Healthrisks travelling in Australia?

In article , Mike
McBain says...
ozexplorer writes:

Are there any special health risks in Australia I have to prepare myself
for? I will just travel a few weeks there. Any recommendation is greatly
appreciated.

Murray Valley encephalitis, Ross River Virus, Q fever.
Taipan, tiger snake, sea snake, king brown snake, red-bellied black snake.
Funnel-web spider, wolf spider, trapdoor spider, red-back spider.
Sal****er crocodile, great white pointer shark.
Various types of 'stinger jellyfish', irukandji.
Giant Queensland stinging tree.

There's more, but those are the main ones.

We lose about five people a year (out of twenty million) from all of the
above combined. Make sure you look both ways before stepping off the
kerb.

"Mike McBain" wrote in message
news:NSTBd.100355$K7.15683@news-
Murray Valley encephalitis, Ross River Virus, Q fever.
Taipan, tiger snake, sea snake, king brown snake, red-bellied black snake.
Funnel-web spider, wolf spider, trapdoor spider, red-back spider.
Sal****er crocodile, great white pointer shark.
Various types of 'stinger jellyfish', irukandji.
Giant Queensland stinging tree.



With such an exensive list, how could you miss the most common one? -

The town drunk in the country pub - you're far more likely to be bored to
death by him.

--
Tony Bailey
Mercury Travel Books

"Mike McBain" wrote in message
...
ozexplorer writes:

Are there any special health risks in Australia I have to prepare myself
for? I will just travel a few weeks there. Any recommendation is greatly
appreciated.

Murray Valley encephalitis, Ross River Virus, Q fever.
Taipan, tiger snake, sea snake, king brown snake, red-bellied black snake.
Funnel-web spider, wolf spider, trapdoor spider, red-back spider.
Sal****er crocodile, great white pointer shark.
Various types of 'stinger jellyfish', irukandji.
Giant Queensland stinging tree.

There's more, but those are the main ones.

That looks like the "oh Sh*t" list, the very mention of which strikes fear
into the heart of many a brave explorer. Now, for a few from the "yeah,
sure, whatever" list....

* Traffic. Coming from Europe, you're probably used to looking to the right
as you step out onto the road. This doesn't work in Aus. Look left. Obvious,
when you think about it... trouble is, you might not think about it until
you hear the screach of tyres and torrent of abuse.

* Dehydration. Drinking water is not always readily available. (Piped water
can be considered safe to drink in all cities and towns, although sometimes
it tastes pretty bad.) Carry water with you if you're going out of town,
bushwalking etc. Be sure to drink plenty, as the warmer climate may increase
your requirement more than you realise.

* Sunburn. A bad case of sunburn can make your holiday a misery, as well as
having longer-term effects. In summer, you can start to burn in under 15
minutes. The NSW Cancer Council
http://www.cancercouncil.com.au/edit...asp?pageid=397 has much more
information than I could give here. The short story though, is use a
broad-spectrum high-SPF (30+ is the maximum recognised under Australian
standards, although some 30+ sunscreens may offer much more protection than
that) and apply it BEFORE you go out. You will need to reapply it
periodically during the day, but once you start to burn NO amount of
sunscreen will save you. Better still, try to reduce your exposure to direct
sun. Stay under cover, or use clothing and a hat to protect you. (Bear in
mind, you can still get burnt through thin clothing.)

* Getting lost/breaking down/getting injured. (Bushwalking/outback) If
you're going into the outback or bushwalking, assume that you will be on
your own if something goes wrong. At the very least, make sure somebody
knows where you're going and when you expect to be back. Consider how you
will summon help in an emergency, and how to survive until help arrives.
This applies even for day trips. (Hikers frequently get lost in the Blue
Mountains - an hour or so from the centre of Sydney.)

These are all risks that are easily overcome, but many people - locals and
tourists alike - get into difficulties because they simply didn't think
about them.

Dave Campbell

"Mike McBain" wrote in message
...
ozexplorer writes:

Are there any special health risks in Australia I have to prepare myself
for? I will just travel a few weeks there. Any recommendation is greatly
appreciated.

Murray Valley encephalitis, Ross River Virus, Q fever.
Taipan, tiger snake, sea snake, king brown snake, red-bellied black snake.
Funnel-web spider, wolf spider, trapdoor spider, red-back spider.
Sal****er crocodile, great white pointer shark.
Various types of 'stinger jellyfish', irukandji.
Giant Queensland stinging tree.

There's more, but those are the main ones.

That looks like the "oh Sh*t" list, the very mention of which strikes fear
into the heart of many a brave explorer. Now, for a few from the "yeah,
sure, whatever" list....

* Traffic. Coming from Europe, you're probably used to looking to the right
as you step out onto the road. This doesn't work in Aus. Look left. Obvious,
when you think about it... trouble is, you might not think about it until
you hear the screach of tyres and torrent of abuse.

* Dehydration. Drinking water is not always readily available. (Piped water
can be considered safe to drink in all cities and towns, although sometimes
it tastes pretty bad.) Carry water with you if you're going out of town,
bushwalking etc. Be sure to drink plenty, as the warmer climate may increase
your requirement more than you realise.

* Sunburn. A bad case of sunburn can make your holiday a misery, as well as
having longer-term effects. In summer, you can start to burn in under 15
minutes. The NSW Cancer Council
http://www.cancercouncil.com.au/edit...asp?pageid=397 has much more
information than I could give here. The short story though, is use a
broad-spectrum high-SPF (30+ is the maximum recognised under Australian
standards, although some 30+ sunscreens may offer much more protection than
that) and apply it BEFORE you go out. You will need to reapply it
periodically during the day, but once you start to burn NO amount of
sunscreen will save you. Better still, try to reduce your exposure to direct
sun. Stay under cover, or use clothing and a hat to protect you. (Bear in
mind, you can still get burnt through thin clothing.)

* Getting lost/breaking down/getting injured. (Bushwalking/outback) If
you're going into the outback or bushwalking, assume that you will be on
your own if something goes wrong. At the very least, make sure somebody
knows where you're going and when you expect to be back. Consider how you
will summon help in an emergency, and how to survive until help arrives.
This applies even for day trips. (Hikers frequently get lost in the Blue
Mountains - an hour or so from the centre of Sydney.)

These are all risks that are easily overcome, but many people - locals and
tourists alike - get into difficulties because they simply didn't think
about them.

Dave Campbell

Looking the wrong way when stepping off the curb onto the road!!

Driving when excessively tired (especially if you've consumed alcohol!);
mainly since European drivers on empty roads in these circumstances have a
tendency to drive on the right!! Never a good move in Australia!




"ozexplorer" wrote in message
...
Are there any special health risks in Australia I have to prepare myself
for? I will just travel a few weeks there. Any recommendation is greatly
appreciated.
cheers,
marc

This DOES kill people. I remember driving in OZ in 1971 (after I had been
there for several months) somewhere in the middle of Queensland wondering why
the approaching car was on MY side of the road - I was in the wrong. You have
to keep your mind on driving on the LH side of the road if you car coming from
North America.

With that experience in mind, my wife and I had no problems in 1985 when we
drove in OZ for about 6 weeks.

Mind you, we did hear of the North American tourist who killed herself and her
husband when she drove head-on into another vehicle (a BIG lorry I think it
was). She was driving on the RH side of the Princes Highway somewhere along
the Victoria coast......

Similar thoughts about stepping off the curb....

A Mate wrote:

Looking the wrong way when stepping off the curb onto the road!!

Driving when excessively tired (especially if you've consumed alcohol!);
mainly since European drivers on empty roads in these circumstances have a
tendency to drive on the right!! Never a good move in Australia!

This DOES kill people. I remember driving in OZ in 1971 (after I had been
there for several months) somewhere in the middle of Queensland wondering why
the approaching car was on MY side of the road - I was in the wrong. You have
to keep your mind on driving on the LH side of the road if you car coming from
North America.

With that experience in mind, my wife and I had no problems in 1985 when we
drove in OZ for about 6 weeks.

Mind you, we did hear of the North American tourist who killed herself and her
husband when she drove head-on into another vehicle (a BIG lorry I think it
was). She was driving on the RH side of the Princes Highway somewhere along
the Victoria coast......

Similar thoughts about stepping off the curb....

A Mate wrote:

Looking the wrong way when stepping off the curb onto the road!!

Driving when excessively tired (especially if you've consumed alcohol!);
mainly since European drivers on empty roads in these circumstances have a
tendency to drive on the right!! Never a good move in Australia!

In article , Dave
Campbell says...
* Traffic. Coming from Europe, you're probably used to looking to the right
as you step out onto the road.

Probably not. Do this in Europe and you won't pass on your genes.
Evolution in action.

This doesn't work in Aus. Look left. Obvious,
when you think about it...

Not as obvious as you think!

trouble is, you might not think about it until
you hear the screach of tyres and torrent of abuse.

Look both ways, but be aware that when you step off the kerb, the
traffic is generally going to be coming from your right, unless it's a
one-way street or similar oddity.

In article , Dave
Campbell says...
* Traffic. Coming from Europe, you're probably used to looking to the right
as you step out onto the road.

Probably not. Do this in Europe and you won't pass on your genes.
Evolution in action.

This doesn't work in Aus. Look left. Obvious,
when you think about it...

Not as obvious as you think!

trouble is, you might not think about it until
you hear the screach of tyres and torrent of abuse.

Look both ways, but be aware that when you step off the kerb, the
traffic is generally going to be coming from your right, unless it's a
one-way street or similar oddity.

In article , Ken Pisichko says...
This DOES kill people. I remember driving in OZ in 1971 (after I had been
there for several months) somewhere in the middle of Queensland wondering why
the approaching car was on MY side of the road - I was in the wrong. You have
to keep your mind on driving on the LH side of the road if you car coming from
North America.

It's the narrow outback roads that'll get you. With line markings and
divided roads on the major (and minor) highways, you should be able to
keep on the correct side of the road. But when it shrinks to a single
lane of bitumen and passing cars have to put a wheel onto the shoulder,
or it's totally unpaved, well, it gets a bit more problematic. The
sudden appearance of an oncoming car at a bend or crest and the foreign
driver reflexively pulls to the right-hand side of the road, at the same
time as the oncoming driver reflexively pulls to the same side.

There's another place where oncoming traffic can be a little tricky, and
that's on Fraser Island, where the long ocean beach is an officially
gazetted road. In general, traffic keeps to the left, but sometimes,
depending on the waves and the firmness of the sand, cars will pass each
other on left side to left side. The protocol is to indicate which way
you are going with your blinkers and there is usually no problem because
visibility is excellent and you can see oncoming traffic for kilometres
in advance.

Pete, noting that it's that 0.001 percent of the time that will get you.