Over one in four Brits at risk of malaria as they travel to hotspots, doctor warns

A GP has warned that a quarter of Brits could be putting themselves at risk of a potentially deadly mosquito-borne disease while on holiday this year. According to a new survey by Asda Online Doctor, 28 percent of adults in the UK will travel to malaria hotspots this year. 

However, worryingly, the survey of 2,000 people found that only one in 10 travellers plan to use insect repellent on their skin, while just 10 percent will use mosquito nets.

And only 12 percent of respondents plan to take malaria tablets despite the medication’s ability to stop the malaria infection and prevent symptoms from developing.

The survey also showed that Turkey, Brazil and Thailand are the most popular malaria hotspots with British tourists this year, based on worldwide malaria data from Travel Health Pro.

Therefore, Doctor Kathryn Basford - GP at Asda Online Doctor, shared a simple method which uses the acronym ABCD to avoid the disease.

“The first step in the ‘ABCD’ guide is being aware of the malaria risks at your holiday destination”, she said. 

“If there is a risk of malaria, the next steps are bite prevention, by using insect repellents and mosquito nets, and chemoprophylaxis, which means taking medication like malaria tablets to prevent infections. 

"Finally, ‘d’ is for diagnosis so make sure you know the symptoms of malaria and seek urgent medical attention if these occur while you’re on holiday or up to a year after you return.” 

The ABCD method:

• Awareness of risk – Before travelling, check the risk of malaria at your destination
• Bite prevention – As malaria is spread by mosquito bites, make sure you know how to avoid getting bitten
• Chemoprophylaxis (antimalarial medication) – Malaria tablets help to reduce the risk of contracting malaria if you’ve been bitten
• Diagnosis – If you travel to an area with malaria risk and develop any symptoms while abroad or up to a year after returning, immediately seek medical attention.

She also shared the symptoms of malaria to spot:

• A high temperature, sweats and chills
• Headaches
• Fatigue
• Loss of appetite
• Nausea, vomiting and diarrhoea
• Muscle pains
• Yellow skin or whites of the eyes
• A sore throat, cough and difficulty breathing.

Symptoms usually take seven to 18 days to appear after you’ve been bitten by an infected mosquito. Sometimes you may not have symptoms for months after travelling and in rare cases, it may be years.

The NHS advises calling 111 or booking an urgent GP appointment if you have travelled to a country where malaria is found and have malaria symptoms.

Countries where malaria is a risk according to Travel Health Pro include: Afghanistan, Angola, Bangladesh, Benin, Bhutan, Bolivia, Botswana, Brazil, Brunei, Burkina Faso, Burma, Burundi, Cambodia, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Colombia, Comoros, Costa Rica, Djibouti, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Eswatini, Ethiopia, French Guiana, Gabon, Gambia, Georgia, Ghana, Guatemala, Guinea, Guyana, Haiti, Honduras, India, Indonesia, Iran, Iraq, Ivory Coast (Côte d’Ivoire), Kenya, Laos, Liberia, Madagascar, Malawi, Malaysia, Mali, Mauritania, Mayotte, Mexico, Mozambique, Namibia, Nepal, Nicaragua, Niger, Nigeria, North Korea, Pakistan, Panama, Papua New Guinea, Peru, Philippines, Rwanda, São Tomé and Príncipe, Saudi Arabia, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Solomon Islands, Somalia, South Africa, South Korea, South Sudan, Sudan, Suriname, Tanzania, Thailand, The Democratic Republic of the Congo (Congo), Timor-Leste, Togo, Turkey, Uganda, Vanuatu, Venezuela, Vietnam, Yemen, Zambia, and Zimbabwe.