Medications for Travel in Developing Countries
Written by Andrew
Most people that travel extensively, even in highly developed countries in North America and Europe, have experienced some form of illness while away from home.
My worst experience with this came in Dakar, Senegal. Almost seven years later I’m still not sure what did it, but I was violently ill with some form of dysentery for 24 hours. Nothing seemed to help, including what little (completely unlabeled) medication I was able to find. Some local friends suggested I see a French expat doctor, and I promised I would if the symptoms lasted into a second day. Thankfully I recovered before I got to that point, but I spent the rest of the trip worried the symptoms would return, completely terrified of every bite of food I ate. I lost around seven pounds.
In the intervening years I didn’t travel a lot outside of work trips, but when Kira and I started traveling together I knew I wanted to do anything I could to avoid a repeat of that terrible 24 hours in Dakar. So I reached out to a friend that works in the medical field to give me some advice on the best medications to pack for extended international travel. (Special thanks to Doc Mike for hooking me up with these goodies.)
I keep all of this stuff packed in a Patagonia Black Hole packing cube. Mine is black, because it’s what I had on hand, but if you’re building one of these kits I recommend a brighter color that stands out in your bag, like orange. I never really believed in color coding gear in my bag until I tried it—it really does help. An alternative if you’re traveling to a particularly rainy destination (Southeast Asia, Latin America in the rainy season) would be to pack all of this in a waterproof case from Pelican or Otterbox, provided you have the space in your bag.
In the following list I’ve done my best to provide both the common brand names you’ll find in US pharmacies, and the actual drug names and doses. This is to give you a resource if you need to replenish supplies while traveling where American brand names might not be available, and to give you an idea of the dose you should be looking for in that third world “pharmacy.”
Packing cube
Bacitracin - for minor cuts or scrapes
Transdermal Scopolamine (1.5mg patch) - anti-nausea patch you put on your neck. Good for long bus rides or regional flights, especially in mountainous areas.
DripDrop - rehydration powder. Tastes good too.
LifeStraw - only for trips when I might be in areas without access to bottled water. I’m all for avoiding plastic bottles when I can, but I’m not willing to risk my health to do it.
Bandaids - self explanatory. I only pack a few because they’re pretty much useless in most cases. Dermabond, or some simple gauze and tape, will work better most of the time.
Ducilax (5mg) - we picked this up in Colombia when the anti-diarrhea medication worked a little too well.
Loperamide Hydrochloride (2mg) - treats acute diarrhea. In the US this is commonly labeled as Immodium.
Ondansetron (8mg) - commonly known as Zofran in the US, this anti-nausea tablet is really good at stopping you from vomiting if you start getting that queasy feeling. Pretty much useless once you start puking though, unless you can get the vomiting under control long enough for the tablet to digest into your bloodstream.
Hydrocortisone cream - good for rashes, stings, etc.
Dermabond - basically medical grade superglue. This is my primary solution for dealing with blisters and cuts, especially in a wet environment.
Toilet paper - again, self explanatory. Nothing worse than sitting on a toilet only to realize there’s no tissue.
Acetaminophen (500mg) - Tylenol. Preferred over other painkillers in this case because it’s better for treating fevers.
Diphenhydramine - Benadryl. Good solution for stings, rashes, and other allergy symptoms. Also helpful to get to sleep on long bus rides without (at least for us) completely knocking you out like a muscle relaxer would.
Azithromycin (1g powder packets) - Antibiotic used to fight bacteria. Good for any number of uses while traveling, but especially can help kick stomach bugs when you inevitably catch one.
Obviously the amounts of each medication I pack will vary based on the duration of the trip. So far I’ve never had to resupply any of these medications at a local pharmacy, but I’m sure that might happen on a truly extended trip. For shorter trips I’ll cut down from this full packing cube of supplies to only two or three doses per medication, and omit some entirely. I do like to keep a lot of DripDrop on hand, because even if you aren’t sick sometimes it’s nice to plus up on electrolytes.
I’ve found it’s a good idea to keep a small ziplock bag with a few doses of these medications in my day bag at all times while traveling, so even if I’m away from my main backpack I always have enough supplies to deal with any immediate issues, from blistered feet to an upset stomach.
Quick fix for a blister in Cartagena, December 2019.
Note: Prior to taking any medications, consult a medical professional. I’m not a doctor, I’m not trying to play one on the internet, and I don’t know what additional drugs you’re taking that might interact negatively with those on this list. This is also a good place to add that we recommend getting checked by your doctor prior to taking any extended international trip. It might sound like a silly precaution, but there’s nothing quite like being sick in a place where you don’t speak the language. Best to do everything you can to prevent illness before leaving on your trip.