Proactive Health Strategies for Expats: Staying Healthy in China
Expats in China who want to take proactive steps to protect their health should wear a filtered air mask outside when the air quality decreases, buy an air filter for your home, develop an indoor exercise routine, never drive a private vehicle, stay up to date on all vaccinations, and much more!
Discover the world's top
health insurers.
Compare quotes with
a click of the button.
Are you an expatriate, global traveler, or international citizen who’s already living in or will soon be living in China? Are you eager to learn some intentional ways you can stay healthy in China and do what you can to prevent illness or injury?
This blog post by Pacific Prime was written with you in mind! We are going to outline 15 tips and strategies you can implement to guard against germs, health problems, and poor hygiene. We want to help you enjoy your time living abroad without stressing about getting sick.
Expats who are serious about proactively planning for their health needs will want to learn all about the healthcare system in China and who the top international insurance companies for expats in China are.
If you have any questions, please reach out to our insurance experts. We’ll help you learn what is available in China!
15 Proactive Tips for Expats to Stay Healthy in China
Here are 15 proactive tips and strategies expats can implement to stay healthy when living in China:
- Wear a Filtered Air Mask to Protect from the Pollution
- Buy an At-Home Air Filter
- Develop an Indoor Workout Routine
- Don’t Drive – Use Other Methods of Transportation
- Get all the Vaccines Recommended for Travelers in China
- Cook at Home Regularly to Keep a Balanced Diet
- Eat Foods that Boost Your Immune System
- Carry a Card Summarizing Your Food Allergy
- Visit a Hospital for Most Health Needs
- Get Expat International Health Insurance for China
- Carry Around Hand Sanitizer or Wet Wipes
- Keep Your Home Clean
- Practice Mindfulness to Improve Mental Health
- Stay Hydrated
- Get Enough Sleep
1. Wear a Filtered Air Mask to Protect from the Pollution
Don’t begin to ignore the Air Quality Index (AQI) of China after you’ve lived there for a while. Wear a mask if you go outside when the AQI of your city is in the Code Orange range of 100 – 150, or higher. The average AQI in China is around 145.
Use the AQI website for real-time measurements of your current location.
Sometimes, expats might get used to the high pollution and will go outside without a mask on when the air quality is “low locally”. However, that’s still considered unhealthy by the CDC.
Be mindful of this so you don’t run the risk of the following health consequences for prolonged exposure to pollution:
- Heart attack
- Stroke
- Death for people with heart disease
Air Quality Index from the CDC |
|
| Good | 0 – 50 |
| Moderate | 51 – 100 |
| Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups | 100 – 150 |
| Unhealthy | 151 – 200 |
| Very Unhealthy | 201 – 300 |
| Hazardous | 301 – + |
2. Buy an At-Home Air Filter
Having an air filter or purifier is a must if you are moving to China. An air filter will clean out the pollution of the air in your home so that you can make sure you are breathing in clean air there. You should make buying an air filter a priority during your very first week in China.
3. Develop an Indoor Workout Routine
Expats may want to develop some strong exercise routines they can do in their own apartments. This is because the AQI can be so severe sometimes that you won’t want to exercise outside, and even many gyms in cities outside of the Tier 1 cities don’t have air filtration systems.
The CDC highly recommends that you only perform less intense physical activities when ozone levels are too high, and if you can’t get an intense workout in at the gym or outdoors, you’ll need to be able to do it in your apartment where you have an air purifier.
4. Don’t Drive – Use Other Methods of Transportation
Driving in China comes with its own rules. If you’re a Westerner, chances are you’ll be ill-prepared to make sense of the roads where driving laws are more like suggestions than actual restrictions. To protect yourself, use taxis and other methods of public transportation instead.
5. Get all the Vaccines Recommended for Travelers in China
One of the most proactive things expatriates, travelers, and digital nomads in China can do to stay healthy is to keep up to date on all your vaccinations. The CDC currently recommends the following shots for foreigners visiting or living in China:
- Chicken Pox
- T-Dap
- Flu
- Measles-Mumps-Rubella
- Polio
- Shingles
- COVID-19
- Hepatitis A and B
- Japanese Encephalitis
- Measles
- Rabies
- Tick-Borne Encephalitis
- Typhoid
- Yellow Fever
6. Cook at Home Regularly to Keep a Balanced Diet
As is the case in all countries, the locals favor certain food types and cuisines at restaurants. Though delicious, Chinese meals are commonly high in sodium and sugar. To balance this out, you’ll want to prepare meals at home that complement the meals you take in when eating out at a restaurant so your diet remains balanced.
7. Eat Foods that Boost Your Immune System
Regularly eat foods that boost your immune system such as citrus fruits, broccoli, almonds, ginger, and green tea. You won’t be able to limit all of your exposure to germs, so you can proactively strengthen your body to fight off the bacteria and viruses that enter your body.
Here’s a list of more foods that boost your immune system:
- Citrus fruits like grapefruits, oranges, and lemons
- Yogurt
- Green tea
- Red bell peppers
- Broccoli
- Garlic
- Ginger
- Spinach
- Almonds
- Sunflower seeds
- Turmeric
- Papaya
- Kiwi
- Poultry
- Shellfish
8. Carry a Card Summarizing Your Food Allergy
Expats that have food allergies could carry around a card that summarizes their dietary requirements in Cantonese or Mandarin. This can make it easy to explain to the chef what ingredients to leave out. If you have a more serious allergy, such as celiac disease, you may need to cook at home often.
9. Visit a Hospital for Most Health Needs
It is common for locals and expats alike in China to go to the hospital for all medical needs. This includes the dentist, emergency needs, and routine checkups. Chinese hospitals are equipped with machinery and specialists for all types of needs.
This makes it easy to transfer to a different unit within the same building if necessary. This can seem quite different to Westerners who are used to going to a different office for every need, but you’ll likely get used to the norm in China.
If you’d like to visit a Western-style hospital with English-speaking staff, there are private hospitals that often mostly serve foreigners.
10. Get Expat International Health Insurance for China
Many Americans and expats from other countries prefer to have a global health insurance plan. This insurance covers inpatient and outpatient treatments and procedures and routine checkups.
Having an international medical plan is beneficial because you can travel to other cities or countries to receive better treatment and still have medical coverage there. One expat reports it is common for Chinese expats to travel to Hong Kong for medical care.
11. Carry Around Hand Sanitizer or Wet Wipes
Living in a highly populated metro city in China means you’ll be bumping into things and people all the time. After touching door knobs, hand railings on the metro, and the bathroom, you’ll want to have hand sanitizer on hand you can easily use whenever you need it.
12. Keep Your Home Clean
Cleaning and sanitizing your home regularly can help eliminate germs, odors, and untidiness. When you stay on top of keeping your home clean, it won’t only help you stay more physically healthy, but it can boost your mental health as well!
An organized living space can decrease anxiety, depression, stress, and your overall mood.
13. Practice Mindfulness to Improve Mental Health
Foreigners living in China could benefit from practicing mindfulness. This is when you practice being present and fully engaged in the current moment. Moving to and living in a new country with a brand-new culture and traditions will be overwhelming for everyone. Mindfulness can help you along.
Mindfulness has been shown to provide the following physical and mental health benefits:
- Lower blood pressure
- Improve sleep quality
- Improve concentration and productivity
- Leads to greater emotional regulation skills
- Reduce stress, anxiety, and depression
- Increase feelings of well-being and satisfaction
- Improve relationships
14. Stay Hydrated
Staying hydrated is so much more important than we often realize. The Mayo Clinic advises that men need about 15.5 cups (3.7 liters) of fluids a day and women need about 11.5 cups (2.7 liters) of fluids a day. Fluids don’t only have to be water, either.
You can count the water contained in fruits and vegetables toward your daily hydration needs and from beverages that are mostly water-based, such as:
- Milk
- Juice
- Herbal Teas
You can drink sodas and caffeinated drinks as well, but be careful to go easy on sugar-sweetened drinks.
15. Get Enough Sleep
Adults over 18 years of age need on average 7 hours or more of sleep a night. And quantity is not the only issue. You need to have quality sleep, which means uninterrupted. While we can’t control everything about our sleep, you may want to consider these strategies to improve your sleep:
- Go to sleep and rise in the morning at the same times each day
- Don’t take a nap in the middle of the day, but if you do, make sure you wake up at least 4-5 hours before you’ll lie down to sleep that night
- Consider using blackout curtains and/or a white noise machine if you’re in the middle of a loud urban area
- Implement a “technology sunset.” This means that you turn off all technology and screen time a minimum of 1 hour before you sleep so your brain has time to unwind and prepare for sleep
Frequently Asked Questions
Is it worth it for expats to get health insurance in China?
Expats who don’t have health insurance in China will need to pay all their medical expenses out of pocket; for some, that will mean health insurance is the better alternative. In China, expats can either get a private medical coverage plan or use China’s public universal healthcare scheme.
What do people in China do to stay healthy?
Foods people living in China eat to stay healthy include vegetables, tofu, and seafood, plus unsaturated oils like canola, soy, and peanuts. Chinese people also take a more holistic approach to health by implementing a variety of natural remedies such as herbs and acupuncture to maintain their health.
Conclusion
By implementing these intentional health strategies, you can help yourself ward off health problems before they even become problems. Proactively caring for your body and mind is essential for expats and everyone.
If you found value in this article, you’ll also want to read our posts How to Choose the Best Health Insurance for Expats in China: A Comparative Analysis and Emergency Preparedness Guide: Handling Medical Crises as an Expat in China.
You’re encouraged to compare health insurance quotes and plans online and to reach out to our team of insurance experts with any questions you have.
Serena earned her Bachelor’s Degree in Psychology from the University of British Columbia, Canada. As such, she is an avid advocate of mental health and is fascinated by all things psychology (especially if it’s cognitive psychology!).
Her previous work experience includes teaching toddlers to read, writing for a travel/wellness online magazine, and then a business news blog. These combined experiences give her the skills and insights she needs to explain complex ideas in a succinct way. Being the daughter of an immigrant and a traveler herself, she is passionate about educating expats and digital nomads on travel and international health insurance.
- Trip Cancellation Insurance – Must-Have Protection - September 10, 2024
- Top 9 Insurance Companies in India for Expats - September 10, 2024
- Top 10 Insurance Companies for Expats in Portugal - September 10, 2024
Helpful Articles
The 15 Best Places to Live in Italy for Expats and Digital Nomads
Top 10 Insurance Companies for Expats in Italy
Jobs In Italy For Americans
A Helpful Guide To Living Abroad In Italy
Guide to the Italy Digital Nomad Visa
Helpful Articles
China Work Visas: Decoding the Process
Health Insurance Regulations for Expats in China
Allianz Expat Health Insurance Coverage for China
Locating English-Speaking Healthcare Providers in China
Comments
Leave a Comment