An outbreak of norovirus has hit 40 students at a university in New Jersey, USA.

The students from Rider University's Lawrenceville campus were brought to hospitals almost a week after an outbreak of the same illness took place in Princeton University.

A Ridery University spokesman said: "We are coordinating treatment information with that university. We have also informed neighbouring institutions."

The stomach bug is highly contagious, and can strike anywhere - being a trigger for many medical travel insurance

claims. It is the most common cause of acute gastroenteritis in the US. Its symptoms are vomiting, diarrhoea and stomach pain. It usually takes one to two days for people to recover.

Rider officials are working with health staff to identify ill students, and to treat them on the campus or send them to hospital.

As well as making sure your travel insurance

is up to date, it's wise to make sure you know the basics about any possible emergencies which might crop up abroad. With this in mind, it is surprising that not a lot of people know about the EU-wide tourist emergency number, 112.

Some Britons even thought it was a brand of perfume, a study has revealed. The research also found that just 14% of people from the UK thought that by dialling 112 they can reach emergency services.

The Foreign Office study also found that just 3% knew that this was the EU's recognised emergency number. The UK, where the number is of course 999, is one of three countries where awareness was the lowest.

Just over one in ten thought that dialling 112 would put them in contact with directory inquiries, while others believed that 112 was a new scent, the number of a bus, or "a pair of Levi jeans".

Lynda St Cooke, from the FO's Know Before You Go campaign, said: "Knowing that you can phone 112 can save you time in critical situations. It is an essential number which we would encourage everyone to carry with them when on holiday in Europe."

Up to six million more holidays per year are set to be protected from tour operators going under thanks to new Government measures - although the moves will in no way replace the need for travel insurance

.

This will include "flight-plus" holidays, which appear the same as normal package holidays but go without the protection under the Air Travel Organisers' Licensing scheme (Atol). Although this scheme does help get you back home should a tour operator collapse, it won't cover things like loss or damage to property, or medical problems encountered overseas.

The Atol scheme - under the control of the Civil Aviation Authority - is designed to help fly holidaymakers back home after the tour operator goes bust, to stop them being stranded abroad.

The Civil Aviation Bill currently going through parliament could lead to even more changes on top of the ones due to come in at the end of April.

Martin Rothwell, Managing Partner, Rothwell & Towler, said: "It's extremely important for holidaymakers to understand the consumer protection they may or may not receive when booking their holidays. The new measures are long overdue but it remains essential that travellers still seek additional protection if they are independently booking other facets of their trip from multiple suppliers.

"Regardless of the changes, it also remains just as important for travellers to ensure they have holiday or travel insurance that adequately covers their trip against cancellation and themselves for medical expenses and repatriation should the worse happen while away from home."

The Epilepsy Society has created a set of guidelines for those with the condition who are planing to travel abroad.

Holidaying abroad doesn't have to be overly problematic, the Society says, as long as sufferers take some simple steps.

People are advised to plan ahead and to consider anything that could affect their condition.

According to the Society, epilepsy does not usually prevent sufferers from travelling by air, but if their seizures are triggered by tiredness, dehydration, excitement or anxiety, then long journeys or 'jetlag' have the potential to trigger a seizure.

If you have ascertained that you are able to fly, then ensure you're comfortable on board and able to relax, the Society says.

You may also wish to inform the person you are travelling with, or the airline, if you are concerned that you may have a seizure while in the air.

You should also consider comprehensive epilepsy travel insurance

Planning medication is vital, the guidelines say. Sufferers should ensure they take enough to cover the entire trip, as well as a few extra does in case of travel delays.

They should also keep their complete supply of tablets (in their original containers) with them in their hand luggage, in case their main luggage gets lost or delayed.

Air France announced that it was cancelling two-fifths of its long-haul flights after pilots walked out for a third day during a week of industrial action.

Pilots and other workers at the airline are striking over their rights to launch industrial action without prior warning.

Passengers were left checking their travel insurance

policies after the airline warned them to rearrange flights booked for Wednesday, Thursday and Friday - when the strike is due to end.

On Wednesday, the third consecutive day of industrial action, Air France said that it had cancelled 40% of long-distance flights. However, nearly three-quarters of short-haul flights were operational, it added.

The strikers walked out over government proposals to enforce a two-day prior warning rule around further walkouts.

Coke, lemonade or Gatorade - most children love soft drinks and tend to drink more than is healthy for them, especially when they're on an all-inclusive family holiday.

But new research suggests parents should take out adequate medical travel insurance

before they take their kids abroad as high levels of soft drink consumption were found to be connected to asthma and/or chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD).

The study by researchers from the University of Adelaide analysed data from more than 16,000 participants in South Australia and found that 10% of people aged 16 or over have more than half a litre of soft drinks a day.

Of those 10%, around one in eight (13.3%) had asthma and just under one in seven (15.6%) was diagnosed with COPD.

Overall, people who drink more than half a litre of soft drinks every day were found to have a 1.26 times higher risk of having asthma and a 1.79 times higher risk of having COPD.

Lead researcher Zumin Shi said the odds ratio was even worse for people who smoked, especially for COPD sufferers.

Zumin said: "Our study emphasises the importance of healthy eating and drinking in the prevention of chronic diseases like asthma and COPD."

Snowboarders have a slightly higher risk of injury than skiers, a new study has found, highlighting the importance of taking out adequate sports travel insurance

before hitting the slopes.

The research from the University of Vermont College of Medicine in Burlington also revealed that young and inexperienced female snowboarders are most likely to get injured.

A hurt wrist or shoulder are the most common injuries to snowboarders, while skiers are most commonly affected by a knee ligament.

The university's Dr Robert Johnson and colleagues examined medical reports from the Sugarbush Resort in Vermont from 1988 to 2006.

During those 18 seasons, they found that around 12,000 skiers and snowboarders injured themselves severely enough to require treatment at the resort's clinic. The total number of visitors at the resort was 4.6 million.

Commenting on the study, Dr David Salonen, a radiologist who has studied ski injuries at Toronto Western Hospital, said: "It's true, these things do happen."

But he added: "For how many people are out there skiing (and snowboarding), injuries are relatively rare."

If you're preparing for a family holiday to Australia you may want to arrange some medical travel insurance

first following predictions of a mosquito outbreak.

Health officials have warned people living in or visiting Moreton Bay in Queensland that a recent spate of heavy rain and consequent flooding has provided a fertile breeding ground for the insects.

The Murrumba Downs area was highlighted as being particularly at risk, however it was claimed that 1.4 million Australian dollars is spent every year on on mosquito control.

Councillor David Dwyer said: "Recent conditions have created ideal breeding grounds for mozzies, with fresh-water pooling in backyards and natural ponds.

"Mosquitoes tend to multiply rapidly in the right weather conditions and often there's only a small window of opportunity available to treat breeding hot spots.

"While some tidal salt marshes remain inaccessible, council is already targeting known breeding sites near residential areas including freshwater habitats, drains, parks and other waterways."

A cruise of a lifetime has ended in misery for nearly 100 passengers, who fell ill with the norovirus.

Suffering vomiting, diarrhoea and stomach pain, 92 passengers and 13 crew members on a Princess Cruise Lines ship have been affected. The Ruby Princess cruise had been sailing from South Florida.

Meanwhile, there has been an increase in the number of cases of gastrointestinal illness among passengers on Crown Princess, which docked at Port Everglades in Florida.

Princess Cruise Lines spokeswoman Julie Benson said the cases did not appear to be related and the cause of the illness had not yet been determined.

Comprehensive medical travel insurance

offers vital protection should such a holiday hiccup arise.

All cabins and public areas on the ships were being disinfected, which will delay their next departures, Ms Benson said.