Knee pain is one of the most common complaints among travelers. If you have arthritis or any other knee ailments travel for you may be more difficult than others. From long car rides to small leg room in many planes, knee pain and travel do not go well together. If you’re traveling and suffer from knee pain here are a few ways you can make your trip more enjoyable:
Exercise. You can help ease knee pain by strengthening the knee before your trip. Find exercises online that will help with quads and use weight machines. Note that this should be part of your normal routine anyways as it will help your overall knee health. But if you’re exercising the knee for the first time, try to start several months before your trip.
Eat the right foods. Eating healthy when traveling is always a good idea, and very difficult. But there are certain foods that will help you with your knee pain. Foods with tumeric are the best to eat when you travel because they contain all natural anti-inflammatory properties that will lower the swelling in your knee.
Travel with ice. Bring a cold ice pack with you on the road. If you’re driving bring a cooler filled with nice and a rag that you can use frequently. If you’re flying icing your knee before your go through security will help keep the pain to a minimum. Ask the flight attendant for ice if you’re still having problems on the flight.
Always remember your medicine. Any anti-inflammatory medicine should be a part of your packing routine when traveling. Aleve (either the brand name or generics) is the best medicine, especially for longer trips (it lasts up to 12 hours). Ibuprofen will also do the trick, just remember to take it more often.
Try to get an aisle seat. Most airlines will let you pick your seats for free. If you’re able to plan ahead, book an aisle seat. It will guarantee some extra leg room for you on a flight. Even if the airline charges a few extra bucks, it’s worth the money.
Stretch. A good idea whether you fly or drive to your destination is to stretch when you can. In the airplane try to get up and walk around once or twice during shorter flights, and three or four times for flights lasting longer than 5 hours. In the car, schedule some extra time to get out and stretch your legs. Short bathroom breaks at rest stops are all you need to move around and get the blood flowing.
Wear a knee brace. I have lots of knee problems, and one item I always forget is my knee brace. Don’t be like me! A knee brace will help compensate for bad ligaments because it will help keep the knee stable.
If you have severe knee problems our air ambulance can help you travel while receiving the care of trained medical professionals. Our services are especially helpful for those recovering from knee surgery, or those who want to travel to the best hospital for knee surgery and then return home. For more travel tips follow us on Twitter.
Health Tips by Travel Care Air 