The Science of Wanderlust

Today, we’re doing something different. Last year, I stumbled across a number of articles talking about recent findings about the risk gene. Apparently, people who travel a lot are predisposed to it because we’re risk takers and have this gene. I thought “Cool! Scientific proof my wanderlust is really in my genes”! So when my friend Kayt told me about her new book The Art of Risk: The Science of Courage, Caution, and Chance, that dealt with the subject, I thought it would be wonderful to have her write an article all about the science of wanderlust. I’ve known Kayt for years and she’s one of the best writers I know. She’s someone I look up to and I’m excited to have her write for this website. So, let’s take a break from our normal travel articles, and get our nerd on!

When I was in college, an acquaintance, Dave, won a prestigious engineering fellowship. When I congratulated him, he informed me that he was going to refuse it. I was shocked. The fellowship offered him substantial funding for his research plus a year’s stay in Italy. Why on earth would he refuse such an adventure?

“Why would I want to go to Italy?” he replied when I asked him. “Everything I need is right here in Pittsburgh.”

I don’t think I could have been more shocked if he had told me he was pregnant with kittens. But he was deadly serious. He had been born and raised about an hour’s drive from the city. He came to Pittsburgh for college and then stayed on for graduate school. He went on to tell me that he had never, in his 26 years, set foot outside of the state of Pennsylvania. And he didn’t feel any sort of compulsion to do so. I wanted to cry at the thought of him giving up a year in Italy. And, I won’t lie — I actually thought he might be insane.

Ten years later, Dave and I ran into each other again — you guessed it — in Pittsburgh. When he asked me what I had been up to, I started telling him of a recent trip to Colombia, complete with bus misadventures and a person bringing me a live chicken when I offered to make dinner. As I told the story, he looked very uncomfortable. At first, I couldn’t understand why. Then it dawned on me: he was convinced that I was actually the insane one.

What drives some of us to forsake the comforts of home and explore the world? Is there a scientific explanation for why some of us are slaves to our wanderlust, while others are dead set on staying put?

As it turns out, the answer may lie, at least partially, in our DNA.

When it comes time to take a risk, our brains take in all kinds of information about rewards, emotion, stress, potential consequences, previous experience, and other factors and put it all together to help us decide whether to take a leap — or stay put. That’s whether we’re going after some tasty food, chasing a potential mate, or traveling to exotic locales.

And the brain regions that grok all those factors are fueled, in part, by a special chemical called dopamine. You may have heard of dopamine before. Some call it the “pleasure” chemical. And certainly we all get big hits of it when we get a taste of something good (literally or figuratively). Scientists have found that having lots of dopamine in certain parts of the brain can lead to more impulsive, risky behaviors. And some people have all that extra dopamine because they possess a specific variant of the DRD4 gene, a gene that codes for a single type of dopamine receptor, called the 7R+ allele.

Numerous studies have linked the 7R+ variant to a wide range of behaviors. People with this variant are much more likely to make a financial gamble in hopes of a bigger payout. They are more likely to have a greater number of sexual partners — and participate in one-night stands, too. They are more likely to become addicted to drugs or alcohol. They even throw caution to the wind when engaged in that nursing home card-game favorite, bridge. And they may also be more likely to travel to distant lands.

Justin Garcia, an evolutionary biologist at Indiana University’s Kinsey Institute, says that the DRD4 gene is very important from an evolutionary standpoint. He says its 7R+ variant was likely selected for (i.e., caused greater reproductive success) tens of thousands of years ago as humans started their great migrations out of Africa and into other parts of the world. Garcia argues that all that extra dopamine in the brain may have helped motivate prehistoric man to venture from home, explore, and seek new territories for mates, food, and shelter.

To venture from home. To seek new territories. To explore. And yes, to wander. So could something like a simple DRD4 variant explain wanderlust? Or clarify why I see travel as an opportunity while someone like Dave views it as a terrible risk?

Though biology never works alone (environmental factors can tweak our genes in wild and wonderful ways, too), Garcia says that DRD4 may explain some of these differences. His work looks at the 7R+ allele and how risky behaviors may express themselves in different situations, and he’s found that it is linked to people wanting to push the envelope in interesting ways.

“One of the questions we have is how much overlap we might see in risky behaviors. If you are an economic risk taker, are you also a binge drinker? If you modify your drinking behavior, are you more likely to jump out of airplanes or cheat on your spouse?” he asks. “There’s some evidence that, if you have this allele, it needs to be expressed in some way behaviorally. These people with the 7R+ have a certain neurobiological predisposition that requires them to find some domain that allows them to get their kick.”

“So one of those domains could be the kind of crazy wanderlust we see in some people?” I ask.

“It could be. We don’t have very clear answers at this point. But we’re seeing that some people are just risky in all areas. Lay people might say those people have ‘addictive’ personalities. They always seem to be doing really impulsive things. But we also see that others have these predispositions for risk, and they find [just] one domain to express it in. Travel could be one. But what domain an individual is going to pick to express that risk is very much going to be driven by environmental factors and social context.”

“So what is this kick we are trying to get, exactly?”

“People talk about DRD4 in terms of risk-taking a lot. But there’s been a push to change that. Because we don’t know if it’s really about taking risks per se, or about putting yourself in a situation where you can interact with new stimuli and environments, which stimulates the nervous system in a particular way,” he says. “Some people seem to really need that novelty, and they seek it out wherever they can get it.”

And travel, certainly, offers one the opportunity to engage with novelty. That’s one of the things that I love about it. The ability to get out and explore, to feel completely alien for a few moments. To push myself, at times, to my limits so I can connect and communicate. To revel in new landscapes and immerse myself in a foreign culture.

It’s easy to believe that Dave’s brain just isn’t set up in the same way as mine. Perhaps my brain needs the kick I get from exploring the unknown — and his simply doesn’t. All of a sudden, I have the compulsion to compare our DRD4 variants. Maybe there is a story there that will explain why I see travel as a gift, something I can’t live without, and Dave wants to avoid it at all costs.

But J. Koji Lum, an anthropologist at Binghamton University and frequent collaborator of Garcia’s, puts me back in check. Genes, he tells me, only tell part of the story if we want to understand addiction, risk-taking, or wanderlust.

“DRD4 is one gene and, of course, its contribution to any complex behavior is going to be small. But those small differences add up,” he explains. “To a certain extent, assessing risk is just running an algorithm in your head. The different genetic variants mean that algorithm is running at slightly different levels in different people. That’s where all of this comes together: people are running slightly different algorithms that help define whether or not they will take a risk. And, ultimately, over time, that one small difference in the algorithm ends up in very different lives lived.”

Dave and I have certainly lived different lives. He, as of a last Facebook check, is still in Pittsburgh. I’m now dragging my kids across the globe whenever I can. That is a definite difference.

So next time you look at a die-hard traveler — the man who decides to quit his job and backpack across Eastern Europe for a year, or the woman who uproots her family to start a small school in Namibia — know they aren’t crazy. They might just process risk a little differently than you do or be wired for novelty. After all, more and more, science is showing that wanderlust and the desire to seek out the unknown may be, at least in part, written in our genes.

Kayt Sukel is a traveler, writer, and scientist who wonders why we do the things we do. Her first book dealt with the science of love and her new book The Art of Risk: The Science of Courage, Caution, and Chance deals with why we take risks. I read it on my flight to Australia and found the science intriguing. It reminded of the Power of Habit (another favorite of mine). I highly recommend the book. Kayt can also be found on Twitter and her blog.

10 Tips to Help You Avoid Getting Sick When You Travel

I get a lot of questions about health care on the road – “How can I avoid getting sick? What need vaccines? What happens when I do get sick?” Since I’m not a doctor, I don’t like giving medical advice so I’ve asked Mike Huxley, a registered nurse and author of the blog Bemused Backpacker to write a few articles on health and safety when you travel. His first article focused on creating the perfect first aid kit. This article features easy ways to stay healthy on the road.

Getting sick is a part of everyday life, and being on the road doesn’t exempt you from that fact, especially when travel itself it exposes you to a whole new range of bugs, parasites, and environments. The fact of the matter is the longer you are traveling, the more likely you are to pick up a bug or two.

The key to minimizing the chances of this, however, is to actively combat the risk factors of becoming sick in the first place. The last thing you want to do is to expose yourself to any more risk than you have to. Prevention is far better than any cure.

Wash your hands

I know this sounds basic, but it is surprising how many people forget it, and as a nurse, the simple act of washing your hands has been drilled into me since day one of basic training as a key component in infection control. The National Health Service (NHS) in the UK has had a huge impact on controlling infection in a clinical setting simply by reinforcing the importance of washing your hands, but the same is true for every aspect of day-to-day life, and traveling the world is no exception.

Hand hygiene is essential to stop the spread of infection and can dramatically reduce your chances of diarrhea, vomiting, food poisoning, gastroenteritis, flu, norovirus, MRSA, or even hepatitis A.

Many travelers carry small bottles of hand gel, and these are great as a backup, but they aren’t a replacement for good old soap and water. Wherever possible, wash your hands under hot water for at least thirty seconds before and after eating and always after going to the toilet.

Drink bottled water

When you can’t be sure of the purity of the local water or you are traveling in areas where sanitation is not that great, then it should go without saying that you should avoid the local tap water. Even if locals drink it without any problems, your stomach may not have the right bacteria to protect you from becoming ill, avoid local water — even ice in your drinks — in countries that don’t purify their tap water.

I recommend that at the very least you should always drink bottled water and double-check that the seal is intact on the bottle top too (a common scam is to sell bottles refilled with tap water). It is also a good idea to use bottled water to brush your teeth. But personally I prefer to use a water bottle with a built-in filter as this reduces the need to buy bottles of water constantly, saving both money and the environment.

Be careful of food contamination

Food contamination is one of the biggest causes of traveler’s diarrhea and gastrointestinal problems on any travel adventure. If you are not careful with your food on your travels, you could potentially be exposing yourself to diarrhea, E. coli, Shigella, Salmonella, Giardia, Entamoeba hystolytica, Campylobacter, Cryptosporidia, Cyclospora, cholera, and much more nastiness.

You should always ensure — as much as is practicably possible — that any food you eat is fresh, cooked thoroughly, and served piping hot.

I love street food for this very reason, as you can see how clean the cooking environment is, and the food is often prepared right in front of you. But look out for signs of good hygiene practice at any street food stall or food court you eat at. Does the person handling the food wear disposable gloves and change them frequently? Is there a separate person handling the money or, at the very least, does the person cooking the food remove and replace gloves every time they handle cash? Is hand washing a regular occurrence? Is raw food left out in the open or is it stored correctly? These things may seem inconsequential but they are important.

You may want to avoid — or be very careful of — the following:

• Salads that may have been prepared in local untreated water
• Raw fruit and vegetables that you haven’t peeled or skinned yourself (if you have, they are generally fine)
• Food that has been left out and exposed for a period of time
• Food that is shared, such as in buffets undercooked, raw, or reheated food, especially meat, fish, or rice.

You probably aren’t going to avoid a bit of stomach upset completely on your travels — especially if you are traveling long term — but if you are aware of good food hygiene practices and follow them as much as possible, then you can at the very least minimize the risk of becoming ill.

Don’t be afraid of having familiar food

Eating local food and delving into the local cuisine is one of the absolute true pleasures of traveling and one you should never miss out on, but that said, a degree of common sense is needed too. Jumping straight into a diet of spicy curries or predominantly red meat is a good way to ensure some form of gastrointestinal upset if your stomach isn’t used to it.

Food intolerances happen when your gut can’t properly digest the food you’ve eaten, or you’ve introduced something completely new and different to it, which can irritate the digestive tract and lead to stomach pain, cramps, gas, diarrhea, vomiting, and heartburn. Don’t worry — this generally isn’t serious and will pass relatively quickly. The trick to trying new foods and new cuisine is to mix it up a little bit.

If you have a sensitive stomach, take it easy at first and don’t be afraid of eating familiar food from time to time.

Try and stay active

One of the best ways to stay fit and healthy and fight off unwanted infections is exercise. The benefits of exercise are well known and well documented: it improves your overall health and well-being and strengthens your immune system, which makes you less susceptible to illness. And if you do get sick, your body is better able to fight off the infection and more quickly get you back on your feet. It isn’t foolproof, of course, because fit people still get sick, but in general the fitter you are, the better your body will be at shrugging off that annoying bug or illness. I always try and maintain a healthy lifestyle, and that doesn’t change because I am traveling.

If you aren’t active or fit before you start traveling, use it as an excuse to start! Go on a jungle trek, go hiking into the countryside or up a mountain, swim in the sea, go for a jog — whatever tickles your fancy as long as it gets you a little out of breath.

Protect yourself against the sun

Sunburn can seriously ruin a good travel experience! I got very badly sunburned years ago in Thailand after snorkeling for too long and forgetting to reapply sun cream. It is not an experience I want to repeat!

Current recommendations on sun protection say you should use a minimum of factor 15, though I recommend at least SPF 30.

Protecting yourself from the sun goes beyond getting bad sunburn though. You should also stay well hydrated if you are traveling in a country or region with a hot or tropical climate, as well as cover up with loose clothing and even a hat or scarf. If you don’t, then dehydration can set in very quickly, and that can lead to more serious conditions such as exposure, heat exhaustion, and heatstroke, which if left unattended can become a medical emergency.

I once cut a day’s sightseeing short in Egypt when I spotted the signs and symptoms of heat exhaustion developing in another traveler and had to help her to get rehydrated and cooled down. It happens a lot more easily than many people think so be sensible, use sunscreen, cover up, and stay hydrated.

Get vaccinated

Vaccinations are probably one of the most common travel health concerns that people ask my advice on in my capacity as a qualified nurse. There is no one-size-fits-all answer to those questions, however, due to the unique nature of individual circumstances, but there is one universal constant: If you can protect yourself, it is a good idea to do so.

Prevention is always better than the cure, and nothing is better at protecting you from the risk of getting a disease than being vaccinated against it.

Not all vaccinations are required for every individual for every trip, and a lot depends on what vaccinations you have already, what country or region you are visiting, and individual factors, such as your personal medical history, how long you will be traveling, and what you will be doing. This is why it is essential that you get one-on-one personal advice from your local travel clinic, nurse specialist, or physician before you travel.

To give you a basic understanding of the types of vaccinations you will need, however, they are often broken up into three distinct categories:

• Routine vaccinations are the ones that everyone gets throughout their childhood and early adult life; specific schedules (and sometimes the vaccine administration itself) do differ from country to country, but these generally include the BCG vaccine, the pneumococcal conjugate vaccine, and vaccinations for diphtheria, tetanus, and pertussis (DTP); hepatitis B; hepatitis A (for at-risk groups); Haemophilus influenzae type b; rotavirus; measles, mumps, and rubella (MMR); and HPV (for young girls only, to prevent cervical precancers and cancers). It is important that you are fully up to date with all of your routine vaccinations, including boosters, if you plan to travel. If you aren’t, then a health professional’s office should be your first port of call, before even departing.
• Recommended vaccinations include all the vaccines that aren’t included in the routine schedule of your own country and are specific to travel to any given destination. These can include vaccinations for hepatitis A (if you don’t have it already), rabies, Japanese encephalitis, cholera, and typhus, among others.
• Required vaccinations refer to vaccinations for yellow fever, meningococcal disease, and polio. Many countries where yellow fever is present will require you to have proof of vaccination before you are allowed in, and if you are heading anywhere else after traveling to a country where these diseases are present, you will need to show proof of vaccination — known as an international certificate of vaccination or prophylaxis (ICVP) — before entry.

Protect yourself from mosquito bites

Mosquito bites are an absolute nightmare for any traveler. At best they will simply annoy you with painful and itchy welts, but at worst they can transmit a whole variety of diseases, such as yellow fever, dengue, Japanese encephalitis, and chikungunya, not to mention malaria.

Mosquitoes can be a problem in many parts of the world, but the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the World Health Organization, and the NHS’s Fit For Travel site are excellent places to find out where there are outbreaks of diseases such as dengue or malaria.

Even if you are in a low- to no-risk area, it is still a good idea to prevent mosquitoes from biting you in the first place, even if it is only to avoid the annoyance of painful bites. It should go without saying that the best thing you can do to protect yourself from being bitten is to use preventive measures:

• Air-conditioned rooms are great for minimizing mosquito bites, as they are often better sealed and less likely to let them in.
• Cover up. Wearing the right clothing is essential. Wear light, loose cotton clothing that covers most of your skin, especially around peak exposure times and places, for example, near bodies of water or at twilight or after dark, the peak time for malaria-carrying mosquitoes to feed.
• Sleep under permethrin-coated nets where necessary.
• Use anti-mosquito coils and plug-in devices where appropriate.
• Always apply a good dose of 30–50% DEET spray, and reapply it regularly. Some people prefer more natural alternatives, but these are often not as effective or are often not clinically proven to be effective at all.

It is important to remember that none of these methods is completely foolproof. You can do everything right and still get bitten. I once caught dengue fever in India despite taking all the usual preventive measures, and it was one of the most unpleasant travel experiences of my life. It isn’t nicknamed “breakbone fever” for nothing! However, you can always minimize your risks with the tips above.

Take antimalarials when necessary

As a nurse I advise people on taking antimalarials all the time, and one of the biggest problems is the huge amount of misinformation and fear there is surrounding this issue.

Basically speaking, if the area you are heading to is considered a high risk for malaria then yes, antimalarials are usually strongly advised. If you are visiting an area that is a low to no risk, then antimalarials aren’t usually advised.

Antimalarials are medications, and like all medications they have side effects. There isn’t one type of antimalarial; there are a variety of prophylaxes available, each of which has a range of common and rare side effects.

The most important thing to remember, however, is that each antimalarial affects different people differently. Just because one person develops side effects, that doesn’t mean the next person will. In fact, the people who suffer from severe side effects are in the absolute minority. A lot of people will only suffer mild side effects, and most will have none at all.

Now, knowing when they are necessary and when they are not is a different matter, and a lot of different factors have to be taken into consideration. These factors include the following:

• The level of risk in your destination
• The time of year you are traveling
• Whether there are any current outbreaks
• How long you are staying in any high-risk areas
• What you will be doing (spending extended time in rural areas or cities, spending time near bodies of water; other high-risk factors, etc.)
• Your personal medical history
• Past experience with antimalarials

Make an appointment with a travel health professional

It is important that you discuss your plans with a health professional well before you head off on your ‘round-the-world adventure. Many travelers instead leave it until the last minute. Too many people contact me for an appointment at my travel clinic a week before they leave not realizing that vaccinations may need to be timed weeks apart!

The average recommended time to see a health professional is 6–8 weeks before you leave, but personally I would aim for a little earlier than that, especially if you will think you will need more than one vaccination or if you have specific health concerns. The worst that will happen is that you will get an appointment closer to your time of departure if it is determined that you don’t need that amount of time to get things sorted.

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These very simple steps will dramatically reduce your risk of getting ill abroad, but they are often so simple that many people overlook them. Before you set off on your trip of a lifetime, take a moment to think about your health and prepare properly. That way you will be able to enjoy your trip with peace of mind.

These very simple steps will dramatically reduce your risk of getting ill abroad, but they are often so simple that many people overlook them. Before you set off on your trip of a lifetime, take a moment to think about your health and prepare properly. That way you will be able to enjoy your trip with peace of mind.

Remember that these are general health tips only, and while they are written by a qualified nurse, they are no replacement for a consultation with your travel health nurse or physician, where individual health concerns can be discussed based on your personal history.

Michael Huxley is a registered nurse from the U.K. (who is especially interested in emergency nursing and travel medicine) and writes about his travels on his blog Bemused Backpacker. There he blogs about backpacking, sustainable travel, and health related issues. It’s an awesome blog! Michael is also an active moderator in our community forums.

Important Note: The information provided here is for general travel health advice and information only. It is provided by a qualified nurse, but it is not a replacement for a personal consultation with a travel nurse specialist, your GP, or a doctor specializing in travel medicine who can tailor advice to your individual medical history and needs.

Travel Warnings

A deadly virus outbreak, an approaching storm, political upheaval, a police investigation, a public health emergency—travel warnings throw our impending trips into unfamiliar territory. When bound for a country affected by a natural or man-made threat, many questions need immediate answers: is the country safe to enter? What other areas are involved? Is my own health at risk? How are residents and incoming travelers being affected? Will it change future travel to the region? Should I leave where I currently am, and is it safe to do so? When will the situation be resolved? 

Travel Warnings vs. Travel Alerts

Warnings identify a long-term danger in a given country, either cautioning against all travel here or simply informing people of what risk they will face. Alerts, in contrast, involve threats of limited duration such as a hurricane or a public demonstration. Where travel safety is a concern, no matter the severity of the situation, Travel + Leisure is on top of breaking world news, acting as a travel advisory to dispatch critical information that keeps travelers and readers informed and prepared.

Do Your Research

Travel alerts can be frightening and confusing. When in doubt, head to trusted news sources for need-to-know information, such as who or what is affected and, if health related, what the telltale symptoms are. Get the facts, review important safety tips, and use common sense. If your travels are bound for an affected area, assess whether your safety or the safety of others will be at risk if plans move forward, use your best judgment on whether or not to cancel or postpone an itinerary—and act, be it to exercise caution, receive the appropriate vaccines or immunizations, or save your trip for another day.

Safety while traveling is always top priority. When the news breaks, check back here for coverage you can trust.