Whether traveling by plane, train or automobile this holiday season, you can help keep your family happy (and safe) with these easy-to-follow travel tips.
On the Road
Bring along healthy food. Road trips often mean long stretches of highway with grumbling stomachs and nothing to fill them but gas-station convenience snacks. Avoid that fate by bringing meals and snacks with you.
Good options, especially if you’re traveling with kids, include peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, fresh fruit, granola bars, carrot sticks and Greek yogurt, if you have a cooler. Don’t choose trail mix or other snacks that could pose choking hazards for young children in a moving vehicle.
Read More: Tips and Tricks for Eating Out
Ditch the electronic devices. Conversations help keep your driver alert. Bring along a conversation starter game to give you and your traveling companions something fun to talk about.
Kids in the backseat? Entertain them with an easy art project, such as making cards for whomever you’ll be visiting. You can also have a sing-a-long or talk about the sites you see out the window.
Get active during rest breaks. Stop frequently and stretch, take a walk or do jumping jacks to keep muscles and joints loose and prevent blood clots.
Read More: Tips for Healthier Holidays
In the Air
Flying presents special challenges if you are older. Older adults are more vulnerable to blood clots and dehydration. Flying also puts you in close contact with other people, increasing the spread of cold and flu germs. For a safe flight:
- Drink plenty of fluids.
- Get up and walk around at least every two hours.
- Pack medications in your carry-on bag to keep them close at hand.
- Perform seated exercises, such as rotating your ankles and lifting your knees.
- Use disinfecting wipes to clean seat handles, tray tables and other shared surfaces, like in-flight touch screens.
At the Grandparents’
If you’ll be hosting young grandchildren this holiday season, take steps to ensure your home is safe.
“Put childproof locks on cabinets and covers over electrical outlets, place padding on the edges of tables, install safety gates, and ensure windows and screen doors are locked,” says Dr. Robert Vyge, board-certified internal medicine physician at Beaufort Memorial Lady’s Island Internal Medicine. “If you have blinds with strings, make sure children can’t reach them, as they can be choking hazards.”
Finally, no matter how you’re traveling, be sure to get a flu shot and any other immunizations recommended by your physician to avoid bringing home an illness.
If you get sick while traveling, see a health care provider day or night through a BMH Care Anywhere video visit on your smartphone, tablet or computer. The app is free and available for iOS and Android devices. Create an account before you leave so it’s ready when you need it.