Traveling is certainly entertaining & enlightening experience. However, traveling long distances to alien lands carries its own difficulties. The two aspects of health concerns during a travel are:

1. sudden and significant changes in altitude, humidity, microbes and temperature.

2. health risks due to poor hygiene and sanitation & unavailability of medical services.

All people planning travel should become informed about the potential hazards of the countries they are traveling to and learn how to minimize any risk to their health. The main points all travelers should consider is:

1. Understand health risks

2. Learn personal preventative measures you may need while traveling

3. Know what vaccines to get and when to get them

4. Mode of travel: health considerations

5. Environmental health risks

6. Injuries and violence

7. Infectious diseases of potential risk for travelers

8. Vaccine-preventable diseases and vaccines

9. Exposure to blood or other body fluids

A recent WHO report says that contrary to the general fear among some travelers of catching some exotic diseases, most of the serious medical conditions result from injuries due to the unforeseen natural & social conditions, as well as reckless activities on the part of the travelers themselves.