Getting fit to fly: How to look after your health before flying abroad

Millions of Britons escape the UK over the summer months and jet off for a holiday abroad. Going abroad is an adventure, but it can take a toll on your body – especially if you’ve not been properly vaccinated.  

To help you stay healthy wherever you are, in this article, we highlight what vaccinations you may need before going away, how to keep healthy on a flight, and how to battle jet lag.

Pre-flight preparations: How to prep your body for a long haul flight

Flying can be part of the adventure when travelling, but it can be strenuous on your health due to many factors, such as cabin pressure, sitting in one place for many hours, and motion in the air.
There are ways to help prevent these issues, particularly if you are going on a long haul flight.

When flying for more than 6 hours, being in a plane can put you at higher risk of certain health concerns. This is because cold, dry air, high altitudes, sitting in one position for too long without moving, and turbulence can upset the body and cause issues.

These can include:

• Dehydration
• Fatigue
• Headaches
• Dry eyes
• Motion sickness
• Ear pain
• Sinus blockage
• Muscle soreness
• Gastric reflux
• Deep vein thrombosis (DVT)
• Blood clots

How to prevent deep vein thrombosis and blood clots

Developing deep vein thrombosis and blood clots is a high risk on flights, especially long haul. This is due to the combination of prolonged immobility, cramped seating, and cabin dehydration, which can reduce blood circulation, allowing blood to pool and clot in the lower part of your body.

To counteract this, there are some simple steps you can take to prevent DVT:

1. Make sure to stretch your legs and get some exercise during the flight. You can do this by walking around the plane every few hours and changing positions in your seat.
2. You can also wear compression socks during the flight. These garments apply gentle pressure to your lower legs, ankles, and feet. By squeezing this area of the legs, they reduce distended veins and encourage blood flow back to the heart.

If you already experience DVT or blood clots or are at high risk of these conditions before flying, discuss your health with a medical professional before travelling. They can advise on whether flying is an appropriate option for you.

How to prevent dry eyes and ear pain

During your flight, your eyes can become dry due to the low humidity and cooler air. Ways to help prevent dry eyes include drinking water before and during the flight, avoiding direct airflow from the overhead vent, trying blink more often (especially if you are often looking at a screen), and using eye drops if you need them. If you wear contact lenses, glasses are usually kinder on your eyes on a long flight as contact lenses can start to irritate your eyes.

Ear pain can happen during a flight due to the change in pressure as you ascend into the air. To counteract the pain, focus on equalising the pressure in your ears during take off and landing. You can do this by swallowing frequently, chewing gum or sucking on a hard sweet, and avoiding sleeping through descent if you can. If you’re congested from a cold or allergies, a decongestant or antihistamine may help during your flight.

Jet lag

As you travel through different time zones, jet lag can occur when your circadian rhythm is out of sync. This can cause issues with your sleep, insomnia, daytime fatigue, digestive issues (such as diarrhoea or constipation), and mood changes.

To help prevent jet lag, try to adjust your sleep a little towards your destination’s time zone before you travel, get good sleep before you leave to avoid sleep debt, drink plenty of water, and limit alcohol and too much caffeine during the flight. When you land, you can also avoid jet lag by switching to the new time zone as soon as you arrive by getting daylight at the right time, eating meals at local times, and keeping bedtime and wake time as regular as possible.

Are there any health conditions that can stop you from flying?

There are certain health conditions that may prevent you from flying abroad at all. This can include if you have severe or unstable heart failure, serious breathing problems, serious contagious infections (such as tuberculosis), end-stage pregnancy, uncontrolled high blood pressure, or recent trauma involving trapped gas in your body.

If you have just gone through surgery, you may be recommended not to fly, depending on the procedure performed. Discuss if and when you can fly if you are recovering from surgery with your surgeon, and they will advise on the best course of action.

Vaccinations and health screening

Getting your vaccinations done before flying is extremely important, as this helps prevent you from catching serious foreign diseases and will help you fight infection if you have caught an illness.

Before travel, you should make an appointment with your GP to discuss your plan to take a trip, so they can arrange an appropriate vaccination schedule. This will have to be carried out promptly, so ensure you notify your GP as soon as you can. Ensure you give specific details of the country/countries you are visiting, along with the time of year that you are planning to travel and the duration of your trip. 

You won't always need vaccinations to travel abroad, but it is best to check with a health professional first.

Common vaccinations given to patients include:

• Cholera
• Hepatitis A
• Hepatitis B
• Japanese encephalitis
• Meningococcal meningitis
• MMR (measles, mumps and rubella)
• Polio
• Rabies
• Tetanus
• Typhoid
• Yellow fever

Be prepared for a healthy trip

If you have health concerns or medical conditions already, these won’t disappear just because you’re going on holiday. Remember to order and collect any regular prescriptions to cover your time away and consult any doctors or other healthcare professionals you see regularly. A healthy holiday is a happy holiday!