Tips on How to Stay Healthy During Travel

We’re in the middle of summer already. Can you believe it? I’m sitting here thinking about my summer traveling. We’re not doing as much traveling this year as we usually do, but we are going on our annual week away with extended family. There’s a lot more to traveling though besides packing my clothes in a suitcase! There is a lot to consider. There’s always stress attached to the preparations for our camping (in a cabin) in the mountains because there’s no big grocery stores where we go. So forgetting anything is a bigger deal because we can’t run into the local “general store” and find organic snacks, herbal remedies, or coconut oil. Planning ahead is important! I hope keeping these tips in mind will help you remember how to stay healthy during travel.

REST

You may be wondering why I put that there but even in the days leading up to your travel (and while you are away) sleep is still really important! Your immune system is probably already taxed by the stress you are under planning the trip, making purchases and looking for a swimming suit you find tolerable, so sleep is really important to stay healthy. This is even more important if you are going to be crossing time zones. The last thing you want is to get sick on your vacation!

Eat Healthy – Now AND on your Vacation!

Right before a vacation is not the time to drastically change your diet, but hopefully you already make healthy choices with foods at least most of the time. Try your best to take care of your body through food both before and after your traveling. While away, try to choose salads, fresh vegetables, herbal teas and try to stay away from overly processed foods and all the tempting sugar!

Our family avoids all artificial ingredients, gluten and soy. It’s not always easy to find places to eat when traveling so we do tend to travel with our instant pot or get a hotel with a kitchenette. It’s a few extra dollars on the hotel bill but saves us money overall from eating out. It all balances in the end and we don’t have reactions to the wrong foods to destroy our time away.

When we do eat out, we keep these things in mind. Try to select farm to table restaurants where they tend to make their food from scratch and really know the ingredients. This way they can answer all of your allergy questions without hesitation and you can generally trust their answers. Resist the urge to splurge and indulge in things you normally would not at home. Load up on the salads and veggies. Take your activated charcoal (see supplements below) to help detox.

Drink Your Water

Hydrate. Hydrate. Hydrate. It’s so easy to lose track of how much water you’re actually drinking especially when sightseeing or enjoying fun activities. Get a head start every morning and drink a glass of water first thing. Yes! Even BEFORE your coffee. In fact, especially if you are a coffee drinker as you don’t want the coffee to make you ‘feel’ hydrated when you are not. Keep a water bottle with you wherever you go. If you can make some herbal tea rather than water that’s awesome! Herbal teas often give you many nutrients and antioxidants in addition to the hydration it offers! I may also throw in some packs of LMNT for this year’s vacation – my new love for adding electrolytes to water!

Keep Moving!

I know. You are on vacation. Who wants to worry about movement when it’s all about ‘rest and relaxation’? Movement is important so remember to do this even if your plan is to lay around reading or hanging on the beach all day. Get up every hour or so and move. Take a relaxing walk through the woods or along a path. Stretch. Play a game of volleyball. Do something to keep your lymphatic system moving.

Take Your Wellness Basket

Okay, so for vacation you will need a smaller basket! But let’s remember that a wellness basket here on the blog doesn’t necessarily mean a physical basket. We’ve already talked about some things that belong there. The things you need for sleep, healthy food and snacks, water and herbs for tea, etc. But there are other things you can put in the ‘basket’.

Supplements

I don’t always take ALL of my supplements with me when we are going away, but there are a few I make sure to pack. I make sure I have my vitamin C for immune support daily and extra in case I get sick, omega fish oils to use in place of ibuprofen at the onset of a possible headache in addition to general health and brain support, activated charcoal for detox and gas relief ( I can also take it out of the capsule to apply to a bee sting or a bad bite). Additionally, I make sure I have NAC (N-acetylcysteine) which is a derivative of the amino acid cysteine, is a pre-curser to glutathione and supports various aspects of health including detox and supports cognitive function and liver support to name just a few. I also take my collagen powder to add to my morning coffee.

Not sure how to travel with supplements? Try sorting them in a small tackle box if you have a lot or in a craft container (the kind with lots of compartments!). Collagen and other powders can be put in snack size Ziploc bags. Liquids and creams can be put into smaller jars.

First Aid Kit for Traveling

I started making a fairly big first aid kit about 5 years ago when we go on our annual week away in the mountains. And you know what? I hardly ever need much from it. But it seemed years beforehand, that those things were missing and needed when I did NOT pack them. So if I have the room, I take it. Here’s a list of things I include in mine to stay healthy and save during traveling. Use it as a guide. What you need will depend on you, your family, where you are going, etc.

First Aid Kit

• Band-Aids, gauze, bandage tape and scissors
• Ace Bandage
• tweezers and a tick removal tool (tweezers for splinters, tick removal tool for ticks – NEVER use tweezers for ticks…there are far too many instances of the body separating from the head leaving the head inside the human!)
• Essential Oils – lavender, peppermint oil, oregano oil, and other blends
• arnica and arnica gel or cream
• Poison Ivy Treatments – cream, homeopathic remedies, and jewelweed soap!
• Alka Seltzer Gold – we use this to help with indigestion or to neutralize our bodies anytime we sense an allergic reaction from food, bees, etc. We avoid artificial ingredients, etc. but occasionally if we are served something and aren’t told all of the ingredients, Alka-Seltzer can help. We use the gold to avoid the aspirin in regular Alka-Seltzer.
• Aloe Vera Gel (for topical use on burns, etc.)
• These three homeopathic remedies are what we like to reach for in a hurry if burned: Cantharis, Urtica Urens, and Causticum. We simply take a dose of each immediately, and then follow the instructions on the bottle or that of my professional homeopath.
• Quercetin and/or Nettle supplements – lovely natural antihistamines!
• Whatever else strikes me depending again on who is going on the trip, where we are going and what our access will be to supplies.

Herbal Tea Bags

I can’t take all my loose herbs in jars when traveling. Well, I could, but that would be tricky plus I’d have no room for clothes. LOL.

I do take my tea bags. These are easy to use in hotels where they provide the water or I can simply heat up some stove top boiled water in a kitchenette. I take a blend of nutritive and immune support herbal blends. This one is coming to camp with me this year! I love that it has hibiscus along with the dandelion.

Essential Oils To Stay Healthy During Traveling

Essential Oils are beneficial for many things.

Lavender can be calming and can soothe a headache or help with sleep. Apply this one to wrists or temples. Dab a bit on your pillowcase too. Some people find it effective as a mosquito repellant or to soothe mosquito bites. I’ve read that dabbing it on the back of the ears can help with nausea. I would love to hear if you have ever tried this! I’ve also recently read that smelling the oil can help ease pain.

Peppermint has a refreshing element after a long trip or to help feel refreshed in the morning. It also can loosen up a stiff neck or sore muscles. Peppermint can also be dabbed behind the ears and other pressure points to help with nausea. Use a carrier oil when applying Peppermint to skin. You can add a drop of peppermint to water to rinse your mouth out instead of taking a large bottle of mouthwash as well.

Frankincense is pretty amazing. Of course we should know that from the gifts of the magi. Frankincense is a lovely essential oil to help ground yourself and calm your mind. Additionally, the amazing antibacterial and antiviral properties of this oil makes it perfect for staying healthy during travel. Before you get on the plane, train or long road trip, place a few drops of frankincense on your wrists and temples. Inhale deeply to give your immune system a boost.

Tea tree is great to add to the first aid kit (see above) for cuts, scrapes, and bites.

Summary

There’s a lot you can do to stay healthy during travel. It’s important to rest, stay hydrated, eat well, and add some things to your travel wellness basket to keep your body’s immune system in check! It’s vacation, so you don’t want to stress over being ‘perfect’ about it. But YOU know what your body can and can’t handle. Don’t splurge on things that will make the rest of your trip miserable. But do let yourself relax and enjoy your time.

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Disclaimer – Just a little reminder here that I am NOT a medical doctor or medical professional of any kind. I’m simply a Christian woman who loves exploring herbalism and other areas of achieving optimal health in a holistic approach. I also love writing and sharing with others all the things I am learning! Be sure to continue reading posts here and also explore a variety of other resources to further your education and knowledge! And always try to apply what you learn as you travel your own wellness journey! See my disclaimer page.