QUESTION

I am due to travel to South Goa on 27th October 2012. It is 9th Oct now. It says I should start taking my tablets 1 week before traveling, however I was wondering if it was okay to start taking them now so my body can get used to the side affects before I travel. I do not want to be ill all the time whilst I am away.

ANSWER

Yes, you do need to take preventive medicine against malaria when visiting India and it is best to follow instructions given by your doctor or the drug insert. For India,  the US Center for Disease Control (CDC)  recommends Malarone (Atovaquone/proguanil), Doxycycline and Mefloquine as drugs to prevent malaria.

Malarone  needs to be started 1-2 days before travel to a malarial area, taken daily and continued for 7 days after leaving the area.

Doxycycline needs to be started 1-2 days before travel, is taken daily and needs to be continued for 4 weeks after leaving malarial areas.

Mefloquine needs to be started 2 weeks before travel, is taken weekly, and needs to be continued for 4 weeks after leaving.

Chloroquine is NOT recommended for India because of resistance, so it is not effective.