8 ways to avoid always getting sick on vacation

Fed up with always getting sick while you travel?There may be a medical cause to your illness. Discover how to help avoid getting ill on vacation.

This phenomenon really exists; it’s called leisure sickness which is similar to paradise syndrome. A study conducted by a group of Dutch psychologists in 2001 on this subject, came to the conclusion that 3.6 per cent of men and 2.7 per cent of women suffer from it.

The most common symptoms are:

• Common cold or flu symptoms;
• Feeling run down;
• Nausea;
• Headaches;
• Muscle aches and pains;
• Feeling depressed;
• Anxiety.

When you're in an “active” stage, your body produces adrenaline to deal with the stress that you are going through, which in turn helps you to make it through the day. However, at the same time the body also secretes another hormone called cortisol, which weakens the immune system.

When your stress level lowers, adrenaline ceases to be secreted by the body and cortisol fills the void, leaving the body wide open to ailments. So once your vacation time starts, the body is affected in a negative way by the sudden absence of stress by weakening your immune system.

People who work many hours on a weekly basis, throughout the year and who are under a lot of stress are the most susceptible.

In the long run, stress can diminish your ability to defend yourself against unfriendly bacteria and various viral attacks. Combined with other factors, the risk can be even greater. Here are a few of those factors:

• Poor sleep;
• Smoking;
• Poor diet;
• A sedentary lifestyle;
• Undiagnosed depression;
• Change of environment and food;
• Increased social activities;
• Change in your sleep routine.

This will take quite a bit of will power, as some of your deep-seated habits will have to be changed.

1. Reduce work hours.
2. Reduce stress levels at work and in your personal life (try yoga, start therapy, etc.).
3. Do not wait until your vacation to let your body and mind rest.
4. Reduce some of the demands on your time or responsibilities that you've assumed.
5. Regularly engage in physical activity.
6. Increase sleep.
7. Adopt a positive attitude.
8. Strengthen your immune system by taking vitamins and supplements.