malaria

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mgingras

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québec canada
It's my first trip to roatan and the RED CROSS talk to me about MALARIA.
is the pills are very necessary.
we leave 18 juanary for 2 week turquoise bay resort.
thank for the answer.

MICHEL
 
Necessary---no. The last 3 trips to Roatan, I eliminated the meds....but we stay at Fantasy Island and/or Anthony's Key...don't go on the Zip line and use deet.

Advisable--Yes. Maralia is present on Roatan and taking the meds is your best precaution.
 
CDC web site says malaria is present on Roatan. I've taken the meds on the 3 prior trips just in case. Chloroquine, for me at least, has caused no problems. Prevention is easier than the cure.
I, too, have spent the majority of my time at FIBR and have not had issues with bugs. FIBR fogs the place every morning so the mosquitos appear to be pretty well controlled.

I dont know about bug control at Turquoise Bay, where you are staying but you would definitely want to use insect repellent if leaving any resort area, especially on jungle or zipline trips.

Whether to medicate or not is definitely a personal choice - only you can decide.
 
The Dengue Fever Virus is just as debilitating and potentially deadly as well.

From MD Travel Health:
Outbreaks of dengue fever, a flu-like illness which may be complicated by hemorrhage or shock, are reported annually from Honduras. A total of 6000 cases was reported nationwide for the first nine months of 2009, including three deaths. A major dengue outbreak was reported in the summer of 2007, causing more than 33,000 cases and eight deaths by the end of the year . . .Dengue fever is transmitted by Aedes mosquitoes, which bite primarily in the daytime and favor densely populated areas, though they also inhabit rural environments. No vaccine is available at this time. Insect protection measures are strongly advised, as outlined below.

Wear long sleeves, long pants, hats and shoes (rather than sandals). For rural and forested areas, boots are preferable, with pants tucked in, to prevent tick bites. Apply insect repellents containing 25-50% DEET (N,N-diethyl-3-methylbenzamide) or 20% picaridin (Bayrepel) to exposed skin (but not to the eyes, mouth, or open wounds). DEET may also be applied to clothing. Products with a lower concentration of either repellent need to be repplied more frequently. Products with a higher concentration of DEET carry an increased risk of neurologic toxicity, especially in children, without any additional benefit. Do not use either DEET or picaridin on children less than two years of age. For additional protection, apply permethrin-containing compounds to clothing, shoes, and bed nets. Permethrin-treated clothing appears to have little toxicity. Don't sleep with the window open unless there is a screen. If sleeping outdoors or in an accomodation that allows entry of mosquitoes, use a bed net, preferably impregnated with insect repellent, with edges tucked in under the mattress. The mesh size should be less than 1.5 mm. If the sleeping area is not otherwise protected, use a mosquito coil, which fills the room with insecticide through the night. In rural or forested areas, perform a thorough tick check at the end of each day with the assistance of a friend or a full-length mirror. Ticks should be removed with tweezers, grasping the tick by the head. Many tick-borne illnesses can be prevented by prompt tick removal.
MD Travel Health - Honduras - vaccinations, malaria, safety, and other medical advice
 
Yep - a good argument for prevention of bites - very good advice. Dengue is some nasty stuff.
 
Yep, that pretty much sounds just like what I do to prepare for each dive I make on Roatan:rofl3::rofl3::rofl3::rofl3:
 
We decided not to do any meds for our trip to Roatan last year.
We did take Cactus Juice Cactus Juice: Prickly Pear Skin Care for Naturally Healthy Skin and DEET and used them often. The DEET we only used in the evenings to prevent mosquito bites. The people at our resort who did not use any bug protection got bitten, one lady really bad. She said she always got bit when there so she didn't even bother with the spray anymore. I think she is nuts, her back was covered in noseeum bites (she spent an afternoon laying in a hammock), but I guess that was no big deal for her. :shocked2: We found the Cactus Juice worked really well against the noseeums as long as you apply it often. They seem to really love salty skin, right out of the water. Most people get bit on feet and ankle area if not using protection. We never left the resort all week (ziplines or jungle tours), if we had we would have used the DEET on our clothes and legs.
 
We decided not to do any meds for our trip to Roatan last year.
We did take Cactus Juice Cactus Juice: Prickly Pear Skin Care for Naturally Healthy Skin and DEET and used them often. The DEET we only used in the evenings to prevent mosquito bites. The people at our resort who did not use any bug protection got bitten, one lady really bad. She said she always got bit when there so she didn't even bother with the spray anymore. I think she is nuts, her back was covered in noseeum bites (she spent an afternoon laying in a hammock), but I guess that was no big deal for her. :shocked2: We found the Cactus Juice worked really well against the noseeums as long as you apply it often. They seem to really love salty skin, right out of the water. Most people get bit on feet and ankle area if not using protection. We never left the resort all week (ziplines or jungle tours), if we had we would have used the DEET on our clothes and legs.

Robin,

I understand how DEET works. For some reason, a lot of people recommend CJ for Roatan.

Does anyone have any idea how Cactus Juice works? What are the ingredients and has this ever been tested in a lab? Is it really effective? This is a serious question because Malaria and Dengue are no laughing matter. I just returned from Africa and the tropical doctors there were very scornful of the idea of using CJ in Malaria infested areas. We looked at the CJ website and could not find any scientific study or evidence of efficacy. Other than the usual marketing hype about smelling nice and being natural. BTW. We used Deet there and it worked very well.
 
Unfortunately I have found that the only sure fire effective way is a repellent with diluted deet in it. 15% seems to be enough (for me anyway). I don't recommend it before diving - it is super harmful to the reef.

If you are a bite sufferer (some people react a lot more than others) you should cover up legs and feet before dusk. Women especially watch out for that exposed skin at your lower back that shorter tops often show, even if it is only exposed when you sit. This is a commonly forgotten area.
 
Robin,

I understand how DEET works. For some reason, a lot of people recommend CJ for Roatan.

Does anyone have any idea how Cactus Juice works? What are the ingredients and has this ever been tested in a lab? Is it really effective? This is a serious question because Malaria and Dengue are no laughing matter. I just returned from Africa and the tropical doctors there were very scornful of the idea of using CJ in Malaria infested areas. We looked at the CJ website and could not find any scientific study or evidence of efficacy. Other than the usual marketing hype about smelling nice and being natural. BTW. We used Deet there and it worked very well.

I never said that Cactus Juice works for mosquitos. :shakehead: I said it works for the noseeums. :blinking:
We used DEET at dusk/night to protect from the mosquitos.

I also said that if we left the resort during the day to do any jungle activities, we would have used the DEET to protect from the mosquitos. Mosquitos scare the crap out of me as they carry diseases! :shocked2:

I have no idea how the Cactus Juice works on the noseeums. I don't know if it is the smell or some other factor. But it does work. The one day my hubby didn't use it right after diving, he got bit! We were at the dock and he took off his wetsuit and ran to the restroom there. I went ahead and showered, dried off, and then sprayed on the CJ. He got back from restroom and showered and got dressed and walked back to room. Then he remembered he hadn't sprayed. He took off his shirt because he said his back itched - sure enough, there were a dozen bites! We sprayed him and went to eat at Clubhouse. There we mentioned his back and the restroom and we were told that the noseeums live down on the dock (they love the wood planks) and he probably got the bite in the restroom. After that, he sprayed religiously and didn't get another bite. The one day I got bit, on my foot, I knew it immediately! Ouch, those bugs hurt! I had sprayed my feet but I had just rinsed them off in the rinse bucket outside the clubhouse as they were sandy. I learned my lesson. :depressed:
We didn't scratch the bites and they healed within a few days leaving only a small red dot. The dot was gone within a few weeks. :D

We were told that the noseeums were especially bad the week we were there due to all the rain (rainy season). But we were told that they can be bad, even when it is dry out all week. They live in the sand and eat live and decaying materials like people and plants. So the only way to get rid of them on Roatan is to clear off all the trees and pave it. Nope, not gonna happen! So we just have to adapt to them. I was also told (by Patty and Liz at CCV) that living there on the island, most people become immune to the noseeum bites and don't have to use anything. Not all people do though.

robin:D
 

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