healthandcruises

Cruises and Some Risks
To Your Health

Seasickness is the most common illness encountered on a cruise. If you have a tendency to develop motion sickness or nausea, you might want to reconsider going on a honeymoon cruise. Or, see your doctor beforehand and see about medications you can take, such as
Dramamine, to help get you through. You can also help prevent seasickness by getting a cabin in the center of the ship, such as in the middle deck or in the middle of any floor.
The calmest place of a ship is always it's center. For your first cruise maybe you could try a large (presumably more stable) ship that goes somewhere you really really want to go. Or try a very short cruise first to see how you feel. Beside seasickness the most common illnesses onboard has become the Norwalk- infection, a virus infection, which cause mild to moderate gastrointestinal symptoms.
The Norwalk infection and various respiratory illnesses (like the common cold and flu) are the most common afflictions that can rise to the surface on cruise ships, but bacterial ailments may become problematic as well. Organisms such as salmonella, shigella and E. coli have caused recent outbreaks of diarrhea on ships. The best form of protection against illness is frequent handwashing.
If you have a Norwalk infection, and you're walking around on dry land, you probably won't infect a lot of people, whereas in a closed space like a cruise ship, it's easy to spread a very hardy virus. If more than two percent of the passengers aboard any vessel show gastrointestinal symptoms, the ship must undergo special procedures to disinfect all common areas.
So, if you become ill, either on the ship or on a land excursion away from the ship, remember to report your illness to the medical facility on the ship so they can try to prevent further outbreaks.
Some cruise lines are giving partial refunds to passengers who need to cancel their trip because of sickness, so be sure to look into that as well.

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