Travel Tips

Healthy Travel Gadgets

Woman joggingDuring the holidays, it’s forgivable to overindulge on hot buttered rum and pumpkin pie. But a good many of us continue that trend well into the New Year. Athena Arnot-Copenhaver rounds up some gadgets and gizmos to help travelers get healthy the fun way.

Treat yourself to something that will encourage you not only to get back on the health wagon, but to run to it.

The impressively small and intelligent FitBit doesn’t just promote health, it’s also incredibly travel-friendly.

FitBit package Equipped with 3D motion sensors (similar to those in the Nintendo Wii), FitBit is about 1.5 inches long and can be attached to your pocket, bra strap or wrist to track steps taken, calories consumed and burned, distance traveled and perhaps most important, your quality of sleep.

And the best part? The FitBit comes with a small, wireless base station that, whenever you walk within 15 feet of it, automatically uploads your most recent data to your computer. Take the FitBit and its base station along with you wherever you may go—both are significantly smaller than an iPod. $99; www.FitBit.com.

Don’t miss more helpful ideas in our Travel Gadgets & Gear section.

Shower Shock Caffeinated SoapAfter a tough workout in an airport gym, try this comical yet seriously concentrated way to wash off the sweat. The folks who created Shower Shock Caffeine Travel Soap are geeks after my own heart. This vegetable-based, peppermint-infused and caffeine-laden wonderbar will smack some zeal into your busy day of traveling the globe. In the traveler’s edition, you’ll get about 4.5 showers out of the bar of soap, each 200 milligrams of caffeine. $2.99 each; www.thinkgeek.com

Recently featured on Peter’s holiday gift gadgets segment on The Early Show, the Zadro Nano UV Scanner is one of our favorites. The Nano is small and convenient, like all great travel gadgets, and makes maintaining hygiene a snap. Often found in the “health” section of big-box stores, the Zadro Nano emits powerful UV light from a flip phone style body to disinfect airplane head rests, bed sheets, counter tops, toothbrushes, coffee cups, toilet seats and silverware. With just a 30-second sweep over the suspected area, 99.9 percent of bacteria are wiped out. $79.95 on Amazon.com

Find more ways to stay healthy on the road with our Health & Fitness section.

Steripen Journey LCDIf you find yourself a frequent victim of Montezuma’s Revenge while traveling, avoiding water-borne germs may be at the top of your priority list. Usually, giardia and cryptospiridium are the perpetrators of the upset traveler’s tummy, but the remarkably lightweight and convenient SteripPEN Journey LCD can eliminate 99.999 percent all waterborne bacteria with its powerful ultra-violet light.

No more fussing with pumps or iodine tablets—all the pertinent information shows up on the LCD screen. Just stick the handheld tube (which can fit in your purse or pocket) into a glass of water and voila!—previously dubious water is potable in about 48 seconds. Great for cruise ships, hotel rooms, hiking, and even dining out.  It runs around $90 and comes with two disposable batteries if you order online with Backcountry.com.  See all the scientific support for SteriPEN at www.steripen.com.

It’s crucial to stay hydrated when on the road, but those un-PC plastic water bottles are cumbersome, expensive and environmentally harmful.

Solve that problem easily with reusable stainless-steel bottles from EcoUsable. Available with or without filters, EcoUsable bottles range from 10 to 33 ounces, and boast fun and funky designs (think flower power, pirates and metallic). While we don’t recommend refilling them with airplane water, they’re ideal for camping, hotel rooms or storing in your car. From $12.49; www.ecousable.com

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By Athena Arnot-Copenhaver for PeterGreenberg.com