September is peak season for typhoid in returning travellers

What happened

The UK Health Security Agency, known as UKHSA, publishes figures on infections picked up abroad by people returning to England. Its most recent data, published on 14 July 2026, covers January to June 2026, and it contains a pattern worth knowing about right now. Enteric fever, the medical term covering typhoid and paratyphoid fever, follows a clear seasonal rhythm. Cases rise between May and October. September has been the peak month, with 118 cases recorded in September 2025 alone. In the first six months of 2026, there were 287 cases of enteric fever reported. The same data covers other travel-associated infections. There were 557 cases of malaria reported across England, Wales and Northern Ireland between January and May. There were 137 cases of dengue, 59 cases of chikungunya, and 8 cases of Zika. The Zika figure had already passed the total of 7 recorded across the whole of 2025. Dr Hilary Kirkbride, Consultant Epidemiologist and Head of Travel Health at UKHSA, put the message simply: 'Summer is a popular time to travel - don't let illness spoil your holidays.' So why write about this in September? Because of the timing. Many of the cases counted in September are picked up by people travelling now, and many people are travelling now, whether on late-season holidays or trips to visit family. This is a seasonal pattern in published data, not a new outbreak announcement.

Why this matters

Typhoid is not an illness most people in the UK think about, which is precisely the problem. It is caused by bacteria, usually spread through food or water contaminated with sewage. Symptoms include a persistent high temperature, headache, stomach pain, and either constipation or diarrhoea. It can be treated with antibiotics, but it can become serious, and occasionally life-threatening, if it is not treated. The reason it matters for UK travellers is a pattern in who gets it. A significant proportion of cases occur in people visiting friends and relatives abroad, particularly in South Asia. There is a logic to this that is easy to understand. If you are returning to a country you or your family come from, it may not feel like 'travelling' in the way a package holiday does. You are going home. People often do not book a travel health appointment for a trip home. But your body does not know that. If you have been living in the UK, you may have lost immunity you once had, and children born here may never have had it. The same applies to malaria, which caused 557 reported cases in just five months. Malaria is preventable with the right tablets, and it can be fatal if it is not treated quickly. There is a further reason this is worth attention now. Late-season travel is common, and September trips often happen after the summer rush, when people are less likely to have thought about health preparation.

What the evidence actually says

A few points of accuracy matter here, because travel health advice is often either ignored or exaggerated. First, on the numbers. These figures are counts of reported cases in returning travellers. They tell you the pattern of what is being seen, not your personal risk. Your own risk depends heavily on where you are going, what you do there, how long you stay, and what precautions you take. Hundreds of thousands of people travel without becoming ill. Second, the data covers January to June 2026 and was published in July. The September peak figure of 118 comes from 2025. So the statement that September is typically the peak month is based on the pattern in recent years, not on a prediction for this particular September. Third, on the typhoid vaccine, it is important to be realistic. It offers useful protection, but it is not complete protection. Estimates generally put it well below 100 per cent effective. This means the vaccine reduces your risk substantially but does not remove it, which is exactly why food and water precautions still matter after you have been vaccinated. Treating the jab as a licence to relax would be a mistake. Fourth, on malaria, no tablet is 100 per cent effective either, and different regions require different medicines because of resistance patterns. This is why the specific advice for your destination matters more than general advice. Fifth, timing. Vaccines need time to work. UKHSA and travel health services generally advise arranging appointments around four to six weeks before travel. If you are travelling sooner than that, it is still worth going, because some protection is better than none and you can still get antimalarials and advice. Finally, if you become unwell after travelling, tell the health professional where you have been. Malaria in particular can appear weeks or even months after you return, and it is easily mistaken for flu.

Qurexa perspective

We work with pharmacies and deliver prescriptions, so travel health is close to what we do every day. One practical thing we would highlight: many community pharmacies offer travel health services, including some vaccinations and antimalarial tablets, often without needing a GP appointment. If getting a GP appointment before your trip feels impossible, your local pharmacy is worth asking first. The other point is about your regular medicines, which people often forget in the rush of preparing for a trip. If you take medicine daily, order your repeat prescription in good time rather than in the final week. Pharmacies get busy, stock is not always instant, and running out abroad is far harder to solve than running out at home. Take more than you think you need, keep it in your hand luggage in its original labelled packaging, and carry a copy of your prescription list.

Practical advice

If you are travelling in the next few months, here is what genuinely reduces risk. Check destination-specific advice. The TravelHealthPro website, run by the National Travel Health Network and Centre, has country-by-country pages with current outbreak information. Check it close to your departure, not just when you book. Book a travel health appointment around four to six weeks before you go. Ask your GP practice or a pharmacy offering travel services. Go even if your trip is sooner. Say if you are visiting friends and relatives. This changes the advice, because staying in a family home usually means different food, water and mosquito exposure than a hotel. For food and water, the old rule still holds well: boil it, cook it, peel it, or forget it. Be cautious with ice, salads washed in tap water, and unpasteurised dairy. For mosquito-borne illness, use repellent containing DEET, cover exposed skin especially at dawn and dusk, and use treated bed nets where advised. Dengue and chikungunya have no preventive tablets, so bite avoidance is the main protection. Take antimalarial tablets exactly as directed, including the doses after you return home. Stopping early is a common and serious mistake. Check routine vaccinations are up to date, including MMR for children, before you travel. If you develop a fever after returning, seek medical advice promptly and say where you have been and when. This single sentence can change how quickly you are correctly diagnosed.

What to know

UKHSA data published on 14 July 2026 shows enteric fever, meaning typhoid and paratyphoid, peaks between May and October, with September the highest month in recent years. There were 118 cases in September 2025. Between January and June 2026, England recorded 287 cases of enteric fever, 137 of dengue, 59 of chikungunya and 8 of Zika. There were 557 malaria cases across England, Wales and Northern Ireland from January to May. A notable proportion of typhoid cases occur in people visiting friends and relatives abroad, who often do not seek travel health advice because the trip does not feel like a holiday. The typhoid vaccine reduces risk but is not fully protective, so food and water precautions remain essential. The same principle applies to antimalarial tablets. Arrange travel health advice around four to six weeks before departure, and still go if your trip is sooner. If you become unwell after travelling, especially with a fever, seek medical help and say where you have been. Malaria can appear weeks after returning. Sources: UK Health Security Agency / GOV.UK, 'Travellers reminded to take precautions to avoid infections abroad this summer', 14 July 2026, https://www.gov.uk/government/news/travellers-reminded-to-take-precautions-to-avoid-infections-abroad-this-summer | National Travel Health Network and Centre (NaTHNaC), 'UKHSA publishes data on selected travel-associated infections', 15 July 2026, https://travelhealthpro.org.uk/news/ukhsa-publishes-data-on-selected-travel-associated-infections | NaTHNaC TravelHealthPro, Outbreak Surveillance, https://travelhealthpro.org.uk/outbreaks This article is for general information and does not replace advice from a doctor, pharmacist, nurse or travel health professional. Vaccination and antimalarial advice depends on your destination, your health and your medicines, so please seek personalised advice before you travel.