Health basics
Don't let illness spoil your holiday, take a few precautions.
Getting ready
Make sure you're up to date with your regular health and dental checks before you go. If you're on any medication remember to consult your doctor (GP), and take a bit more away with you than you need, in case you don't get back into the UK on time. If you need needles for treatments such as diabetes or haemophilia, get your doctor to write you an official note explaining why you need them, so that customs officials don't get suspicious.
Check that your regular vaccinations are all correct, and find out whether you need any special ones for your destination.
What to pack
Wherever you are going remember to pack a small medical kit containing painkillers, insect repellent, sticking plasters, sun block, and antiseptic. You may also want to take travel sickness medication and water purification tablets. Women should think about taking remedies for thrush and cystitis if they're going to hot countries.
If you're going to remote areas, or countries where there is a lower standard of hygiene than the UK, you should buy a sealed emergency kit that contains clean needles for injections, sutures to close wounds, syringes, and sterile giving sets for drips.
Medical cover
Get yourself a European health service card (EHIC); it entitles you to basic free medical treatment in most European countries that have reciprocal agreements with the UK. This shouldn't be a replacement for proper medical insurance, however, so get some good comprehensive travel insurance as well.
When you're out there
Think carefully about food and drink safety, avoid overdoing the drink or drugs and getting dehydrated, use common sense in the sun and make sure the safety standards on any action holidays or activities are up to scratch. Many good holiday guidebooks contain useful phone numbers or addresses for emergency doctors or clinics in the local area.
Sexual health
We Brits have a bit of a reputation for losing our usual reserve when we're on holiday. Drink, drugs, warm weather, and skimpy clothing often finds us looking for some sexy fun with one or more new partners. This is fine, so long as you keep a bit of common sense about you.
Take plenty of good quality condoms with you (look for a kite-mark symbol on the packet) because they may not be so reliable or easily available at your destination. Use condoms every time you have sex - a huge proportion of STIs are picked up by Brits who have unprotected sex while abroad, and that includes a number of cases of HIV infections. Most good guidebooks will give you information about where to go if you need emergency contraception, or are worried about STIs.
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