How to Avoid Cholera When You Are Traveling

Wednesday, July 22nd, 2009 at1:52 am by Guest Author

One of the biggest concerns when vacationing abroad is how to avoid cholera when you are traveling. Getting sick in a foreign country is a scary thought. However there are a few things you can do to protect yourself from coming down with a nasty bug when out and about in a less developed country.

Let’s break avoiding disease down into the type of travel you’re planning. If you’ll be staying in hotels and eating at restaurants then you’ll take a much different tactic than if you’re backpacking in a remote area.

Typical tourist travelers only need to take a few simple precautions. The most obvious one is “don’t drink the water” order bottled water to drink and even for brushing your teeth. If you get a drink in a restaurant get it without ice cubes. Make sure your avoid any leafy vegetables. They could have been rinsed off in contaminated water. Instead stick with fruits and veggies that have a thick peel like bananas, oranges, and avocados. A little bit of common sense is all it takes to keep healthy on your trip.

purell-hand-sanitizer I always carry a small bottle of hand sanitzer gel which is a hand cleaning agent that doesn’t require water. Simply squirt a splosh into your palm and rub your hands together to get rid of germs and bacteria. Hand sanitizer is also available in handy to carry wipes.

Backpackers don’t have the same luxuries as the typical tourist. If you’ve decided to hike and pack in to remote areas then you have to have a water purifier. There are all sorts of commercial models out there. You can add chemicals to treat the water as well. But by far the safest thing you can do is boil your water before using it for anything. It’s bad enough to get sick, but it’s even worse when you are far away from home and any sort of medical care.

Watching what you eat and drink and purifying the water is your best bet when thinking about how to avoid cholera when you are traveling. A little bit of forethought can prevent any nasty incidents and let you enjoy a well-earned vacation.