Traveling While Pregnant: What You Need to Know
February 10th, 2009 by Ron Burnley, under Travel and Leisure. No Comments
If you find yourself expecting a child then any vacation you may have planned may need to re-booked or changed if air travel is involved. Of course it will be the doctor that actually says yes or no to air travel depending on your medical situation. An example of particular medical conditions could be additional swelling especially of the ankles plus raised blood pressure or bleeding and in these circumstances a pregnant woman may well be advised against any type of air travel.
Fortunately, unless a pregnant woman is expecting twins or more, in which case the airlines might not let her travel after 32 weeks then you are normally safe to travel up to 36 weeks. For women over 24 weeks pregnant a medical certificate is often required prior to travel as well. Pregnant women are advised to arrive at the airport check in desk earlier to have a better seat allocated to them, one with easier access or room.
Normally, typhoid and hepatitis A and B vaccinations are recommended for Asia and Africa, however, typhoid vaccinations are not recommended for pregnant women although there is no evidence of fetal damage, there is only limited research on the fetal effects of these vaccinations. Malaria is another problem and expectant mothers are advised not to travel to countries where contracting it is a possibility.
Travelers to Australia need to be aware that children under six should not have the hepatitis A or typhoid vaccinations but in all other cases inoculations for children should be current. Always check with a doctor as to which vaccinations are required as they will vary depending on an individual situation and itinerary.
If in a country with hepatitis A or typhoid then the use of bottled water for drinking or even brushing teeth is an absolute necessity and ice should only be used from water that has been purified. In some countries eating most fruit and any raw vegetables is also dangerous as is failing to sterilize hands before eating. It is quite easy to carry travel size bottles of antibacterial hand gels that dry almost immediately and are readily available in drugstores.
Unfortunately expectant mothers have a higher than normal risk of blood clots which increases when flying but the risk can be reduced by wearing compression stockings. Of course it is also a good idea to walk around on a flight whenever it is safe to do so.
Fortunately if a pregnant woman is flying within the first twenty six weeks of pregnancy then there shouldn’t be any problems with insurance but there may be exclusions in the policy after this time. Travel insurance that covers you and the pregnancy after 26 weeks is available from some insurers but it is assessed on a case-by-case basis and excludes cover for the birth of a baby.
