While some people spend their summer lounging by the pool or sipping cold ice tea on the beach, others choose to give back throughout the warm months. One of the most popular ways to give back is through mission trips.

Missions trips are located all throughout the world, each with a goal of improving another’s life or society as a whole. These missions can be sponsored by churches, schools, or programs.

Some of the most common places for mission trips are Uganda, Dominican Republic, Haiti, and Kenya. Each country requires some kind of different preparation to stay healthy and safe during the trip. One of these crucial differences is the necessary vaccines for each country:

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With the 2016-2017 flu season over, the CDC has finished evaluating the effectiveness of last year’s vaccine.

While it might seem pointless to research an old vaccine, this could greatly help this year’s flu shot. The reports measure the vaccine’s effectiveness to improve it for the 2017-2018 flu season.

According to the CDC, flu activity in the United States was moderate during the 2016-2017 season. Activity was low in November, slowly growing until the virus peaked in February.

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Ecotourism is a new travel trend for people who are concerned about their impact on the environment and the world around them.

The trend promotes travel to “relatively undisturbed natural areas, to enjoy and appreciate nature,” according to the International Union for Conservation of Nature. This type of tourism has a low impact on the environment and promotes conservation.

Ecotourism works in favor of both the traveler and locals.

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Engineers Without Borders Canada and Passport Health are teaming up to educate engineers before they begin working in Africa.

Nurses from Passport Health taught multiple classes in May for the engineers. These sessions, held at the University of Toronto, covered health tips from vaccines to mosquito-borne diseases to food and drink safety.

The engineers had already met with doctors, but were missing some keys for the trip. For many of the participants, this was their first in-depth consultation or chance to catch up with vaccines.

“The participants, although already immunized, had lots of relevant questions,” said nurse manager Beatrix Morrallee, in an email. “It was clear that they had consults where the vaccines on their list were given, but not a lot of health teaching,” added Morrallee.

The presentation took no longer than 40 minutes, yet covered all the health risks in sub-Saharan Africa.

Even beyond the vaccines, the engineers needed education of other steps to ensure a healthy trip:

• Wash your hands regularly to reduce the risk of typhoid and cholera.
• Wear long-sleeved, light colored shirts and pants to help prevent mosquito bites.
• Only consume food or liquids that were bottled, boiled, peeled or cooked.

The nurses even covered relatively new and under-reported measures, like the meningitis B vaccine. This shot protects from a strain that’s missing in the regular meningitis vaccine. Although available throughout Canada, most people aren’t told that this vaccine is available.

Although this was the first trip to Africa for this group of engineers, the company regularly works in the region.

Engineers Without Borders (EWB) encourages business innovation in sub-Saharan Africa.

The region is considered one of the richest in the world for start-ups. The engineers visit the area, finding small or young businesses to promote growth. EWB then aids these companies in financial planning, leadership training and business development.

Many of these young companies work in developing regions. With the help of EWB, the businesses can create better resources in sub-Saharan Africa. Resources can range from improved education to easier access to food and water.

This approach with local businesses helps promote self-sustainability in the area.

The engineers that attended the sessions are heading to various countries across the region. They are working with businesses in Kenya, Uganda, Malawi, Ghana, Zambia and the Ivory Coast.

Do you have any questions about EWB or Passport Health? Any tips to stay healthy while working in Africa? Let us know in the comments, or via Facebook and Twitter.

Some areas of the world have been able to get rid of malaria.

Even with decades of outbreaks, the parasite is gone in many countries. However, even if countries eradicate a disease, travelers always pose a risk of bringing it back.

This problem is even plaguing hospitals in the United States. Despite getting rid of the parasite long ago, 1,500 malaria cases can be found in U.S. clinics every year.

With the ease of travel and malaria’s persistence, is it even possible to fully eradicate the parasite around the world?

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Gap years are a growing trend among young adults.

A common gap year tends to be post high school graduation, postponing a first year of college until some future date. It’s filled with travel, work, and often volunteering. Many people believe it’s a good way to get some work under your belt before going to college and assessing what jobs may be in store for your future.

These gap years give young adults a chance to explore the world before hitting the books.

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Hajj, a religious pilgrimage to Mecca undertaken by Muslims from around the world, is known as the world’s largest gathering of people. The pilgrimage lasts for five days and is the fifth pillar of Islam.

All able Muslims are required to perform this journey once in their lives.

The event brings together a diverse group of Muslims from a wide variety of nationalities and backgrounds.

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Every year, the influenza vaccine is modified to best fight new strands of the virus in the next flu season. Recently, the World Health Organization announced the strains that would make up the flu vaccine in 2017-2018.

An annual vaccine for influenza is recommended for all people over the age of six months in order to prevent the illness. The flu shot is highly recommended for anyone over the age of 65. This age group is often at a higher risk of complications with the flu. Each year, the vaccine’s composition is changed to fit updated strains of the influenza virus.

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For the whole world to eradicate malaria, maybe we need to look at the successful countries.

If they’ve accomplished it, then there might be a blueprint to getting rid of the disease in other places.

In 2016, the WHO certified that Sri Lanka was malaria-free.

While many countries have gotten rid of malaria, Sri Lanka is a surprising addition to that list. The island south of India was home to one of the world’s worst malaria epidemics in the 1935. At its peak, the disease reached 1.5 million people, killing 80,000 of the citizens. These epidemics in the late 1900s were an effect of the poor surveillance of malaria as well as civil war.

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With the Caribbean holding 24 countries and even more cultures, it’s no surprise that the region holds some of the most diverse and exciting foods in the world.

Here’s a look at some of the most delicious and interesting foods in the Caribbean:

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