Tips to Stay Healthy While Traveling

Travel may be seeing a rebound—but how do you stay healthy while on the road?

Here are some tips for reducing stress and boosting the immune system while traveling.

Wear Noise-Canceling Headphones

Cancel out the ambient noise during your flight. Engine noise on the plane can stress the body and mind, and numerous studies have shown the effects of noise on stress on the immune system. Pilots wearing noise-cancelling headphones have been shown in studies to have increased alertness and lower stress.

Hydrate

Flights are dehydrating to the body, so make sure to drink lots of water before, during, and after your flight. Fruits and vegetables are made up of mostly water and can be more hydrating than plain water since they are made up of structured (gel) water.

Chia seeds can also absorb water and convert it to structured water, so try adding them to your water bottle or smoothie to hydrate at the cellular level. Chia seeds are also full of antioxidants to help boost the immune system.

Stay Away From These Foods If You Start to Feel Sick

If you start to feel sick, avoid as much sugar, dairy, and wheat as much as possible, along with other inflammatory and processed foods. Stick with whole foods to give the immune system a boost.

Try Aromatherapy

To further decrease travel stress, try smelling essential oils, which stimulate receptors in the nose that send chemical messages to the brain and affect our mood and emotions to help us relax.

Some to try and their benefits are:

• Lemon: mood-boosting
• Lavender: stress relief
• Chamomile: relaxation
• Peppermint: vertigo and nausea

Prioritize Sleep

To get the best sleep possible while in a hotel room, make sure the room is cool and dark, and take a warm bath or shower before going to bed. Keep your phone six feet away from you and don’t use it before going to sleep. If you will be in a new time zone, set your mind and clock to the time at your final destination as soon as you begin your travels, and keep your schedule of eating and sleeping according to that time.