Young Adults Risking Illness in India and Asia

Young Adults Risking Illness in India and Asia

Four in five young Australian travellers (aged 18-34) who are jet setting to Asia and India, risk ruining their holiday and watching their friends have all the fun by skipping vaccinations, new research by Sanofi Pasteur reveals.

The research identified that only 31 per cent of young travellers prioritised vaccinations when planning their trip. Worryingly, this was rated by travellers as being as important as checking for weather updates prior to travel.

Deborah Mills, Travel Doctor and Spokesperson for Travel Medicine Alliance, an Australia wide network of doctors who specialise in Travel Health says that while travel vaccinations are of a lower priority to young, fit and healthy travellers, we live among a nation of people who fear that others may be having more fun and exciting experiences than them, therefore travellers should be more aware of the consequences of becoming sick and missing out while overseas.

&ldquoNot getting properly vaccinated can mean contracting a travel related illness and completely ruining your entire trip, not joining in the activities your friends are enjoying, being left out of holiday photographs and failing to experience the country you having been saving up all year to visit. Staying in a local hospital all week is certainly not on most young travellers 'wish list' of experiences,&rdquo said Ms Mills

The survey, which spoke to 1,042 Australian travellers, suggested that among those who did not get vaccinated before they travelled to high risk regions, 56 per cent of those aged 18- 34 believed vaccinations were not required and 47 per cent believed there was no risk of illness.

&ldquoThis level of complacency and lack of awareness from young Australians, who are taking their health into their own hands, is very concerning. Many diseases that travellers are at risk of contracting are life-threatening if left untreated,&rdquo said Ms Mills.

The survey also identified that one third of young Australian travellers consulted their friends or travel partners to garner health advice.

&ldquoRelying on friends and family to determine if you need a travel vaccine is very risky as there is a high likelihood of getting the wrong advice.

&ldquoTravellers don?t need to have their holiday ruined by a vaccine preventable disease. It?s important that people are talking to their GP or travel medicine clinic prior to travelling to any overseas destination to ensure they are fully protected against travel related illnesses,&rdquo concluded Ms Mills.

For more information to help you make your travel health choices visit www.travellers-help.com.