Travel Tips For Your Family's Health

Protect Yourself and Your Vacation From Sickness

by Tami Hulcher

You've got your tickets, all the plans have been made, the dogs are at the kennel, the neighbors are housesitting...and you're on your way. Ahhh, vacation! Now that you've taken care of everything at home, how about taking care of your other home...the body in which you live. The last thing you want when you go on vacation is to be sick, so here are some tips to keep your immune system strong. * Drink lots of clean filtered water! A good rule of thumb: drink 1/2 your body weight in ounces. For example, if you weight 140 lbs., drink at least 70 ounces of water daily; do not count soda, coffee, juice or other beverages. Water cleanses, and transports nutrients throughout the body. * When flying, you dehydrate faster; causing fatigue, constipation, and toxic build up, so drink double your daily amount throughout the day of the flight. Example- if you weigh 140 lbs., drink 140 ounces of water. * When flying, get up and walk around every 1 hour of waking time. It's also a good idea to stretch occasionally. Gentle neck and shoulder rolls may help as well. * Eat plenty of fresh raw fruits and vegetables every day to keep your immune system, and digestive system working properly. A good rule of thumb: eat at least 3-4 fruits in the morning, and 5-6 veggies in the afternoon or with dinner. This is good for weight loss also, as they will keep you feeling full longer. * Avoid sugar drinks, including sodas, diet sodas, and juices flavored with high fructose corn syrup. Sugar suppresses the immune system for up to 6 hours!!! So a good way to deplete and damage your immune system, is to load up on candy, pies, cakes, ice cream and sodas! Also, soda tends to rob the body of calcium, so drink water instead. * Avoid foods that contain MSG, (monosodium glutamate), partially hydrogenated oils, aspartame, excessive salt, and food colorings. These are all known to be toxic to the body, and disrupt many immune and neurological functions. * Pack healthy items such as raw nuts, trail mix, peanut butter and jelly on whole wheat, carrot and celery sticks, and fresh fruit. You may want to take your favorite herbal teas, like chamomile or peppermint. * Eating fiber-rich foods will help maintain healthy bowels, so load up on whole-wheat grains, nuts, veggies and fruits. White and enriched products are stripped of fiber, so avoid these. * Try to get at least 6- 8 hours of sleep. A few drops of lavender oil in the bath will fragrance the room, and help relax you. It's also good for killing bed bugs and mites in linens, so you may want to take a small spray bottle. * Avoid drinking tap water and using ice cubes and mixed drinks where water is known to be unsafe, or questionable. Make sure the bottled water is from a reliable source. * Also, if you are under the care of a physician, please be sure to check with him her regarding any health tips above, as these are just basic tips and not meant to treat, cure or diagnose any disease. Keeping your body healthy and happy will make for a better vacation. The last thing you need is a compromised immune system, constipation, diarrhea, and a tired body. Eating the proper nutrients, drinking good filtered water, and maintaining good sleep and exercise patterns will benefit your body, your mind, and possibly your wallet! Your body is the only place you have to live, so please take care of it!