Traveling for a vacation is support to be a fun, carefree and relaxing experience, but that’s not always the case. The most important thing for anyone traveling is to stay safe and healthy. For example, according to Dr. Ashima Oza, a primary care physician and an instructor in the Division of Medicine at Weill Cornell Medicine, “from flu-like symptoms to digestive tract upsets, feeling ill post-vacation affects up to 80 percent of returning travelers.”
In extreme cases, traveling can even be deadly. According to a report from Fox News Digital, a U.S. tourist died in Laos after “suspected alcohol poisoning this summer.” News that like is causing governments to issue new travel warnings, including the British government.
According to Fox News, the British government has added eight countries to its list of travel warnings, and it relates to to the risk of methanol poisoning from tainted alcohol.
Travels ‘May Face Risk’ of ‘Contaminated Alcohol
“The United Kingdom’s Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) has warned that tourists visiting Ecuador, Japan, Kenya, Mexico, Nigeria, Peru, Russia and Uganda may face a risk of methanol poisoning from counterfeit or contaminated alcohol,” Fox News reports.
They add that “according to an Oct. 21 advisory from the FCDO, the new warnings follow ‘an increase in cases of serious illness and death caused by alcoholic drinks tainted with methanol in popular overseas travel destinations.'”
“The expanded list builds on existing guidance for countries including Thailand, Laos and Vietnam,” the FCDO added.
Methanol, according to Merriam-Webster, is a “light volatile flammable poisonous liquid alcohol CH3OH used especially as a solvent, antifreeze, or denaturant for ethanol and in the synthesis of other chemicals.”
Methanol is sometimes added to alcoholic drinks to make them cheaper to make. As the Guardian notes, “Sometimes it’s added deliberately and illegally during or after manufacturing as a cheaper way to increase the alcohol content in a drink.”
The Guardian adds that “death is not inevitable if only a small amount of methanol has been consumed and rapid treatment will greatly reduce damage,” but “permanent vision damage can occur even at non-lethal doses if treatment is not administered quickly.”
Common Symptoms of Methanol Poisoning
The common symptoms of methanol poisoning are “blurry vision, vomiting, confusion, nausea, visual loss, headache and intoxication,” according to Dr. Sampson Davis, an emergency room physician, who told Fox News Digital the information.
“Methanol binds to the same receptors as alcohol and will give you the same elated feeling,” the New Jersey-based physician said.
So, even though this travel warning is from the British government, Americans would be wise to consider it themselves, too.
