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Travel Health Medications

Essential Travel Health Medications for Every Journey

During your travels, you may encounter situations in which you may need medicines to alleviate some discomfort and pain. It’s good to carry some essential medicines and first aid tools with you to ensure a safe and smooth journey.

At Meds For Less we have a range of travel health medications including medicines for motion sickness, altitude sickness allergy medicines, pain and fever relief options like Ibuprofen and paracetamol and cold and flu medicines.

You can now order Travel health medicines from Meds For Less easily, conveniently and reliably and have them delivered to your home address within 24 hours.

There are several essential medications and remedies for travel health which can help alleviate symptoms like nausea, vomiting and drowsiness. These key medicines include:

Dramamine – an Over the Counter (OTC) medication that prevents nausea, sickness and vomiting during road travel
Prescription Scopoderm patches which also help to prevent nausea, vomiting and motion sickness on longer journeys such as cruises
Acetazolamide is a common prescription that can be used in the treatment of acute mountain sickness by helping the body get used to higher altitudes more easily and reducing symptoms like nausea, headache and fatigue.

At Meds For Less, you can find a range of Travel health pills for a range of Travel related illnesses. Please check out our full catalogue and know that you can easily, reliably and conveniently order Travel health meds from us and expect next day delivery to your home address.

Preventive Medications for Safe and Healthy Travels

When you undertake any travel, particularly to new and unique environments, taking preventive medications can help ensure a safe and healthy journey.

Ensure that your vaccinations are up to date, particularly if you are going to a country where there is a high risk of infection. Important vaccinations to ensure that you have are the Typhoid vaccine, malaria prevention vaccine, yellow fever vaccine and Hepatitis A vaccine.

Other preventive medications include pills for Traveller’s diarrhea such as Pepto-bismol, Imodium or Prophylactic Antibiotics which can reduce the risk of diarrhea occurring.

Preventive medications for motion sickness include Dramamine or Cyclizine (for short journeys) and Scopoderm patches (for long journeys). There are also medications like Acetazolamide for altitude sickness which can be helpful if you’re going mountain climbing or flying.

Medications for Common Travel Ailments

Its always a good idea to carry a pack of medicines for common travel illnesses with you when you travel. These travel health medications can include:

Medicines for Traveller’s diarrhea such as Loperamide (Imodium) and Pepto-bismol
Medicines for both short term motion sickness (Dramamine) and long term motion sickness (Scopoderm patches)
Medicines for altitude sickness to help you on flights and during travels to high mountainous locations such as Acetazolamide.
Medications for cold and flu symptoms such as decongestants, lozenges and painkillers (such as paracetamol and Ibuprofen)
If you have a history of allergic reactions, it’s best to carry some antihistamines or Epi-pens with you.

Check out our full travel health medication catalogue at Meds For Less to find out what we offer and how you can use these to smoothen your journey.

Allergy and Pain Relief On-the-Go

Unfortunately, while travelling you may have an allergic reaction or get hurt unexpectedly, so it’s always important to have some allergy and pain relief handy with you.

Some good allergy relief options include:

Non Drowsiness causing AntiHistamines such as Loratradine (Claritin), Fexofenadine (Allevia).
Antihistamines like Bendrayl are more long acting, however they can cause drowsiness, these can be useful for nighttime use.
For Nasal congestion, good anticongestants include pseudoephedrine (Sufaded) or Oxymetazoline (Afrin)
Emergency allergy medication for allergic reactions or anaphylaxis such as Epi-Pens
Some topical treatments like hydrocortisone creams or calamine lotions

Some good pain relief options include:

Over the Counter Pain relief such as Paracetamol or Ibuprofen might be helpful for headaches, lowering fevers or even pain relief with sprains or cuts
Cold or Hot packs can also help provide good pain relief in case of sprains or muscle injuries

A good Allergy and Pain relief travel health pill combination is Advil Allergy and congestion relief which combines antihistamines, decongestants and pain-relief.

First Aid Essentials for Travelers

A well prepared first aid kit can help you have a smoother and safer journey. Some important components include:

Wound care such as band-aids (adhesive bandages) for small cuts, sterile gauze pads for larger cuts and antiseptic wipes for cleaning wounds
Pain relief options such as Paracetamol for headaches, Ibuprofen for inflammation, pain and fevers and Lidocaine gels for sore muscles.
Allergy relief solutions such as Loratradine (Claritin) or Fexofenadine (Allegra) or emergency Epi-Pens
Stomach and digestive care options such as anti-diarrheal medicines, anti nausea travel health pill options, antacids and some constipation medication.
Cold and flu care options such as decongestants for nasal congestion, cough drops and lozenges and fever medicines like paracetamol or calpol (for children).

It might also be useful to pack some minor medical tools for first aid should you need to use it.

How to Choose the Right Travel Medications

Choosing the right travel medicines requires careful planning and anticipation of potential health risks, your personal needs, any prescription medicines you may be on and any destination specific challenges.

First of all, assess your destination, is it tropical ?, is it in the mountains ? is it a beach? or is it urban ? You may consider packing altitude sickness medications like Acetazolamide if you’re going high in the mountains or packing antihistamines like Fexofenadine if you’re going to a densely packed city.

If you have any long term medical conditions for which you take prescription medications, you should take these as well as some back up, just in case. If you have any known allergies, you can also consider carrying some antihistamines and an emergency epi-pen.

Another factor to consider when choosing the right travel medication is the mode of travel. Motion sickness medicines like Dramamine or Cyclizine can help during shorter journeys whereas Scopoderm patches can be used for longer ones.

Packing some essential medicines like pain relief, stomach and digestive aids, antiseptic wipes and antibiotic ointments might also be wise, regardless of where you are travelling.

Tips for Packing Travel Health Medications Safely

You may consider following the tips below to pack your medicines in a way that they remain safe and accessible throughout your journey.

Keep some medications in your carry on luggage and handbags to ensure that you have a back-up supply incase of your check-in luggage getting lost or being mishandled
Use the original packaging of the medicines you are carrying with clear labels to make complying with security and custom regulations easier
You may consider carrying a pill caddy to effectively organise medicine intake, if you need to take it daily
Keep the medicines you are carrying away from extremes of temperature. This is particularly the case for temperature sensitive medications like Insulin, which can be kept in insulated packs or cooling pouches.
Pack extra medicines and supplies to account for any unexpected needs or delays.

What medications should I take when traveling abroad?

When travelling abroad, packing essential medicines ensures you’re well prepared to manage pre-existing medical conditions and most common health issues that may arise when you are abroad. These essential medicines to pack include:

Your regular prescription medications for any medical condition you may have – always remember to pack some extra to account for any emergency or urgent need.
Medicines for common digestive issues while travelling such as diarrhea, constipation, indigestion and bloating
Pain and fever medicines such as Paracetamol and Ibuprofen
Motion sickness medicines such as Cyclizine , Dramamine or Scopoderm patches
Allergy relief medicines such Antihistamines and decongestants
Cough and cold medicines such as decongestants, cough syrup and lozenges
Skin protection such as insect repellent, sunscreen, moisturizes and some antiseptic creams.

For a more exhaustive list of medications you should carry when travelling abroad, you may consider researching your destination, your mode of travel, any prescription you may need and consulting with your healthcare provider.

How can I prevent motion sickness during travel?

Motion sickness affects a lot of people during travel. There are a range of both conservative and pharmaceutical options you can employ to prevent motion sickness.

Some conservative measures you can use to prevent motion sickness include eating light before travelling, staying hydrated during the journey, focusing on a stable point over the horizon outside the window, and avoiding reading or screen time during travel.

You may also wish to pay special consideration to where you sit during journeys, for example, choosing the front seat in a car, choosing a seat over the wings in a plane, facing forward and sitting near a window in a train, and staying near the centre of the deck or below deck on a ship.

Medical options to help with motion sickness include Over the Counter (OTC) options like Cyclizine and Dramimine which can help on short journeys or prescription medicines like Scopoderm patches which can help on longer journeys.

What are essential medications for digestive issues while traveling?

You may be exposed to unfamiliar foods, water or environments while travelling which may cause digestive issues like indigestion, constipation, bloating or diarrhoea. Having some essential medicines for digestive issues can help relieve discomfort that arises from these issues. These can include:

Loperamide (Imodium) medicines which help reduce gut motility and relieve diarrhea
Oral rehydration salts can help you rehydrate appropriately after diarrhea
Pepto-Bismol medicines can help sooth the stomach and relieve diarrhea
Laxative medicines such as Biscosadyl or Psyllium Husk for constipation which can help make stools more bulkier and easier to pass
Antacids or Proton Pump Inhibitors (e.g. Omeprazole) for heartburn or stomach acid reflux
Anti vomiting medicines such as Dramimine or Ondansetron which can help relieve bouts of nausea and vomiting.

Do I need a prescription for travel health medications?

Some of our Travel health medicines at Meds For Less require a prescription, these include the prescription altitude sickness medicine Acetazolamide, the anti-nausea medicine Cyclizine and long journey motion sickness Scopoderm patches.

There are also some Over the Counter (OTC) alternatives for travel health medicines such as Dramamine tablets or Sturgeon tablets which can help relieve travel sickness.

You can check out our full catalogue of both OTC and prescription medicines for travel health on our website.

How should I store medications while traveling in different climates?

Proper storage of medicines while you are travelling is essential to ensure they retain their safety and effectiveness.

You should aim to store medicines in their original packaging or blister packs as these are designed to protect them and even have clear labels for proper identification.

You can pack some of these medicines in your check in luggage and some of them in your carry on luggage, which will allow you to always have medicines in hand if you need it.

If you are travelling to a hot climate and you are carrying medicines like Insulin or certain antibiotics which require cool storage, you can use an insulated travel bag, ice packs or a portable medication cooler to help keep these medicines cold.

Important note: DO NOT FREEZE YOUR MEDICINES when TRAVELLING to keep them COLD

If you are travelling to a very cold climate, it’s also important to ensure that medicines don’t freeze as they can lose their effectiveness. To keep them sufficiently warm, you may consider using an insulated pouch.

In humid environments, you can protect your medicines from moisture by storing them with silica gel packs or in sealed packs to prevent damage.

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