The winter holidays are traditionally the time perfect for families to gather and celebrate the season of giving. This year, we are all in the fight of our lives as we must take responsible actions to slow the spread of a dangerous virus that led to a global pandemic. With vaccines giving us hope that there will be some end to the COVID-19 pandemic, medical experts are encouraging us all to continue to do our part to slow the spread even as we can see the finish line. One way that we can do so is to avoid non-essential travel.
The United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) suggests that the “safest way to celebrate the holidays is at home with the people who live with you. Travel and gatherings with family and friends who do not live with you can increase your chances of getting or spreading COVID-19 or the flu.”
If you must travel and have taken the calculated risk to do so, be extra vigilant regarding social distancing, mask wearing, handwashing, the use of hand sanitizers, and try to avoid touching too many surfaces that other people touch, as well as your face. Respect safety protocols that are put in place to protect the public and if you do feel sick, please stay at home.
For those who must travel, U.S. News & World Report suggests the following ways to stay healthy during holiday travel:
- Plan your meals ahead of your trip.
- Get a good night’s sleep before your trip.
- Stay active and avoid sitting for long periods of time.
- Avoid inflight alcoholic beverages, coffee or caffeinated drinks and drink lots of water instead.
- Prepare for unexpected delays.
- Plan family activities around fitness.
- Pack healthy breakfast options to avoid high calorie breakfasts.
Airplanes and other public transportation expose you to lots of germs, viruses and bacteria. Proper handwashing and maintaining a healthy immune system are key to staying healthy when traveling amongst these throngs of holiday travelers this season.
You may walk-in to any of our convenient Primary Medical Care Center community clinics, or you may schedule an appointment by visiting our website at www.primarymed.com, or call (305)751-1500 for our Miami-Dade clinic, or (954)289-0000 for our Broward clinic.
https://newsroom.aaa.com/category/travel/
https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/daily-life-coping/holidays/winter.html