Air travel: how to stay healthy and comfortable
Summer is a great time to get away from it all. But between you and that relaxing beach there’s often the prospect of a long, arduous flight. We’ve come up with a few tips on what to wear, eat and drink, plus some exercises you can do on board, to make flying a healthy and pleasant experience.
Food and drink
- Light and healthy: Choose light, nutritious, gently cooked foods that are easy to digest.
- Plenty of fluids: Drink a cup of water every few hours. Choose mineral water or diluted fruit juice rather than alcohol or coffee.
Clothes
- Loose-fitting and comfortable: Wear comfortable, practical clothes. Women are likely to find leggings and a tunic-style top more comfortable than tight-fitting jeans or pants. Tracksuits or light, loose-fitting summer clothes are a good choice for men. Also wear comfortable shoes.
Exercise
- Walk around: Get up regularly and walk a few paces up and down the aisle to get your circulation going, especially in your legs. This helps prevent potentially dangerous deep vein thrombosis.
- Activate your upper body: Lean against the back of your seat with your spine straight, your elbows at right angles and your hands clenched into a fist. Now activate all the muscles in your abdomen, legs and upper body by pressing against your seat. Stay in this position for a few seconds, and then release. Repeat the exercise ten times.
- Improve the circulation in your legs: Sit comfortably on your seat with your legs at a right angle. Stretch one leg as far forward as you can without losing contact with the floor. Hold it there for a few seconds, then return to the starting position. Then repeat with the other leg. Do ten repetitions with each leg.
VACANZA: SWICA travel insurance for worldwide protection.
A VACANZA supplementary insurance plan from SWICA gives you optimum cover anywhere in the world. In the event of illness or accident, SWICA offers you worldwide financial protection and pays for the medical treatment and any rescue and repatriation costs. You’ll find more information here or at www.swica.ch.16.08.2017
In the event of further health-related questions, SWICA customers can contact the santé24 telemedicine service free of charge on +41 44 404 86 86. A telemedicine practice licence allows santé24 physicians to provide additional medical services in cases that are suited to a telemedicine approach. SWICA customers can also use the BENECURA medical app to carry out a digital SymptomCheck and receive recommendations about what to do next. During a subsequent phone call with santé24, customers can decide for themselves whether to release their information from SymptomCheck to santé24.
