Kuoni and Nuffield Health join forces to better understand the health impact of a holiday on the bod

Leading holiday company Kuoni Travel, has partnered with leading healthcare charity, Nuffield Health, to better understand the health impact of a holiday on the body.

People from across the UK will be encouraged to sign up to take part in the Holiday Health Experiment, which will seek to quantify the physiological and psychological changes following a holiday.

The public will be encouraged to enter across April, May and June 2012 by visiting www.kuoni.co.uk/holidayhealthexperiment where they will be asked to complete a survey which looks at their health and holiday habits. A final selection of these individuals will be shortlisted to undergo a series of clinical tests, and discussion sessions with a psychotherapist, before, during and after going on a Kuoni holiday this summer.

The experiment will look at the effects 'everyday life' has on the body and mind and then compare the data with how different types of travel and holiday experiences influence mental and physical well-being.

This experiment is the first of its kind conducted by a UK travel company in conjunction with a medical team consisting of doctors, physiologists and further assistance from a leading psychotherapist. Six individuals selected will receive:

Advanced Resilience Testing - Each individual will wear a small ECG monitor for three days and nights before the holiday, during, and after the holiday. By assessing each individual's heart rate variability, the relative activity of the sympathetic and parasympathetic nervous systems will be monitored to provide an insight into the impact of various stressors on the person’s body.

Psychological Sessions - A series of one to one counselling sessions before and after the holiday with leading psychotherapist, Christine Webber, to look at stress, anxiety, mood, libido and all aspects of mental health in everyday life and across a holiday period. Each individual will also be asked to keep a mood diary before, during and after the holiday.

In addition, each individual will be given a Nuffield Health 360+ Health Assessment. This will look at their overall health and fitness and includes analysis of: Body Mass Index, waist/hip ratio, cholesterol, glucose, full blood profile, resting heart rate, blood pressures, ECG tests, hydration, alcohol units, caffeinated drinks, hours of sleep, sleep quality, nutritional status and aerobic fitness. Each individual will have time with a doctor to discuss the results.

Each recruit will be re-tested after their holiday and the data will be compared with the 'pre-holiday' clinical data to identify any changes. The results of the experiment will be launched in autumn 2012.
A 'control group' of six further individuals, with similar ages and lifestyles to the six selected to go on the holiday, will also undergo the clinical tests and discussion sessions so that further comparisons can be made when looking at the immediate and longer term impact of a holiday.

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About Kuoni:
For 106 years' Kuoni has been creating holidays with a spirit of adventure and currently has branch operations in over 40 countries, offering Thailand holidays and Caribbean holidays, as well as ideas for weddings abroad and honeymoon. Kuoni has come top of a Which? Recommended Provider survey, due to the company's reliability and 'excellent customer care'; been voted World's Leading Tour Operator for 11 years in a row at the World Travel Awards; Britain's Favourite Tour Operator as voted by the readers of Ultra Travel and the Daily Mail; and been voted Britain's Best Longhaul Tour Operator by travel agents for the past 29 years. Kuoni recently opened 21 new stylish travel stores across the UK offering a new experience in travel retail with stylish décor, complimentary champagne, impeccable service and the expert knowledge of Personal Travel Experts.

PR contact:
Anne-Marie Hansen
Kuoni House
Deepdene Avenue
Dorking
Surrey
RH5 4AZ
01306 744 173
www.kuoni.co.uk