com">http://www.worldtravelinfozone.com or <a target="_new" href="http://www.worldtravelinfozone.com/international-travel-health/">http://www.worldtravelinfozone.com/international-travel-health/ for more information.
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