Along with fun and excitement, traveling also brings a measure of stress on a body’s health and well being. It takes a toll with later nights, strange beds, hectic (yet fun!) schedules, and exposure to more people and places and thus more germs. There is nothing worse than being out of town and sick, except being out of town, sick and without your favorite supplies. It’s doubly awful if the ones who succumb are young children!

Our family had a stomach bug catch us several years ago on the tail end of a long trip for my husband’s job. Having Tummy Tuneup, Activated Charcoal, Essential Oils, and Vitamin D on hand helped kept me from getting sick too, and we were able to get home quickly and recover.

Here are the strategies and items that I consider absolutely crucial in my family’s travel arsenal.

1. When I get to our hotel room, I immediately plug in our diffuser. Optimally, I can add Eucalyptus Essential Oil and Bandito Blend into the Breeze and then we can go out for a couple of hours, giving the essential oils time to do their disinfecting jobs. But, since I have littles, I will usually turn instead to a child-friendly combination of Lemon, Spearmint, Tangerine and Thyme to diffuse. Those oils are less irritating to their little systems but still are effective at going after bacteria.
2. I always bring a small travel size spray bottle. When I arrive, I add several drops of Spearmint, Thyme and Tangerine Essential Oils and then fill with water. I use this to wash down all the surfaces in the hotel. You can also pull down the beds and spray the mattresses, if necessary; just spray lightly and then allow to air dry. That, combined with diffusing into the air, will cleanse the room of the majority of potential threats.
3. Before we go out in crowds, we prevent, prevent, prevent! If it’s summer, I usually skip the Vitamin D. But if it’s winter or we already seem a bit unwell, we dose up with Cod Liver Oil for extra Vitamin A and D. A dose of an elderberry syrup is next. And finally, we never travel without our probiotics! Our choice is usually Tummy Tuneup because it is easy to dose the little ones, and it’s shelf-stable so I don’t have to worry about keeping it refrigerated.
4. In case our tummies go sour, we keep extra Tummy Tuneup, Activated Charcoal, and essential oils on hand. Our favorites are Spearmint (for anyone under 10), Peppermint, and Oregano, each well diluted in a carrier oil and massaged on the feet, lightly on the abdomen, and down the spine. We open a capsule and put Tummy Tuneup powder under the tongue. I use Charcoal to both treat and prevent the spread of upset stomachs; it’s highly absorbent and can quickly bind to toxins and move them out of the digestive system.
5. If a nose is running, we dose up with our Berry Well and Vitamin D [LINK] and then keep a paper towel handy with a few drops of either Spearmint or Peppermint to assist in breathing. (I use Spearmint for children under ten and Peppermint for ten and over.) We also brew a big cup of Red Raspberry Leaf Tea to sip. All you need is your hotel room’s coffee maker and you are all set with hot water to make enough tea for everyone.
6. Cuts and bruises! Busy travel days in unfamiliar environments can lead to more accidents and injuries than normal. I clean well with soapy water and then slather on some Miracle Skin Salve. For stings, bites, and sunburns, I bring along a baggie of dried Plantain (at home we often use the fresh leaves, but in urban areas it can be scarce or there is a possibility of pesticides). For fresh plantain, just chewing it up a bit and applying the crushed leaf to the sting or bites brings almost immediate relief. You do that with dried plantain as well, or you can make a poultice with hot water and the dried leaves.

While these items don’t chase away every chance of sickness, they do make any downtimes on trips a lot less stressful. Have we missed any of your favorite tips or products? We would love to hear your travel tips!