Information for Travelers
Every year more Coloradans are traveling internationally for both vacation and business. Health risks for travelers are higher in developing countries and rural areas because of differences in sanitary conditions, available food and water sources, and immunization coverage. In developed areas, health risks are similar to those in the United States. Your risk of becoming ill while traveling depends in part on where you are traveling, the length of stay, activities while traveling, your health, and your vaccine history.
Most vaccines take time to become effective in your body and some need to be given in a series over several days or weeks. Therefore, you should schedule a visit to your doctor or a travel medicine provider 4 to 6 weeks before your trip.
For more information visit the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Travelers’ Health website at www.cdc.gov/travel. This website will give you the most up-to-date recommendations and requirements for your destination, as well as current information about disease outbreaks.
CDC's IZ tips for travelers (89 KB)
Explore Travel Health with CDC’s new Yellow Book ( 2012 )
CDC's Yellow Book of Health Information for International Travel is published every two years as a guide for those who advise international travelers of health risks. Although the Yellow Book is written primarily for healthcare providers, others will find it very useful since it covers a wide variety of travel-related health topics, including vaccine recommendations.
Yellow Book: CDC Health Information for International Travel