Children (those under the age of 15) make up a small but important group of travelers. Their smaller bodies and developing immune systems make their travel health needs unique. There are many considerations to take into account when traveling with children. It is important to consult a health care provider or visit a travel health clinic to discuss your travel plans preferably six weeks before you and your child travel. Vaccines for children In general, there is a higher risk for most vaccine-preventable diseases when traveling abroad and these diseases tend to be more severe in children than in adults.
If you are planning to travel, discuss the following with your health care provider: Verify whether your child’s routine vaccine schedule needs to be adjusted to ensure that they are fully protected before traveling. Consider influenza (flu) shot for children over the age of six months. Flu season usually runs from November to April in the Northern hemisphere, from April to October in The southern hemisphere, and year-round in tropical regions.
Consult a travel health provider to determine if a child should receive vaccines that are not part of the routine vaccine schedule before traveling. There may be age limitations to some travel vaccines. If you are planning to travel with an infant to an area where there is a risk of a vaccine-preventable disease, discuss your options with the health care provider.
Most vaccines are safe for breastfeeding mothers. If you are a breastfeeding mother, discuss vaccination options with your health care provider.
Malaria and children
- Avoid taking children to areas with a risk of malaria. Children are particularly at risk of developing severe malaria.
- If you must travel with children to a malaria-risk area, visit a travel health care provider to determine if anti-malarial medication is recommended.
- Whether taking anti-malarial medication or not, protect children from mosquito bites.
- If anti-malarial medication is prescribed, keep them in child-proof containers and out of reach of children.
- It may be difficult to give children anti-malaria medication because it tastes unpleasant.
- Malaria tablets may be crushed and then mixed with small amounts of food or drink to mask the taste. Ask your pharmacist for recommendations.
- Seek medical attention immediately if your child develops a fever while traveling or after your return (even up to a year after travel). Tell your health care provider that your child has recently traveled to an area where malaria occurs.
Transportation risks
Air travel
- Air travel is safe for healthy infants and children. However, it is
recommended that you wait until newborns are one to two weeks
old before flying. Some airlines will not allow newborns to fly. - Ear pain due to changes in pressure during landing is more
common in children than in adults. To lessen the pain, infants
should bottle or breastfeed. Older children can chew gum or be
encouraged to swallow or yawn. - Plan ahead before taking children on a plane.
Jet lag - Jet lag can develop after crossing multiple time zones. Children
with jet lag may have difficulty falling asleep at night and may
wake up earlier than usual. They may also be irritable and tired
during the day. - Long daytime naps may worsen jet lag by making it difficult to fall
asleep at night. Encourage short daytime naps. - Exposure to sunlight and following the local time zone schedule
can help to minimize jet lag.
Motion sickness - Children between the ages of 2 to 12 are particularly at risk of
developing motion sickness. - To prevent motion sickness, children should avoid reading or
other activities while in a moving vehicle.
