{"id":6774,"date":"2016-12-27T19:11:11","date_gmt":"2016-12-28T00:11:11","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.worldbiking.info\/wordpress\/?p=6774"},"modified":"2017-01-13T18:07:21","modified_gmt":"2017-01-13T23:07:21","slug":"malaria-our-experiences","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.worldbiking.info\/wordpress\/2016\/12\/malaria-our-experiences\/","title":{"rendered":"Malaria: our experiences"},"content":{"rendered":"

Dealing with Malaria: tips from a two-time survivor<\/h3>\n
\n\t

Malaria is a serious issue for anyone traveling in sub-Saharan Africa, even more so for cyclists who will spend considerable time in villages far away from major medical centers. Your best defense is a good mosquito net, liberal use of repellent and covering exposed areas of the body as soon as the sun starts going down.<\/p>\n

You'll also probably want to take prophylactics. Prophylactics are drugs that guard you against malaria, but are never 100% effective. New\u00a0resistant strains of malaria are cropping up all the time, so you have to stay abreast of the situation.\u00a0<\/p>\n

We're not medical experts, but we have decided to share what we've learned about malaria in hope of leading you in the right direction. Be sure to contact your local Tropical Disease Center to get advice from a specialist.<\/p>\n

Here\u2019s what we\u2019ve Learned<\/h4>\n

Some medical professionals may tell you that you'll build up a resistance to malaria after having spent an extended period of time in a malaria zone.\u00a0<\/p>\n

As far as we can tell this is absolute rubbish, because locals from Senegal to Malawi all complain of being affected by the (sometimes deadly) illness. Lariam, a once popular anti-malarial, has a reputation for causing serious side-effects such as nightmares, paranoia, and in extreme cases, irreversible<\/p>\n

Lariam, a once popular anti-malarial, has a reputation for causing serious side-effects such as nightmares, paranoia, and-- in extreme cases-- irreversible mental illness. We decided those side-effects weren't worth the risk. Chloroquine alone is another option, but only in regions categorized by the WHO as zone 1 (low resistance, eg Morocco, Egypt).<\/p>\n

\u00a0In zone 2 (medium resistance e.g. Mauritania and northern Senegal) one can take a combination of chloroquine plus proguanil, which is what we did.<\/p>\n

In zone three regions (high resistance, all other countries up to Zambia) we took a daily 100mg dose of doxycycline, which is actually an antibiotic. One major side-effect of doxycycline is that it can increase sensitivity to sun. Fortunately, we didn't have this problem. <\/p>\n

Anti-malarials can be very expensive when purchased in Europe or North America. We bought all medicines in Africa, where they are readily available and cost a fraction of what you pay in the West. Although there have been recent scares about fake drugs flooding the markets in Africa, most reputable pharmacies will stock drugs imported from India (one of the world's largest producers of pharmaceuticals) which are often manufactured in cooperation with a reputable Western pharmaceutical company. <\/p>\n

watch\u00a0 <\/b>out f<\/b>or these <\/b>symptoms<\/b>
It's not always easy to know if you've got malaria. If you're taking prophylactics, these drugs may mask symptoms. \u00a0Here is a list of symptoms associated with malaria:<\/p>\n