Traveling to Latin America, Africa, or Asia?  Worried about your health?   Physicians and public health experts have come up with advice that can help keep you feeling good as you travel the globe. You can view this at www.cdc.gov/travel.

An important cause of death among U.S. travelers abroad is motor vehicle crashes.  Here's what to watch out for: cars without seatbelts, drivers who are drunk, roads that are poorly designed, night driving. 

Travelers' diarrhea is usually picked up from eating or drinking something that is contaminated with bacteria or viruses.  Prevent it by eating carefully. If you get sick, it's important to keep up with your fluids.  Get medical help if you fail to consume sufficient fluids, have blood of pus in your stools, or have a high fever.  Ask your physician if you should take along some loperamide and a quinolone antibiotic for standby treatment.

Are you traveling to an area with malaria? 
If so, you need to avoid mosquitoes.  Get insect repellent containing DEET, read the instructions carefully, and follow them.  Sleep in a screened area or under netting.  Consider a pyrethrum containing insect repellent to spray in living or sleeping area.  Consider permethrin to treat your clothes.  Get a prescription for medication to prevent malaria.  If you do get a fever or think you're coming down with malaria,get medical help right away.

Nee  d vaccines? 
Some countries require yellow fever vaccine or meningococcal vaccine. Are you up to date on the immunizations we give to children?  The list includes diphtheria, pertussis, tetanus, measles, mumps, rubella, polio, hepatitis B, Haemophilus influenzae type b, and chickenpox.  If you are older or have certain types of medical problems, talk with your physician about influenza and pneumococcal vaccines.  If your food or water may be contaminated, consider hepatitis A and typhoid, too.  Some travelers to parts of Asia need Japanese encephalitis vaccine.  If you're traveling where rabid animals are a threat, where you may be some distance from good medical care, or if good rabies vaccines may be hard to find, you may want to get rabies vaccine before you go away.

Do you take medications? 
Make sure you have an adequate supply, and don't pack it in your checked baggage.  In pregnancy, some immunizations and medicines can cause problems.  Some diseases, like malaria, are especially dangerous.  Medical advice can help you make good decisions about travel in pregnancy.  If you're going to high altitude, talk with a physician about medications. Medications for jet lag are controversial, but some people are enthusiastic about the drugs that are being studied now.  Prescription scopolamine patches can prevent motion sickness, but they have side effects that are not for everyone.  Some areas have dengue fever or other diseases spread by insects; avoiding them is important.  Some rivers, lakes, and other bodies of fresh water in the tropics carry the risk of schistosomiasis. Find out if they're safe before you jump in.  Remember that you can pick up sexually transmissible diseases while traveling.  Want more information?  The International Society of Travel Medicine  ( www.istm.org ) has information aimed at professionals, but it does include a list of travel clinics.