Being able to travel in an RV is a wonderful opportunity. There isn’t a better feeling than loading up the rig and hitting the road for a destination. But travel – even leisure travel – can be stressful and take a toll on your body. Stress reduces the effectiveness of your immune system, making you more susceptible to infections and diseases.

However, there are a few simple steps you can take to help boost your immune system and prevent sickness while you’re traveling, including:

• Getting plenty of sleep – Sleep seems to be a remedy for just about everything and it’s no different if you’re trying to avoid illness. Sleep allows your body to repair itself on a cellular level and to more effectively fight off viral and bacterial invaders.
• Staying hydrated – Make sure you drink plenty of water while traveling. In addition to just being good for you, water helps your body stay hydrated, especially if you’re staying in or traveling through dry climates or drinking a lot of dehydrating beverages, such as alcohol.
• Washing your hands – Handwashing is one of the easiest ways to prevent sickness. Try to wash your hands (or in a pinch, use hand sanitizer) after you’ve touched things like gas pumps or after using the restroom and before you eat. Just be mindful that you’ll pick up germs throughout the day, so wash your hands when you can.
• Sanitizing surfaces – Wipe down the surfaces in your RV with sanitizing wipes to keep them clean. The areas that you should pay special attention to include door knobs, cabinet handles and pulls, light switches, seat belt clips, the steering wheel, kitchen counters, toilet handles, and other high-touch areas.
• Eating a balanced diet – It’s easy to think that you can eat and drink whatever you want while you’re on vacation. You deserve those extra hot dogs and beers, right? That may be true, but you will want to still eat a balanced, healthy diet when traveling. Ensure that you get plenty of fruits and vegetables and lean protein to help your body feel its best.

Yes, it’s possible that you could still get sick every now and again, even if you’re following these and other sickness prevention tips. But starting with these basic guidelines can help you kick start a maintenance plan for good health.

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