This article reminded me of the old adage: Choose your parents wisely.
4
On a cross-country flight, I was seated next to someone who was obviously quite ill. The flight attendant was peeved when I wouldn't pick up this passenger's dirty napkin and empty food and drink containers and hand them to her, but I wasn't the one wearing gloves.
3
Great. Now you have given the airlines an idea and opportunity to increase their own ridiculous prices on zone seating.
2
Get à flu shot.
2
When I fly (and go to the movies) I go for the back row as there's no one behind me to cough or sneeze on the back of my head or talk or kick my seat. I use the restroom in the airport just before boarding time and make it a point to WASH MY HANDS -- a lot.
5
What a Carbon footprint for a result that is just common sense!
6
Wait, so where should I sit?
8
If, as the article states, only a third of the passengers used the restroom "even once," and only half did not use the restroom at all, then the remaining (roughly 16%) passengers must have used the restroom, but less than once?
1
What about the people in the same infected seat on the flight after?
3
Wow. Who knew if you come into contact with more people you are more likely to catch something...
4
exactly how is this academic research? Next time these folks could do a study looking for common sense.
8
What about common cold? I feel like I often catch cold three days after flying!
6
Load with 5-10 mg of vitamin C before/after the flight.
Alcohol-based sanitizer with aloe vera to prevent drying of the skin. Portable and quick.
Common myth diarrhea & vitamin C: most people need 15 mg ascorbic acid (Vitamin C) before they get close to something you don't want on an airplane.
1
Public health tip: don't touch your face. If you have to scratch or touch your face, use a tissue or your sleeve. And use hand sanitizer after using the rest room. The water in airplanes tanks can be contaminated.
10
I've had the flu, and I could barely move, much less travel to an airport and get on a plane. I can't imagine anyone with actual, real influenza having the energy to be able to travel anywhere other than their bathroom.
7
Well, the cost of their ticket will not be reimbursed so they may as well take it and try to sleep through the flight.
6
I have flown rt from ATL to NYC six times in the past 7 months to see doctors / have surgery at Sloan Kettering while undergoing 18 rounds of chemo at Emory. Despite having an impaired immune system I have not gotten ill once. Unfortunately, my (healthy) mother who accompanied me on four of the trips did get sick on two separate occasions. I credit the following routine for avoiding illness:
1. Put on a face mask prior to airport arrival. This keeps your hands away from nose and mouth
2. Wearing disposable gloves, thoroughly wipe down the seat and immediate area including seat belts (inside and out), side wall (if in a window seat), back of the seat in front of you, lights and air source above, tray table, arm rests - basically anything you might touch with sanitizer wipes
3. If feasible, switch seats if there is a baby on another passenger’s lap or a child anywhere in the immediate vicinity, particularly if the baby / child sitting next to you is obviously ill
11
Airlines playing with Oxygen Supply
That Really Bothers me !!
My Own Pysician told me about his wife's bad experience , He told me its
Common
1
Surprised the airlines are not offering sanitized seats, extra revenue at $20. per.
13
Having flown so much throughout the world I am in the million mile club I have learned one important thing. Anyone under ten years old is a petrie dish with limbs.
35
I am a flight attendant based in Atlanta, GA, and would like to comment that although, as the article states, crew members are not likely to go to work sick, on the other hand, they are very likely to work the flight coming home sick, after falling ill on a layover.
Still, I estimate the odds of any one flight attendant being ill out of a crew of 8, during flu season, are about 1/32, or 3.1%.
12
From the actual study: "On each flight our 10-member research team [not 14] recorded the behaviors and movements of passengers seated and crew serving in the economy class cabin on single-aisle aircraft." Neither the study nor the article explains explain how. Did they record the flight on video? Sit and stare at the people around them? Stand and stare? They must have had to explain to the passengers what they were doing, and why. No surprise that only one passenger and no crew member was observed coughing! Clearly the best way to avoid catching the flu on a plane is to have 10 researchers watching and/or taping the behavior of fellow passengers. This is a silly study and the NYT should have written about it with some healthy (pun intended) skepticism.
15
Both this NYT article and the PNAS conclude nothing helpful about flu transmission on airplanes. As an author with number of research articles on other subjects in PNAS, it is hard to believe that PNAS published this. What the authors of this article did prove was the ability for a funding agency to approve this type of research and a lot of researchers have the capacity to fly around the world. The PNAS article did repeat advice from non-flight studies about avoiding flu transmission. Limiting physical contact with common surfaces, hand washing, keeping nasal membranes moist, in flight breathing masks... are all true and are not unique to airplane transmission of influenza. I commend the authors of the PNAS article on their persuasive ability to get this article published. However, to the editor of the PNAS who published this, "what were you thinking???"
10
I think there is real value in confirming the validity of previous studies. Further, it seems front or back of the bus is better; window seats are best, followed by the dreaded middle seat; concerns over the actual seat are overblown; turning on the air is of real value. Finally, pass up that extra cup of joe and minimize trips to the loo.
Your cynicism, Cyril, seems unwarranted.
2
Flight attendant should hand out sneeze masks to people who cough and those sitting nearby.
14
For commenter who criticized The Times for this article, and said "there are those that get sick and deal with it, and then there are those who spend a lifetime worrying about things."
I would say to you---this article is a public service.
Catching a cold is something to worry about as it can further exacerbate the condition of people with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.
A devastating cold, flu and pneumonia could put a person with a genetic lung condition known as Alpha-1 Antitrypsin Deficiency in a nursing care facility for the remainder of their lives. Or force a lung transplant.
People with these conditions are forced to fly on certain occasions and do spend a lifetime worrying about "these things."
12
If passengers with colds/flu would do their FELLOW passengers the courtesy of wearing sneeze masks transmission would be reduced to near zero. They should be available, FREE, in airport departure lounges, IMHO.
21
Seems like an awfully small sample size to reach such definitive conclusions.
1
'Sneeze into your elbow'? Gross. It's called a tissue, please.
5
Yes, sneeze into your elbow. This is state of the art advice from public health experts. Viruses can seep through a tissue onto your hands, and when you touch something, a virus can be transmitted. Gross.
You don't touch much of anything with your elbow.
29
Inner or outer elbow? Just kidding...I didn't know about this state of the art piece of advice. I will still carry a packet of tissues...old school! But thank you for alerting me to the newfangled method.
6
Newfangled? This health advice has been around forever. It also applies to coughing.
5
How all those people manage to go a long flight without a visit to the bathroom is beyond me. It's not just the time in the seat, but the time waiting to board, standing in the aisle waiting to exit, and then the walk from the gate to the bathroom. Unbelievable that there aren't more accidents.
9
I limit my liquid intake beforehand and make sure I go to the bathroom one last time before boarding. I usually have to visit a bathroom once I land but to me, that's fine, I'd rather use a public restroom than an airplane bathroom.
6
I never use the airplane lavatory (drink your fluids early and use the airport bathroom); I never order a drink because the flight attendants touch my cup with the same hands that touch everyone else's. I once asked a flight attendant for an empty cup and she handed it to me with her fingers inside the cup. If I have the misfortune of sitting next to someone symptomatic I try to keep my face tilted away from them. My advice to sick passengers: at least take something OTC to control your symptoms. And for goodness sake yes PLEASE cough and sneeze into your elbow or a tissue.
13
I think you may be suffering from germophobia.
3
The no bathroom strategy is not really an option for international flights -- some of which are as long as 15+ hours
10
No problem! I recommend the Stadium Pal!
https://www.stadiumpal.com/
I can't believe how many commenters seem not to have understood that the article isn't about avoiding an obviously sick person on the flight - but how to optimize your chances of not getting sick - i.e. choose a window seat at front or back (not middle) of plane to reduce "touches" and avoid the bathroom.
6
Maybe that is because the article didn't actually draw these conclusions. The data was there, but that one last step would have made all the difference to understanding.
3
Re: Crew members disinclined to go to work if they're sick. With airlines squeezing every penny out of their operations (employees), and introducing two-tiered pay scales where new hires are paid considerably less than incumbents, benefits are also being reduced. This makes it only *more* likely a person will report to work if sick so as to not lose precious leave time, pay, bidding rights, etc. In some cases I know of, entry level pilots don't have *any* sick time. Think of *that* the next time you get a rock-bottom fare. There are things worse than getting a cold on the plane.
4
I love the NYT but have to admit the only interesting thing about this article was reading all the Felix Unger procedures sone people use on a plane to feel safe. The same folks you avoid talking to a party. There are those that get sick and deal with it and then there are those who spend a lifetime worrying about things.
9
Such a poorly constructed article. Lots of garbage about the study itself, very few practical tips. And - as someone points out elsewhere, you cannot know if the passengers close to you are sick till you are in the actual seat assigned to you.
16
Ask for a seat change with any excuse.
Absolutely right: “Sneeze into your elbow, use good hand hygiene, and turn on your air vent. That will send the droplets straight to the floor.” I would suggest carrying packages of travel-size tissues or, if ill, wearing a mask. And if your seat "mate" is sneezing and has a running nose, as mine did last week, give them a package of tissues with the admonishment "Keep it . . ."
They'll get the message.
8
I just clip a clothespin on my nose and hold my breath for four hours.
23
I never sit on toilet seats but instead squat. I don't touch any doorknobs with my bare hands, and certainly not when EXITING a public bathroom. If the bathroom has paper towels, then I use that to hold the doorknob and to flip the lock, as I exit. I always wash my hands whenever I return home, or to my office, after being out in public...either handling money, touching doorknobs, holding onto the pole in a subway car, etc. I periodically wipe-down all the light switches, door knobs, cabinet door knobs, fridge handles, etc. in my home, with a vinegar/lemon solution.
9
Seriously: how do you find time to do anything else in your life?
17
Everything you are doing is good for infection prevention, except not sitting on the toilet seat. Unless there is blood or stool or bloody stool on the toilet seat, there is little to worry about in terms of contagious illness.
5
Yes, well, the people who come into the stall behind the "squatters" may sometimes find an unpleasant residue, shall we say, on the seat. Since you are so careful cleaning everything else, I trust you wipe down the seat before you exit. You may not realize you left something behind.
14
Just don't put your hands near your face.
4
Uh, how do you know who's coughing until you're in your seat?
(Re subheading for article title)
ok, so thorough science experiment was performed here, demonstrating exceptional amounts of data that was well researched. Yet there are a LOT of comments in here from people who have performed no tests of their own, showing no citation of where their information is coming from, in most cases, who are refuting this well researched article. Granted, theory doesnt always behave as it does real life application, but I am confused as to why suddenly there are so many people who know more than the researches presenting this information simply because they have an opinion.
7
The article specified viruses, but what about bacteria and all sorts of non-viral cold bugs? THAT'S what many (most?) people get on planes!
And, as Consumer Reports reported not long ago, seats, armrests, tray tables are total germ and bacteria havens. Even worse than bathrooms and toilet seats, if I remember correctly!)
There are a lot of statistics, but what about the greatly increased odds of getting sick when you happen to sit next to a sick person or in the same seat that a sick person sat in before? (since there's almost no sanitation between flights now). Those would exponentially raise the chance of getting sick, no matter where your seat happens to be located.
How about adding recommendations (a la Consumers) to use lots of hand sanitizer, anti-germ wipes, and be careful what you touch? And also, how about adding some critical comments -- and recommendations to make us safer! -- about airlines' lack of seat / plane cleaning and sanitation between flights, the ever-closer jamming of seats, or the consequences of recycled air? Passengers can't do anything about those -- but airlines can!
8
Not sure turning on the overhead air vent will send the droplets straight to the floor--it seems more likely that they would be widely dispersed.
4
You are even less likely if you get a flu shot. That combined with, as the article mentions, good hand hygiene should help a lot.
4
Is Mr. Baklar a doctor or medical researcher? Sounds like he isn't. Not even an airline traveler, for if you were, you know very well you can't just board a plane then pick and choose a seat at will. There is something called making a "reservation".
9
Guess you don't fly Southwest do you.
2
wipe the touch screens before you play that movie.
2
Surprising only one cougher during this study? Seems to be much, much higher when I travel....often.
Airlines should offer masks to passengers; 1. to promote healthy travel, 2. to reduce the stigma people have of wearing a mask.
A commenter asked if an airline is responsible for this study? SORT OF:
"CONFLICT OF INTEREST STATEMENT: The authors received support from The Boeing Company (H.W.) by way of a subcontract to the Georgia Institute of Technology (V.S.H.). S.L.N. is an employee of Boeing." S.L.N is a coauthor. See PNAS.org study.
What a handy result for the airlines and Boeing, nothing needs to be improved!!:-(.
P
13
So now, people who usually choose an aside seat because they know they will need the restroom at least once during the flight, will pick a window seat but will still need to get up to use the restroom and screw up this study.
5
So sitting within a meter of someone with the flu makes you more likely to get the flu than if you sit further away?
Did not see that coming....
18
I thought the issue with planes was the re-circulating air. Air flow doesn't seem to be a consideration in this study.
4
From the fourth paragraph: "The droplets don't go especially far- typically six feet or so- and they don't become suspended in an aerosol that travels through currents of air in the plane's cabin, where they could be breathed in."
3
As a frequent flyer, I use a sterilized wipe to clean the screen in front of me, the handrests, the seat belt buckle and the tray as soon as I sit down. I cover my face with a scarf if someone sneezes (a scarf is a necessity on all flights) and I take vitamin C every morning. I've found that the wipes and the scarf go a long way for flu prevention, but it's also a matter of luck since we never know who is sitting in our aisle, in front or behind us.
11
As I keep telling people... get the influenza shot a good 2 weeks before travel then wear a face mask and cotton gloves in the airplane. Actually, on trains and buses as well or anywhere there is a high density collection of people. And sip water during the whole flight, the air is terribly dried out.
8
Yes, sipping water is good. But, then again, the more water you sip, the more likely you will have to use the FILTHY bathrooms...
5
I sat on a London to New York trip several years ago, and the menthol smell from the cough drops of the person sitting in front of me wafted back during the flight.
Two days later, I had a cold.
Now, I mostly travel long distances by train, and don't have that concern any more.
7
I've traveled long haul flights at least twice a year for 10+ years. I've gotten sick exactly once: when the woman sitting next to me admitted through sneezes that her cold was, to use her words, 'blossoming'.
If someone gets on a plane with a weakened immune system even if they don't know it, isn't it more likely he or she will get sick?
It seems to me it is the luck of the draw - some passengers will get sick, some won't.
7
I wonder how many of these commenters who obsess over touching an airplane seat routinely stare at their phones while driving.
21
Please explain how I can avoid using my assigned seat to get away from the cougher next to me.
36
Quite often the flight attendant will accommodate you if there is an unoccupied seat available.
EXACTLY!! "Flight attendant, please re-seat me!"
Southwest.
People, have you ever lived in Wichita ??? I would sit in the middle seat, between two loud, smelly people with Tuberculosis and Hepatitis, to fly out of HERE for a Vacation. Just saying.
72
Qantas just finished its 17 hour non-stop from Perth to London flight. How many passengers ended up with the flu?
10
Funny you say that. I have been flying Qantas once or often twice a year between Australia and NYC for the past 21 years (which entails 4 flights total per trip), and can't recall ever getting sick from the flight. My 14 hour flights would not be materially longer than the 17 hour Perth-London flight as far as sickness risk was concerned, since everyone has to get up to use the restroom, walk around, etc, during those long flights. Anyway, flu season does not really kick in down here until next month, and it's probably the tail end of the flu season in the Northern Hemisphere, so this was probably a relatively safe time to do that trip.
not that I like being nitpick-y, but these days its helpful to ask in the era of slushy news... The stats! .... So 38% never left their seats or got up only once, that means that only 22% got up more than once. So how is it that 43% of those by a window got up, and 80% of those in the aisle seat. with the 62% in the middle. Without the percentages it makes complete sense but... Does that mean that 80% of those who got up were sitting in the aisle, and of the other two seats, 105% of those that got up were sitting in them? I know planes are crowded but.
2
A brief lesson in 3rd grade math:
One third of people sit in the aisle, one third in the middle and one third at the window.
43% of aisle flyers got up at least once. That is 43/3 = 14.3% of all flyers.
62% of middle seaters = 62/3= 20.7% of all.
80% of aisle sitters = 26.7 % of all.
If you add those up it equals 62% of all flyers, which is exactly the number who got up at least once during the flight according to the article (38% did not get up at all).
Accuracy is not nitpicking, but it needs to be done accurately.
10
Maybe people in the west should do what they do in Japan. If you are sick and you must go out in public, then wear a mask! Simple as that.
For the most part, when you see Japanese people with masks on, it isn't because they don't want to get sick. It's because they are sick and they don't want to infect others...makes a lot of sense.
68
You must fly with the Trump Cabinet crowd, other than Southwest, who gets any real choice in where they sit or be able to change thier seat?
16
Don't worry. As soon as the airlines work out the algorithm they will know who will be sick and where they are sitting and build that into the seat selection process, then charge more for seats based on distance from the sick person.
:-O
4
Wipe around that air vent with handi-wipes before you touch it! Plane air vent controls are a major source of contamination. I wipe down all the hard surfaces around my seat that I am likely to touch as soon as I arrive at my seat. I'd wear a face mask if they were not so uncomfortable.
9
The study fails to take into account the elderly lady and her husband who sat beside me on a trip from south Florida to Canada, about 4 hours, constantly blowing her nose with a box of kleenex on her lap and stuffing the used kleenex into the seat pocket in front of her. While I had the window seat and was pressed up against it for four hours and didn't get sick, I can only imagine the person who got that seat for the return flight, reaching into the contaminated pocket to read the in-flight magazine.
6
She could have allergies. Right now the pollen count is off scale in Florida.
Solution: never reach into the seat pocket, it can't be wiped down. Wide the hard surfaces, carry hand sanitizer. And have a mask handy.
2
Haven't I read that people are most contagious just before they themselves feel symptoms?
I always travel with a surgical mask, and have worn it when sitting a row ahead of a couple with racking coughs. I felt silly, but I didn't get sick.
10
I never travel with a surgical mask and I don't get sick. Anecdotal info is not useful.
3
“Choose your seat....”??. What planet do *you* live on?
27
Handiwipes are essential. Keep several in your purse, jacket pockets and/ or briefcase.
Always wipe down the armrests, the knobs for air vents and overhead light, the tray, the seat pockets, the tv screen and the handle of window shade.
Then be sure to use one on your hands before you eat.
In the bathroom, wipe down the counter, the sink handles and door knob. Count to 15 while you wash your hands with soap. Be considerate and wipe the sink again before you leave.
Protects you, and others.
And drink extra water or tea on the flight.
To reduce stress, always travel with little earplugs in your purse or briefcase. They cut engine noise if you lack a personal entertainment monitor on board. They also make it easier to sleep on board, and at hotels that aren't as quiet as home.
There are many brands of ultra lightweight down vests/ jackets now. Uniqlo has them for men and women in 5" tall, 3" wide tiny stuff bags. Tumi makes a travel neck pillow whose filling is one of the lightweight down vests. Layer the vest under you jacket or over your top to keep off chills. It will help you not to succumb to some wear and tear on your health while airborne.
15
As a fellow germaphobe, I send you greetings
6
"Of 229 samples collected, not a single one showed any evidence of any of 18 common respiratory viruses."
1
"While it may seem that there is always a line for the restroom when you need one, only a third of passengers used the facilities even once, and half never used them at all." -- Let's check that math: If only 1/3 of passengers used the facilities even once, then 2/3 never used them at all.
3
or 1.0 -.5 (no use) -.3 (one use) = .2 (multiple use).
2
The author does not know how to write accurately. The paper makes it clear:
Half of the passengers did not use a lavatory during flight (range: 42–58%), 38% used it once (range: 34–53%), 9% used it twice (range: 4–13%), and 3% used it more than two times (range: 1–6%).
2
Let's: If only 1/3 of passengers used the facilities once, and half never used them, then 1-1/2-1/3= 1/6 used the facilities more than once.
'Restroom' – is it really too hard for the NYT to use appropriate terminology? Commercial aeroplanes do not have restrooms, bathrooms or toilets. They have lavatories.
3
Gee, thanks. Ever so helpful.
1
Actually, the flight crew is likely to call it the head. (This is all you got from this article?)
Guess what? The terminology you use for the same room/facility varies by locale. We might say "restroom" in the US, it might be "toilet" in Europe. There are those who call it "lavatory." Then there are those of us whose parents called the home facilities the "bathroom," and we just cannot break ourselves of the habit. Not to mention those who call it the "john" as well as those who call it the "facilities."
Why should the plane be different? Idiomatic expressions are an intersting area of study.
1
I fly 120,000 miles a year generally. I've been sick twice in 15 years this article is stupid and alarmist. Planes are planes, elevators are elevators and public toilets are public toilets. Traveling by air is a pain for a million reasons. Getting sick not top of the first million. Nor can you choose who you sit next to.
19
You might be relieved to know you have a hearty immune system.
2
I agree. I have been a United 1K for the past decade and this has to be one of the most ridiculous articles I have recently read about air travel - and there are plenty of them. Just last week I read we are supposed to sit by the window to avoid the flu. Some posters here apparently have stock in companies that make saniwipes since they are cleaning the whole plane with them. Others think you can just move around after you have quizzed your seatmate about their current health status. And of course we have to have the dissertation by someone who flew a decade ago and got sick because...well who knows but something about that plane.
Well at least the article wasn't entitled "Seven ways to get an Upgrade for free" or "Secrets from flight attendants on how to get the cheapest fare."
5
I love science and scientific studies, but really, was this kind of study needed to state the truly obvious?
Also, a little bit of a sensationalist article title, I would suggest. It's not like we are going to interview potential seatmates as to their infectious disease status before choosing a seat (usually done online pre-flight anyway, making it even more absurd)
I love you, NYTimes, but this article is a little silly.
16
I travel 80% - some of the longest cross country flights, and haven’t been sick all year. The real secret to staying healthy is to sterilize all the touchable surfaces in your seat area with an alcohol prep wipe, available online. Tray tables, touchscreens, armrests, buckles and buttons. All those infectious aerosol drops have to land somewhere, and most infections are transmitted by touch. Planes these days aren’t well cleaned due to aggressive turnaround schedules.
6
What "infectious aerosol drops" are you referring to?
Good luck getting the seat you want, without paying through the nose for it.
7
I took a flight to Saint Bart’s which required changing planes in Saint Martin. The flight to Saint Martin was packed. No empty seats...no where to move. And I was seated next to a millennial who was clearly very sick. (She sat covered up with a blanket over her head during the entire trip...and she wheezed and hacked and blew her nose continually. By the time I got to Saint Bart’s I was really sick and spent my entire vacation glued to the toilet in the beautiful house I had rented. When I got back Amy doctor confirmed I had Norovirus. It was a horrible wasted trip caused buy a young lady who should have had the sense not to fly. Sadly I do not think there is anything I could have done to stay healthy. Flying is like Russian roulette: on today’s over booked flights you have no option- no place to move and if you get off before the plane takes off you will likely lose your fare. It sucks and the airlines should do something about it...like not oversell every seat on every plane and let the passengers suffer if someone has brought communicable illness along with their carry on.
9
"When I got back Amy doctor confirmed..."
What did you mean to say?
1
We wont have a sensible health check system until another SARS epidemic hits the airlines. People must be screened for fever before being let on airplanes. A young friend of mine tells me she had to be loaded on the airplane from Atlanta to Milwaukee by wheelchair because she was so sick with influenza... I wonder how many people she infected on that flight. But the airline loaded her up as ill as she was.
2
We probably need a change in the laws so any traveler who's that sick can get rebooked on a much later flight (after they've regained their health) at no charge. I'm a little curious, though, where she'd gotten the norovirus. It usually comes from having previously been in tightly packed quarters like a ship or a dormitory, not from going about your ordinary business, and outbreaks often make the news because so many people get sick at once.
1
I have a better suggestion for people who have the flu: please stay home so the rest of us won't be infected. I caught H1N1 on a flight nine years ago. The infected man was within six feet of me in the airport waiting lounge, coughing, sneezing and being ignored by his companions. If he had stayed home, I would have stayed well.
Recently, I had pertussis. I never even knew it was still a "thing." I know now that adults need pertussis boosters, especially if they have babies in their lives. Please get your flu and booster shots.
4
The reason no one coughed on these planes is because all the deathly ill folks are sitting next to me on my flights. Are you absolutely certain this study wasn't paid for by United? As others have commented, until the airlines offer cancellation or rebooking flexibility, their flights will be the most germful environments we face. Airlines produce more illness than subways, buses, commuter rail, Uber, and bike share systems combined because most travelers on those systems stay home when they're sick--based an informal study commissioned by me. I want to travel with the author of this piece who seems to be a lucky charm...
10
When we, instead of profit, are taken into account, this article wouldn't exist anymore. Simple like that: when the for profit motive exits, we' won't be any more sardines but human beings we won't be afraid of catching all the ailments we actually are exposed now.
1
Alas, what really matters is where the infected person is. So ideally an infected person would choose to sit to have the least contact with others, but always be surrounded by some. Since in the individual case you cannot control where that person is (and they may not know) it's a bit more complicated than this makes it seem. And this sets aside contact in line, in the terminal, in the security line, etc etc.
4
The simple solution is wear a particle filter mask and do not touch entry points of the body with dirty hands, eyes nose mouth, combined with proper handwashing with soap and water (alcohol based sanitisers are much less effective) will significantly limit exposure.
5
"only a third of passengers used the facilities even once, and half never used them at all."
What did the other sixth of the passengers do?
I'm assuming you mean only HALF of the passengers used the facilities even once, and only a third of that half used them more than once.
2
I caught not the flu, l but bronchitis and pharyngitis on a Singapore Air flight San Francisco to Singapore in January. Symptoms commenced within 24 hours after landing, and required treatment with antibiotics. I boarded healthy, and nobody was coughing or sneezing or was visibly ill around me on the plane.
The incubation period for bronchitis and pharyngitis is 2 to 3 days, minimum.
10
Good to know, but the flight itself took nearly a day, I worked from home for several days before the flight, and nobody visited who had or developed either condition. We can call it a mystery where I got it, but I have carefully noted all the precautions mentioned in the article and in the comments for my next trip!
But the service was great, hey?
This study is incredibly helpful. Now can they do the same for the subway? With this article and $2.75 I can take the subway...
7
This study appears to be more speculative than factual. It makes no effort to compare the airplane environment to other environments, and does not really address the change in probabilities that results from: the density of simultaneous population on the plane, the rapid turnover in dense populations as the plane goes from flight to flight; whether travelers, as a class, have a higher or lower rate of flu than non-travelers who remain home or, for example, work in a typical office environment, or the impact, if any, caused by head rests or food service distribution or pressurized cabins. There is also no mention of any effort to actually test surfaces for colonies of bacteria or virus. In short, I think this study, as described, was both superficial and speculative and does not reflect scientific method.
11
sanitizing gel. Use it on a flight -- a lot. Use it on the seat arms. Went to the bathroom? Sanigel your hands. About to eat? Sanigel again.
Why do articles like this never mention how critical that stuff is when surrounded by the public and so many touched surfaces.
14
And once everyone takes such advice, the genes of one or another of the viruses will finally become just strong enough to not be bothered by the swabs of occasional alcohol. This is how evolution works.
8
Better to wash hands with soap and water when possible rather than rely mostly on sanigel. Germs can build up an immunity to gels over time.
When I fly I always wipe down the arm rests and trays with a sanitized cloth. Hotel rooms, too - and here's a good tip: wipe down that pesky TV remote. It never gets sanitized by hotel staff and do the math to figure out how many hands have touched it in a given period of time.
12
meloop and Len. Oh god no. that is not possible. that IS true of anti-biotics.
Sanigel works by destroying the cell wall of the cell. No cell can develop resistance or immunity to that. Look it up please to verify.
Did this really merit an article in "Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences" (PNAS), one of the most prestigious scientific journals in the world? Anyone watching "Fear the Walking Dead: Fight 462," the mini-prequel series to the main "Fear" series, or "World War Z," could have predicted how airborne infection spreads on a plane just as cogently. I didn't know PNAS had a humor section!
3
I used to fly a lot (more than once a week at times). I got bronchitis regularly, both from the stress of travel, sealed hotels and no doubt planes.
Two things not mentioned here that helped me: Saline nose spray and Purell. Keeping your sinus cavity wet in a dry environment (planes, hotels) is useful for shedding germs and keeping your hands clean without drying them out too much (soap and water) is important.
The other piece of this is stress, and until Trump and Pence are history, that's a serious problem that no amount of saline spray and Purell will solve.
176
I travel a lot and occasionally get bumped to first class. If I get an upgrade I look around the waiting area for a young mother with an infant. Maybe 1 in 10 times do I see one, but if I do she is usually stressed and holding a boarding card for center seat near the back. I offer to trade seats with her, telling her I remember those days and how hard it was to fly with an infant. Most of the time they accept. Its a double bonus for me, knowing she has a lot more room to deal with the baby and all the snoots in suits up there have to deal with the infant.
292
I like the way you think...
6
How sweet of you to force people paying a huge premium for first class to “endure” a wailing infant to satisfy your misguided sense of class warfare, or “snoots,” as you put it.
5
That is the kindest thing I have read today! Thank you.
3
I ended up with bronchitis after spending hours and hours on the tarmac, when the power went out in Atlanta. That said I was amazed by how well the Delta crew handled the experience as well as my fellow passengers. Stuff happens.
16
This article makes a great argument for not stuffing passengers on planes like they are sardines. I have post nasal drip and allergies. And I seem to wind up feeling horribly ill after a plane flight no matter what I do. I suspect it has to do with the dry air and the general discomfort of the flight but it always takes me 24 hours to feel like a healthy human being after I fly.
22
You gave me an idea. Next time I fly I am just going to cough my brains out during boarding. Then maybe I will get to sit by myself. Another neat trick: gain 100 pounds. No one will want to sit by you. One time, I agreed to trade seats with a man who was making a fuss about his seat mates, an upset deaf couple with a wailing sick infant. I just went to my happy place. Orlando.
15
It would appear to be an almost impossible task for persons to stay immunized from fellow travelers
6
Huh, cuz that's not what the article says.
1
Always have a mask on hand when you travel. If you get stuck near someone coughing--put it on.
36
Research the mask you get. A mask become less effective the longer one wears it. And masks are designed for different uses.
Sadly last year was on a trip to Greece for a cruise. Person across the aisle and one row down was coughing continuously. Flight was delayed and we spent an extra hour or so on tarmac which made it worse. Hand sanitizer did not help. Maybe a mask would’ve. Within 48 hours on the ship came down with bronchitis cough and high fever and early pneumonia. Had to go to ship infirmary and be put on IV and steroids and breathing treatments. Needless to say it kind of ruined my cruise. Not sure what you mean about choosing your seat wisely. It’s not like you can change your seat once you realize a sick person is nearby.
96
Pick a window seat. Your chances of getting next to a sick person are less. Less contact with others.
6
I once was deathly ill while traveling to England for business. I stayed in a rickety old inn and coughed so loud I'm sure the other guests got no sleep. Once at Heathrow, I fell asleep in the lounge. At that time, they only announced the gate once they wanted everyone to board, so you had to wait in a general area.
I woke up to my name being paged for last call for boarding. I raced to the place and just made it on. I was hacking and coughing and dripping. The flight attendants looked justifiably horrified (in my defense I was going home and I was miserable on my own in the middle of a country).
Astoundingly (and this was awhile ago) the seat next to mine was empty. The flight attendants gave me a liter bottle of water and a box of tissues. I stayed in my seat except for the rest room, used a tissue to touch any and all surfaces I had to touch (restroom doorknob, etc.) and stayed out of the way.
Although planes are much more crowded now, I think flight attendants could pro-actively deal with sick people this way. I trust that most (not all) sick people would just like to be left alone and not bother anyone, and certainly not allow others to get sick.
And for those who say you shouldn't fly, well often you simply have to. You ticket is worthless if you don't show up and many cannot afford the hundreds of dollars now to rebook. If you are away from home it is truly miserable to be sick. But sick people should be as cautious as possible.
58
Inconsiderate.
At first I thought your comment was a joke. Traveling for business while deathly ill? Probably exposed airline passengers, crew, your taxi driver and the business associates you met to your germs.
You or your company/business couldn’t afford to cancel/postpone the trip? Do you think that the people you exposed to your illness can afford to get sick?
35
These illnesses can come on very quickly, within a matter of hours. Should the writer have stayed in England? Perhaps- but might have come home to no job. It's not ideal to travel when sick but sometimes we business travelers must.
6
Yeah, you shouldn't have flown. It's amazingly arrogant and insensitive to put your own "need" (to get home) above the interests of hundreds of other passengers in not catching your disease.
5
The article title is misleading. One can't change their seat accordingly, and the article essentially says, after all their observations they only saw one person coughing, so I only ask that you are mindful about spreading even more fear than is already pervasive in the world these days. That spreads much more rapidly and wreaks its own havoc.
31
I wonder how much Mr. Bakalar travels. I travel a lot and have never learned how to presage who is going to be coughing when I get on a usually packed plane. One is nearly always stuck with the seat they have. And being able to cancel and reschedule is getting more expensive by the day.
89
This study does not study people who actually get sick. It studied observed contacts people had with others. That's it. The study does not support the conclusion that more contacts equals more flu.
21
Also,
1. "n", the number of flights, was too low.
2. Droplet dispersion in a sneeze/cough is not spherical but more cardioid, which is why row 16 is relatively unaffected by 14C's sneeze/cough.
3. The entire study could have been done on paper or with a computer modifying variables.
4. Methinks someone just wanted to go on a trip that was funded by other people's money.
4
The final paragraph was upsetting. If you have the flu, stay home. It is unethical to knowingly expose others to an illness that can kill. The flu is nature's way of telling you it is time to cuddle up in bed and read all the old magazines and watch all the old movies you thought you'd get to one day.
31
No. "Curl up" in bed. To 'cuddle up' would require another person. The whole idea is to isolate yourself.
16
This is great if possible. But if you are stranded in a foreign country and it will cost a prince's ransom to re-book, then you have no real choice. If you have a compromised immune system you might be better off not flying at all. At a minimum, know you are taking a risk.
9
You may cuddle up with your dog or cat......or rabbit, teddy bear or the person who gave you the flu
8
The best way to sneeze is not into your elbow ( although it is better then your hand ).
If standing, the best way to sneeze is straight down to the floor and if you are sitting you should sneeze into your lap. These forms of sneezing cause the least amount of airborne droplet dispersion.
2
I don't see how sneezing down can possibly be best. Sneezing directly into your elbow catches most of the droplets right there in the crook of your elbow. Sneezing into your lap a significant portion of the droplets would land on your shirt and you or others are far more likely to touch the front of your shirt than to touch the inside of your elbow.
17
if you do it right, into the elbow is best. the droplets go into your elbow -- they dont disperse.
The best way to sneeze is into a facial tissue.
Many of us have experienced getting sick during or right after travel. I always blame the plane but that's probably because I hate flying. It might have more to do with the stress of travel and with the close proximity to lots of people everywhere, not just on the plane. Wash your hands and don't touch your face!
14
And the airport. Every trip through Philly has ended in illness for me.
7
I've gotten sick right after travel a few times. I just chalked it up to the filthy plane, a sick passenger spewing germs, and being run-down from traveling which affected my immunity. Sometimes no matter how careful you are, a pesky germ will get past your defenses!
Most seats are assigned when you buy ticket. How can you choose your seat?
15
Choose a different airline! I always select my seat.
8
Most people choose their own seats online these days; you're only assigned one if you haven't booked online and chosen it yourself.
3
You may choose your seat in advance, but once on the plane if you’re seated next to someone who’s sick you’re still out of luck.
7
This came through a little late for me. I was flying this weekend and even though I was sitting in a window seat and didn't get up, I wound up getting very sick with an extremely bad cold or mild flu.
13
Would wearing latex gloves help?
If so, you're gonna look like a hypochondriac: mask, gloves, triple antibiotic ointment under your nose, maybe a hazmat suit.
This germophobic got very sick after flying to son's wedding. Had to go, of course; but I knew what was coming. As an old person, I really hate being sick because you just don't bounce back. BTW, I now use two big air filters in my small home, and it makes a big difference in my health: all but stopped chain-coughing, which comes back when I go outside.
5
A friend who traveled frequently had an RN tell her to drink hot liquid (tea or coffee) during a flight. Doing so kills any bacteria that has settled in your throat. I have been heeding this advice for years and have walked away from flights without getting sick. Just a great suggestion I thought I would share with the readers.
24
Sheesh! If you were to drink fluids hot enough to kill bacteria, you would scorch your throat quite badly. Moreover, influenza is a viral infection. And this person is a nurse? Sheesh again!
16
ECB: PS: If hot drinks killed the bacteria in your mouth, you would have a raging yeast or viral infection. We have an entire flora and fauna of microbes living in our mouths. Upset that balance and you have big trouble.
5
The heat of a hot liquid helps bring more blood to the throat, which brings more immune cells to fight any viruses. Drinking lots of hot liquids and gargling with salt water is a technique which helps if one uses it the minute one feels a even a suspicion that one might be getting a sore throat. In my experience, adding immune stimulating herbs, such as echinacea and goldenseal, and big doses of powdered vitamin c helps, as does the homeopathic Oscillicoccinum, which gives the immune system a heads up to be on the alert for a virus. Many people get sick after long flights, this is also due to the stress of the trip and the low oxygen environment of the aircraft. My doctor once tested a hepatitis C patient's viral load before and after an intercontinental flight. The viral load increased ten fold. Oxygen is a natural antibiotic. Also the dry air in airplanes tends to harm the protective mucus barrier in the throat, leaving it more vulnerable to any virus it encounters.
In my experience is is not just the seed--exposure to a virus--but the soil--how well one does or does not give the virus conditions under which a virus can grow. This type of study is pretty useless, as it does not account for host susceptibility,and how that may also be altered by the conditions presented by traveling.
11
I'm always amused by those who use anti-bacterial wipes and then don't get flu. Flu is caused by a virus, not a bacteria.
25
Not quite. If the wipe is an **alcohol wipe** then it can get BOTH viruses and bacteria. What the alcohol does is dry out the cell wall (or protein shell in viruses). That rupture kills the bacteria or virus. Google for verify.
HOWEVER antibacterials dont do anything for viruses. Which is why alcohol based sanigel is the better bet.
8
But some disinfecting wipes are effective against several types of viruses.
Look up the data on Clorox disinfecting wipes if you are a skeptic.
( Try to stop a norovirus epidemic--about as bad as it gets!-- on a cruise ship without disinfectants!)
1
Alcohol doesn’t kill norovirus-there’s a Clorox hydrogen peroxide-based spray that’s supposed to kill noro, hepatitis, and a variety of other things not covered by alcohol.
1
Not a particularly helpful article.
I've tried everything - echinacea tablets, nose sprays, hand sanitizer, wiping everything with anti bacterial wipes....and have still got sick on almost every long haul flight I've ever taken. Our European honeymoon was ruined by bronchitis and sinusitis. Doesn't matter if you are in business class or economy. As long as sick people are allowed to fly, the rest of us will suffer.
9
It takes a lot more vitamin c and echinacea and goldenseal than most people take, and the homeopathic oscilliccocinum is quite valuable. If one can find a naturpath who knows and prescribes low dose cortisone and thyroid, many people who get sick easily have poor adrenal function which also blocks their thyroid action by binging the hormone. This causes them not to metabolize oxygen as well,rendering them more susceptible to viruses. If you get sick on planes easily,you need to work on your health at home to develop your natural resistance. Gut flora has an impact on one's immunity.
Taking some oxygen in flight by getting a doctor's prescription, or an oxygen generator can be useful. There are airline regulations which must be followed. The Dreamliner is said to have better conditions, including a cabin environment which is less drying.
1
"...only a third of passengers used the facilities even once, and half never used them at all." If half NEVER used them, didn't HALF use them "even once"? How does this make sense?
18
"and half never used them at all"
i agree -- that suggests the study was done on short flights. Any longer flights and basically everyone uses the bathroom once.
3
Thanks Vicki! Hope you are well. Glenn.
Vaccines. It is not just flu. Mumps and measles outbreaks are popping up in the EU and US. Could we please go back to herd immunity everyone. My last trip had one person give everyone a bug that turned into pneumonia except for those who had had their flu and pneumonia vaccines. The vector picked it up on the flight.
12
This is another reason I love flying Southwest Airlines. As I board the plane, I can walk right past any row with a sniffling, sneezing passenger.
10
And after you get seated, and the plane is getting full, the 12 year old walking petri dish takes the seat next to you?
2
... ah so my fake coughing during boarding works!
2
My suggestions: Bring an N95 mask in case you sit near someone sneezing and coughing (N100 is not necessary because you want to stop droplets of liquid, not individual virus particles), bring disinfectant towelettes to wipe the tray in front of you, armrests and seat headrest and don't touch your face with your hands.
52
Yes, and ESPECIALLY your eyes...
7
The title makes no sense at all. There is no way a passenger can foresee, at the time they book their flight and select their own seats, who of their fellow passengers will be sick and where those fellow passengers might be sitting!
214
Fly Southwest! We chose our seats when we board so you can walk by the sick people!
1
Until one sits next to you!
18
Do not touch that in-flight magazine or anything in the back of the seat pocket.
Do not stow anything inside there, especially your water bottle.
These are NEVER cleaned on the inside and are the convenient receptacles of many flyer's used tissues and other nasty stuff. Seriously avoid, ick.
Also, wipe clean the entertainment system's touch screen before using it.
156
Disinfect your hands after you handle the magazine.
1
Great suggestions. Thank you.
Plane travel, which is akin to flying in a large petri dish now that the air is simply recycled rather than replenished, can be far less dangerous to your health if you simply apply a dab of triple antibiotic ointment to each nostril before flying. Forget about all the other stuff, doctors use this for immune compromised patients as it helps avoid almost all upper respiratory illnesses. Good luck!
42
P Rogers: Nonsense. Antibiotics do not affect viruses.
7
Antibiotics are useless against viruses.
12
Yes ... a stewardess told me that ointment trick years ago.
3
It’s meaningless to throw in the detail that only one passenger was seen coughing on that sample flight. I cough all the time. It’s due to allergies, not illness.
47
"Those seated at the aisle..." - thanks for clarifying that.
1
How many catch the flue driving in their own autos between destinations ?
2
None.
2
I only fly 3-4 times per year. However, in several of these, I sat next to people who coughed frequently. In each case, I had a URI soon after. If you have a URI and are coughing, do the right thing - take a cough medicine, wear a mask, or do not travel. If you are coughing, you should NOT be traveling. I didn't give you the disease, and I do not want your disease. Unfortunately, we are not allowed to physically assault those with diseases, but there are times I feel like that would be a good idea. The point about the air is a good one - I never thought of that.
If you are coughing, you should not be flying. PERIOD.
20
It would help if the airlines didn't charge you and arm and a leg to change your flight. When it's a question of paying an extra $200 or flying, it's hard to blame folks for trying to save the money. That said, by blood still boils when I have to sit next to them. Once again, the airlines put their profits over passengers' health.
69
I don't travel often - when I do, it's to visit family/friends, attend an important event, travel for work, or it's when I have vacation days to spare and happen to find the few days I can coordinate with others. Going to my best friend's wedding across the country tomorrow. But oh I have a cough, so guess I'll cancel everything.
29
Actually you are generally contagious even before showing symptoms of the flu. So the absence of symptoms does not ensure that the person will not pass something on to you nor you to someone else...
https://www.cdc.gov/flu/about/disease/spread.htm
76
Gee, wish I’d seen this before catching the flu on my flight from LAX to Honolulu in January. I did have a window seat in row 9 (economy class), so based on the article, I guess I shouldn’t have used one of the only two working restrooms on the plane. But when ya gotta go, ya gotta go......even if you don’t wanna to go.
10
I wonder about people who don’t use the facilities on a five-hour flight.
22
Really? You can't manage five hours without using a rest room?
8
"Those seated at the window averaged 64 contacts, the middle seat 58 and the window only 12." Huh?
1
In paragraph 10 about seat position and number of contacts with others, the first statistic cites "window" when it apparently should be "aisle".
5
"Those seated at the window averaged 64 contacts, the middle seat 58 and the window only 12." Should the first "window" in this sentence read as "aisle"?
4
Thought the same thing! Someone needs to rethink that logic.
3
There are viruses everywhere. In the taxi, Uber or bus to the airport, at the check-in kiosk, in the queue to drop of your bags, or in the check-in line. Security lines are particularly cramped and you touch ropes and barriers touched by other passengers. Past security the food courts, snack bars and restaurants aren’t particularly virus free either. At the gate they sweep the floor occasionally, at best. Then people congregate at baggage claim, and in the taxi or bus queue.
Now modern aircraft use HEPA filters which are fine enough to screen viruses. These are cleaned and replaced on a regular basis. As observed in this article they are effective in protecting passengers from others not immediately adjacent to them in the aircraft. Typhoid Mary in row 2 isn’t going to infect anyone in the back of the plane, or even someone 2 rows away.
So why is it always the airline that gets the stick for people getting sick when travelling?
Don’t touch things and wash your hands frequently, is the best advice to avoid getting ill when travelling getting
63
If you are really healthy, you can resist the exposures. The less you get in terms of the amount of virus you are exposed to , the better, but a good immune system is amazingly strong. Many people get sick when their immunity lowers from the stresses and conditions of travel. If your immunity lowers, often there will be a virus you pick up somewhere,somehow.
9
Wouldn't it be amazing if people just stayed home when they have the flu?!
49
A large percentage of flu-infected persons are asymptomatic. They are among the irresponsible fellow citizens who fail to get inoculated. They are flu carriers.
5
You can get the shot and still get the flu, especially in years like this one where the vaccine does not protect against the most common strains. Flu inoculation isn't anything like 100% effective!
6
I was seated in an aisle seat soon after boarding and a male passenger approached coughing/sneezing with an obvious cold and a scarf around his neck/lower face. His seat was in the row behind me and as he was putting his luggage in the overhead bin he dropped his scarf on my head/face - didn't apologize either. I got a horrible cold within 48 hours. Does support the notion that it is riskier to be in an aisle seat.
30
The authors should do this study on long flights with 24 hour days, or some flights getting follow up to see if people got sick.
9
Has anyone considered a flu vaccine?
19
Or better yet, to further reduce the risk for others, please don't fly if you have the flu! (Not realistic, I know, because most people traveling who are ill may not have to travel for work/emergencies, but still....)
6
Bill: A high percentage (estimates vary) of persons infected with influenza are asymptomatic; they are simply carriers.
8
Should do study on Amtrak. I always get sick after riding NE corridor. Dirtier than planes.
12
Bedbugs too.
5
Much more dangerous, not to leave your seat. Or so says the next study.
9
Follow-up article: Do Small Children On Planes Qualify as Biohazards?
22
So, to avoid catching a transmittable disease we should sit in the window seat and not walk around. And to avoid deep vein thrombosis, we should sit in the aisle seat and walk frequently.
350
And to avoid a UTI, you should empty your bladder at the first sign of urgency. You can’t win for losing.
41
Drawn in by the headline, one would expect clear advice on how to choose your seat wisely in order to avoid getting sick. However, no clear advice is provided. It's unlikely, in the rush of passengers to find seats before takeoff, that you can ID any passenger who has cold or flu symptoms, so as to choose a seat at least 2 rows distant. Given the data that passengers in window seats have the least contact with other persons, I suppose one might infer that a window seat is the best choice. For me, that advantage is outweighed by the difficulty of climbing over two fellow passengers when I do need to use the restroom. I have to say your headline is no better than the click-bait headlines in Facebook ads.
103
Should you sit in the window seat, it is likely that you will have a longer time exiting the plane if it catches on fire or crashes into the ocean or land.
1
As may be, but the odds are far greater for getting flu (which can be fatal, too) than for a catastrophe requiring emergency evacuation of the aircraft. Your analysis should include relative risk.
7
One should calculate and compare the expected values: The chance of the plane catching on fire (0.0001 percent, perhaps) multiplied by the consequences of it happening (your dying, perhaps 10,0000 dollars in lost wages over the rest of your life, grief of your family and friends.) The expected value would be 1.
Compare that with the expected value of getting the flu (0.01 percent) times the consequences (three weeks of lost wages, say 6,000 dollars). The expected value would be 6 times 1/10.
if you compare the two expected values, you get 1 for the first and 0.6 for the second.
According to these calculations, it would be better not to sit in the window seat, other things being equal which they may not be. If you assign different weights to the outcomes and different probabilities, then your decision might be the opposite. The nice thing is you get to decide.
I bring wet alcohol wipes and clean my tray and anything I can around me as they are cleaned once per day. I wear a mask, always take a window seat and as a result, I never get the flu and I fly constantly.
23
You are SO perfect!
10
Sounds like what Felix Unger would do.
2
My babushka, the time- and pogrom-hardened Belorussian Jewess, taught me at trick on how not to get sick on a plane: a bottle of ice-cold GOOD Russian vodka (Imperial St. Peterborough would do) mixed in w/ two ounces of grounded black pepper drunk on an empty stomach 15-20 minutes before the flight does it for me every time.
9
How big is this bottle of vodka to which you refer?
7
"Those seated at the window averaged 64 contacts, the middle seat 58 and the window only 12."
"window" is used twice here. Which is aisle?
2
"While it may seem that there is always a line for the restroom when you need one, only a third of passengers used the facilities even once, and half never used them at all."
Is this a trick statement???
19
Rise the norm of courtesy and feel better
1
Had several years of generally unpleasant business flying, without any flu. One of the lucky people for whom echinacea actually works, I started taking it several days before the trip. Quite apart from flying, I will offer my best advice for travellers who have to eat a lot of meals "out" - don't order salads or fresh fruit. The only times I ever got flu on travel was when the only probable cause could have been sneezy, coughing restaurant staff preparing and otherwise hovering over "fresh" food. Order soup instead of salad, cooked not raw (Levi-Strauss) and the odds of contagion are radically reduced.
9
I have only had food poisoning after soup -- I suspect because it was kept warm, not hot, too long. Which is not to say you can't get sick from salads! A friend who has worked as a California field hand says that you'd better hope the greens were washed. Face it, there are germs everywhere. Use common sense, but also raise your children with the "peck of dirt" philosophy.
5
Only 1 person sneezed??? I've taken to wearing a face mask on all flights because there always seem to be sneezing people [plural] nearby who haven't learned any of the hygienic [or mannerly] ways to sneeze. An additional advantage of wearing a mask is that I avoid touching my face while wearing it. Once I arrive at an airport I wash my hands thoroughly.
Why people resist wearing a mask as protection is beyond me. btw, masks made in Japan are more comfortable than those from the US.
22
My doctor told me to wipe down the seatbelt, armrests, and tray table and to avoid using the restroom if possible.
3
Not sure about the recommendation here. I actually like to sit in the window seat and take photos of clouds and mountains and city skylines. Now I have a second reason!
But setting aside the choice of sitting in a window seat (which doesn’t work for everyone, and is contrary to the OTHER plane-flying advice, the bit about avoiding blood clots by walking), is the advice here to get on the plane, survey those around you and then persuade someone to swap seats so that THEY can sit next to the person with the flu instead of you? Lots of luck with that strategy!
11
You may also want to check with a health care professional to see if staying hydrated (by drinking water) keeps mucous membranes moist and makes them less likely to “catch” airborne germs that might be circulating on the plane or in common, congested areas.
12
Prepare to catch all types of germs on Spirit Air then. Not even a cup of water they will provide, unless, of course, if you pay it with a credit card....
5
This study was clearly not conducted during Christmas Season 2017. Both our flights sounded like pre-vaccine era hospital quarantine wards. Pretty sure the type A flu we brought home to our family came from that first flight because our symptoms started a couple of days after getting there. My flight protocol has changed dramatically since then and involves lots of disinfectant wipes.
10
64 contacts at the window, 58 at the middle, 12 at the window-- i'm going to take a chance that the author meant 64 contacts at the AISLE?
4
Passengers should have the right to ask staff to give coughing or sneezing passengers a mask. And yes, passengers should be encouraged to use hand sanitizer, which should be mounted on the wall coming in. My daughter, who travels frequently, always wears a surgical mask when she has a cold.
54
Masks should be mandatory for anyone obviously sneezing or coughing and available for anyone else who wants to wear one. And hand sanitizer should be placed just outside of toilet cubicles (a final cleansing after hand-washing and touching the door handles). Never thought I'd be so concerned about this issue, but here I am...
23
it's not just the plane. going through security is essentially an experiment in how to distribute germs effectively among a thousand people. TSA wear gloves while touchingly those IDs. So no i bring anti=bacterial wipes with me whenever I travel and I wipe down my tray table, arm rests window shade handle and my own hands before take-off and landing and if I leave my seat. It's made a huge difference. I rarely get sick after flying now that I do this.
70
I too bring a roll of wipes. Immediately after going through the screening, I go into the restroom, strip naked, and wipe myself off head-to-toe. I even chew one or two of them for good measure. Plus vodka, of course. ALWAYS helps!
20
Anti-bacterial wipes are useless against viruses.
22
I rarely get sick after flying and I don't do any of that.
7
In the picture, passengers' hands are all over seat backs- necessary in negotiating ever-narrowing aisles, especially as most passengers carry on baggage given high costs of checked bags. Who knows where hands have been, including whether they were washed after using restrooms or blowing or touching noses?
Viruses live well on surfaces for long periods, even surviving brief dry periods.
This plane has what appears to be disposable head papers, rarely seen on my frequent flying.
Airlines should have hand sanitizers mounted around, like in hospitals and other public spaces.
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Probably the same "disposable" head papers that have been present all week.
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But that would cost money and cuts into the airline's profits. They don't even bother to place paper on the headrest anymore surely a cost cutting measure.
5
Want a seat that reduces your chance of contracting a communicable disease? Upgrade for only $50!
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Upgrades for only $50? Where do I sign up?
2
To first or business class? Please tell me how.
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Given the economically incentivized rush to get arriving passengers unloaded and the next flight in that aircraft ready and boarded, cleaning crews who come aboard do not routinely wipe down seats, tray tables, armrests. Headrests used to have paper or similar on them, replaced between passengers. Now, putting one's head on the upper seat is akin to sticking it in a pathological pool.
This study says more about the healthy human immune system than about airline sanitation and protocols.
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