Update on Malaria Tablets

I'm absolutely shattered today, had a busy day, but I promised myself to stick to the plan no matter what - and the plan says write a blog post every day, so here I go. Apologies if it doesn't make sense, though. If you feel like skipping this one, I won't take it against you, I'll take it as an excuse to jabber on...
Anyway, I'm glad I have pushed myself to wash, vacuum and wax the car yesterday, and now it shines so amazingly, I'm really proud. I took all the photos of exterior, interior and the engine, to list it online. I also prepared few 'For Sale' ads which are now fitted in the car - I already had one guy asking me about the car, so they must be working!

I was at the surgery today to get necessary vaccines for the travel. It turns out that my Hepatitis A and Yellow Fever are still valid, so I only got the Typhoid jab today. I thought I already had Hep B before, but apparently it's not available free on NHS, it is necessary to pay for it, and the cost of 3 set of jabs is about £130. But when I read a little bit more online, it turns out that most adults received basic Hep B vaccines as kids which are enough for everyday life, unless you work in health industry. It basically covers from any contamination when you're in touch with bodily fluids. But for most adults the early years' vaccines are perfectly enough.

Now, with Malaria tablets, you can actually get them from Boots or larger supermarkets with their own pharmacy section. It's even better to buy them over the counter, as getting them on NHS is the most expensive way. You can also order malaria tablets online, if you fill in a questionnaire about your health, other medications you're currently taking and treatment history. The cost online starts at about £20 and depends on the time you spend in the Malaria risk area. You need to take the tablets few days before your trip, everyday while you are there, and continue for up to 4 weeks after you come back. You don't need to take tablets all the time you are in the country with Malaria risk. Large cities and high altitude places are usually Malaria free. Only if you decide going on the jungle treck or a back-country trip, this time counts only as high-risk.

The most common Malaria tablets are: Malarone, Doxycycline and Lariam, which are all available online. Apparently Malarone is the safest, you take the tablets for the shortest time, and they have got no side effects. Yet they are most expensive. Lariam and Doxycycline are little cheaper, but you have to take them for longer time, and they have number of side effects, from greater sensitivity to the sunlight, nausea to anxiety. But I think, with every medication, this information is included just for warning, but the chance of risk could be small.
I will look into that a little bit deeper tomorrow and try to sort it out. Thanks for sticking with me up till now dear reader, have a lovely evening!