Help solve a spouse debate on germs, sickness and Disney

[nkereina]

I always take extra measures before and during a trip. I have hospital grade antibacterial wipes (from Amazon) that I keep in my carry on and wipe down everything around us on the plane. I do the same as soon as we get in the hotel room. Frequently wash my hands or use Purell. Prior to traveling, we take a probiotic regimen and also take vitamin C, zinc, and echinacea supplements in addition to our regular multivitamins. Also get a flu shot. With all of this being said, I did manage to get both pink eye and pneumonia during our last trip and was sick the last two days of it. Sometimes it's inevitable!

 

[CdnCarrie]

Wash after using the restroom.We only wash hands before a meal if we happen to go the washroom first.

 

[coolbrook]

This would have been interesting as a poll. What do you think, about 25% extra wash and sanitize?

 

[NY Pirate Princess]

First trip, germ phobic me ensured everyone used Purell constantly and we were all ill upon return. Poor kid. Threw up so much there were no sheets left in the house. Second trip, forget it. We ate and drank and even might have licked a stranger with abandon. Hands were washed after using the restroom and probably 20% of the time before eating meals. No sickness.

 

[samsteele]

I've been terribly ill with respiratory/lung infections at WDW in the past so I try to take some basic precautions.

I keep my fingers/hands out of my eyes and off my face. It is inevitable that I will touch surfaces that sick kids/people have touched before me. On my fingertips is one thing. I don't need to transfer it into my system.

I probably go through 8 mini hand sanitizer bottles during a typical trip. When standing in line, I purell. Before I eat, I purell. It seems to have helped the past few trips.

I also wipe down my airplane handrests & tray. When I first check in to my room, I wipe down the TV remote control, bathroom taps and doorknobs in my room.

I take multi-vitamins daily and pack one for each day of my vacation.

The above seems to have helped and I have been sick-free the past few vacations.

 

[kermiebudge]

Your approach most certainly! We spend too much time and money to throw it out the window...purell and wet ones on hand always I drive the family NUTS though. Particularly my husband....LOL.

It's definitely not a fool proof method either. A VERY sick woman literally sneezed a wet, terrible one in his face when we were in line for Soarin'. He took the hit for us though when we heard her coughing and sneezing he created a human sneeze shield for us But BAM, he was sick as a dog two days later. Really nothing you can do about people that don't have the courtesy to keep their coughs and sneezes in their sleeves

He started asking for purell and wet ones after that trip!

 

[kermiebudge]

P.S. I vote for Purell dispensers at the gates to use after sticking your finger on the scanner... Can't even begin to imagine the nasties that might be on the scanners!

 

[pmaurer74]

we are getting flu shot, we use hand sanitizer before eating and always wash when using the rest room. I also make sure I use hand sanitizer each time after I go up to a buffet... seeing hundreds of people touching the same spoon and ladle and watching the CM change out the pans of food but keeping the same spoon and transferring it to the new dish

 

[DizneyLizzy]

I'm going the unconventional route and saying that adequate sleep and a positive, non-worrying attitude are the best defenses

People don't talk about this a lot, but I think you're right, and I bet a major reason for coming home sick from vacation is that people get run down...especially on a Disney trip. It's hard to get sufficient sleep AND to eat well on vacation - two things essential to a powerful immune system. Get that rest!

 

[gwb]

I have worked construction for over 25 yeas and been in some very nasty dirty places( to tell the truth some people get a little sick when they want me to tell them where I have worked) and can only really get cleaned up on site before I eat at breaks and go home. I have also worked in maintenance in hospitals going into restricted patient rooms and OR's. So I have worked both extremes as far as cleanliness is concerned and have just washed hands or used sanitizers.
Not have caught anything yet. There are numerous public places that common sense says not to touch; so follow common sense don't be parinoid, wash hands or use sanitizers as you see fit and you'll be fine. Hand rails etc are something I don't worry about and 1 PP said to use under the rails well where do you think all the liquid goes when someone touches the rails, underneath them!
Main

 

[bluezy]

Add us to the "after we use the bathroom and before meals if it's convenient or we think of it" list. We'll also wash our hands if there is obvious dirt on them. We're a family of 7 and we've spent ~50 days at Disney World in the last 14 years and the only time one of us got sick either while at Disney or immediately after returning home was in 2011 when my husband had a migraine one day. No amount of hand washing would have prevented that.

If I washed and/or sanitized my hands as often as some people on this thread do I wouldn't have any skin left on them and then I'd surely pick up an infection.

ETA: We were at Disney during the big Swine flu outbreak (spring of 2009, I think) and even though we weren't constantly hand washing/sanitizing, none of us picked up the flu.

 

[BeerMe]

I agree with your husband

 

[summerw]

Who is sick more often? You or your husband?

We have a disparity on our house. I have a mild autoimmune disorder and tend to get things much more often than anyone else I live with and it lasts longer. Here is the breakdown…

We all have flu shots.

DH: Seldom sick, used to be a teacher, washes hands regularly.
DS6: Will put his mouth anywhere, including Disneyland handrails and trash can lids when he was younger, no matter what I say or how much I gag. Still puts his hands in his mouth a decent amount. Going to preschool and kindergarten definitely upped how often he was sick, but he'ss till pretty healthy.
DM: Doesn't go out much and is seldom sick, even when we are.
Me: I work from home so am not around people as much as others, but I get sick at least twice as much as anyone else. I wash my hands A LOT, wipe down grocery carts, don't touch rails or doors wherever I can, and am mindful about where I put my hands between washings.

I also wipe down the plane seats and trays and wash hands frequently on trips. No one got sick at Disneyworld and I am the only one who got sick when we went to Hawaii.

I really think it has more to do with your immune system and how much you touch your face then anything else. I would say you should go on with your routine because it makes you comfortable, but unless you have a family member who get sick a lot, you probably should let them decide what works for them.

 

[quakechicago]

We use hibiclens wipes and wash. It lasts on skin 6 hours so I don't obsess. I have a craptastic immune system thanks to autoimmune stuff so I tend to be the one to get sick. We also make sure we're all fully vaccinated.

When my kid was 2 she liked to lick things. Like handrails. And monorail and subway poles. And shopping carts. And anything else she could. And when we yelled at her, she started licking things in secret. So we'd catch her like this:

 

[BigAlsGal]

Im team DH. Although I do try to remind the kids not to run their hands down the rails as they walk.

Unless they have medical issues that would require you to take extra precautions then try to relax.

 

[wdw4rfam]

Because you (and others) think it's excessive is the reason I wash mine after rides. I don't get sick now. The OP asked what we do and I responded with what we do.

I'm with you, I spray santitizer on everyone after almost every ride and after each trip to buffets. We've never got sick at Disney and haven't had the flu in years at home, so I'm going with what works. oh don't forget Clorox wiping the room when you check in too ( I get the commercial hospital ones online that kill norovirus).

 

[disneysteve]

I think germ-phobia is responsible for more and more issues including asthma and allergies, and there is research to back that up. When our daughter was an infant, she crawled on the floor, sucked on her toes, put everything and anything in her mouth. My best friend's son was close in age. Every time he dropped his pacifier, mom sterilized it. She wiped his hands every time he touched anything. She was vigilant about what went into his mouth. Guess which kid was always sick and suffered from more allergies.

Let your immune system do its job. I wash my hands when I leave the bathroom. That's about it when on vacation.

 

[jahber]

We are locals and we just employ our usual hand washing procedures--except that I always bring sanitizer wipes for after the touchy-touchy queues (like Pooh). But honestly, I swear my littlest one has licked half of the stationary surfaces in MK. I've tried to stop him, but he just likes to touch things with his mouth. And he hasn't been sick in months and months. He's actually sick much less frequently than my other kids. Maybe it's the germs building his immune system FWIW, his first trip to MK was at 28 days and I WAS super-careful then aboit germs. But now that he's 1, we just use common-sense hand washing procedures with him and the big kids. Works for us!

 

[BuckeyeBama]

I do the exact same things at Disney that I do in the rest of my life - wash hands before eating and after using bathrooms, and don't lick handrails or strangers' faces.

You win the internet for the day. Post had me literally laughing out loud.

 

[BuckeyeBama]

Everyone should wash their hands as much as they are comfortable with. But the #1 thing that you can to do avoid illness in crowded areas is stop touching your face. If you get germs on your hands, you don't get sick. If you get those germs in your eyes, nose or mouth, you get sick.

Stop touching your face.