Malaria is a potentially fatal disease but the good news is that it is preventable, so plan wisely and prepare for healthy and happy travels - GlaxoSmithKline

Tabloids around the world are reporting that Cheryl Cole has Malaria. I know what you’re thinking. Who is Cheryl Cole? How did she get Malaria? Cheryl Cole, 27, is a member of the British pop group Girls Aloud. She also co-hosts, along with Simon Cowell, the TV show X Factor (think American Idol with an accent). She’s known all over Europe for her sense of style and she’s accomplished the impossible; she replaced Victoria Beckham as Britain’s leading fashionista.  Cole was voted “Best-Dressed Woman of the Year” and “Style Icon of the Decade.” And if that’s not enough she was voted “Sexiest Woman in the World” in 2009 and “Most Inspirational Woman of the Decade” in 2010. I get it; the Brits love her.

So, now that we know who she is, let’s get to the Malaria part. How did she contract a disease that hasn't afflicted Westerners since the 1940’s?  

On a trip to Tanzania, that’s how. Once she returned from her vacation Cole said she felt tired and listless and “not herself for about a week.”  She blamed her lethargy on being overworked and stressed.  But things got really scary for Cole after she passed out during a photo shoot this past weekend.  She went home sweating profusely and shaking violently and tried to sleep it off.

A rep for the singer said, “[Cole] spent 48 hours in bed trying to sleep off what she thought was a stomach bug. She was extremely weak, sweating and drifting in and out of consciousness. She told doctors she'd had stomach pains since her return from Tanzania. But, on Sunday evening her condition deteriorated so rapidly she knew it was serious. She was driven to the hospital where tests showed Malaria. Everyone is really concerned. She is very ill.”  She is currently being treated at London's Cromwell hospital. Cole was ordered to take time off from work for at least a week but she is expected to make a full recovery.

Malaria is a mosquito-borne infectious disease caused by the parasite plasmodium. When an infected mosquito bites a person, parasites enter the bloodstream and travel to the liver where they mature. The parasites multiply inside the red blood cells, which then rupture within 48 to 72 hours, infecting more red blood cells.

Symptoms of malaria include fever, headache, and vomiting, and usually appear between 10 and 15 days after the mosquito bite. If not treated, malaria can quickly become life threatening by disrupting the blood supply to vital organs.

Treatment of malaria typically involves antimalarial drugs. Which drug you take and the length of treatment depend on the type of malaria, where you were infected, your age, and how sick you were when treatment began. Drugs are given either orally or intravenously, depending on the severity of illness. So, if you’ll be vacationing soon visit HealthWorldNet for the latest Travel Advisories. The more informed you are, the better armed you are!

Stacy Matson is a health enthusiast from Southern California and regularly blogs on Celebrity Health for A Healthier World, as well as contributing to the Best of the Best.