Avoiding Swine Flu While Traveling
I recently read an interesting book called Swine Flu Survival Guide. This book really helped me understand what the world is going through, and how I, an individual, can try and be as safe as I can; in particular I was worried about travel (since this is something that often cannot be avoided), here is an article article that can explain the best way to protect yourself while traveling. Despite all the media hype about Swine Flu, the FAA and the CDC only warn against flying if you’re already feeling the symptoms of an illness or if you’ve come in contact with someone who’s seriously at risk of contracting the H1N1 flu virus.
Federal officials have just asked that everyone consider common health safety precautions when they’re in public and surrounded by other travelers. Because cheap airfare, in particular, often fill up fast, making for crowded planes and airports, you’ll want to follow these basic guidelines for keeping yourself healthy on your flights.
1. Keep in mind that everything you touch, including your airline tickets, the handles on your bags, and your ID, have the potential to be touched by someone else and vice versa so wash your hands often.
2. You can never be too cautious, so wearing a mask in public to protect yourself from other traveler’s germs and to keep yours from spreading may be a good idea. Although this may sound a bit embarrasing, it needn’t be. While living in London, I often saw people wearing masks in the Tube (the local Subway system); if they were not embarrased to wear it for a daily commute, why should you be embarrased to wear one during this crisis?
3. Carry a hand sanitizer and anti-bacterial wipes (in a small enough container to pass carry-on regulations) with you everywhere. You can essentially wash your hands anytime any place and wipe down any plastic surface you come in contact with armrests on airplane and airport seats, etc. This may sound a bit paranoid, but we’re dealing with a pandemic, so safety comes first.
4. Avoid using the pillows and blankets on airline flights. This may come as a surprise, but whether you’re flying on cheap flights or premium airlines, the planes don’t have a washing machine hooked up in the back to sanitize pillows and blankets between flights. Regardless of swine flu, this is a pretty scary image. The conclusion is to bring your own pillow or blanket as a shield against the seats themselves.
5. You’ll be hard-pressed to find cheap flights that aren’t crowded with travelers; as a common hygiene practice, make sure to sneeze and cough into your own body, preferably into the bend of your arm. Always carry tissues to avoid spreading any of those germs to other passengers. If everybody acted this way, the threat would be definitely minimized.
6. Incubation period: remember that you’re usually contagious one week prior to exhibiting symptoms of the flu, so if you think you may have come in contact with someone who could be carrying the flu, this might be one of the few reasons to postpone your airline tickets for another time.
7. As helpful as flight attendants, ticket counter, and baggage claim employees can be, it wouldn’t be unheard of to kindly request to handle your own belongings if possible at this time (explain why if they don’t seem to cooperate). Many of the discount airlines don’t charge for checked baggage, but you might want to still consider carrying-on your luggage on these cheap flights to avoid having the ticket counter and baggage handlers germ up your bags.
8. Remember that just once you’re out of the plane that doesn’t mean you’re out of harm’s way. If you’re going to be staying in a hotel room and you have space in your suitcase, you might want to pack your own sheet and pillow case. Unfortunately, this piece of advice is probably somewhat unrealistic, but if possible (say, going on a vacation via a car), this may actually be feasible.
Author: Joseph Lawsomier
I am a freelance writer who loves to travel around the world. I love to write about my journies and how to make life easier for others that travel. cheap flights lowfares.com
Mail this post
Tags: anti-bacterial wipes, cdc, contagion, FAA, Flu Virus, H1N1, H1N1 virus, incubation period, Safety, sanitizer, Swine Flu Dangers, Traveling
