Help solve a spouse debate on germs, sickness and Disney

[AquaDame]

what approach do you/your family use and what have been the results on getting sick or not during or after your vacation?

We use hand sanitizer when we get off rides / touch things and wash them properly before meals. I also take andrographis capsules if I feel like i am coming down with something and I do think it helps whereas I haven't had much luck with vitamin C, ecchinecia or zinc. My husband doesn't use it and tends to get sick faster and for longer than I do... YMMV I know but he had a two week cold & cough last time we were sick whereas I had the sniffles for a couple days and didn't miss a day of work.

At the end of the day I know viruses are airborne and there isn't much I can do aside from being healthy - eating right, getting enough sleep and dodging coughers haha! I just also feel like doing whatever I can helps and will continue to do so! Plus, those bars are gross!

 

[Mrsjvb]

We're truly curious your thoughts and experiences on this and if either approach really makes a difference... what approach do you/your family use and what have been the results on getting sick or not during or after your vacation? Thanks!

Info: I am immunocompromised. the meds I take suppress my immune system so that it cannot do its job efficiently.

Hand sanitizers are useless. honestly do zero good whatsoever and have in fact made the typical immune system more susceptible to every day crap as you are not building up an immunity. My doctors tell me to ONLY use it when I do not have access to plain old soap and water.

I wash thoroughly before meals and after the restroom. other than that I do nothing unusual.

never been sick once, at Disney or on cruises which are far more self contained

 

[5dwarves]

I grew up in So Cal and went to DL all the time. My first trip to WDW was in 2008 when my son, who is a transplant recipient, received a wish trip. As a transplant recipient he is immuno-compromised, and I spent a lot of time worrying before we went. We had hand sanitizer with us, but I didn't let the process interfere with their fun or mine. We made sure the kids changed and showered as soon as we were back in the villa at Give Kids the World. You are more likely to become ill on the plane ride with the recycled air, than you will at the parks in the open air.

 

[aprincessatlast]

Okay. Disney trivia time. One of the four parks has different bathrooms than the other three. Which park is different and why?

Hmm.. Animal Kingdom because it is newer so something is bound to be different. What it is I am not sure. No paper towels? I love silly trivia facts so please share!

 

[disneysteve]

Hmm.. Animal Kingdom because it is newer so something is bound to be different. What it is I am not sure. No paper towels? I love silly trivia facts so please share!

It's not a silly fact at all. It's a very serious fact actually.

 

[bluezy]

Okay. Disney trivia time. One of the four parks has different bathrooms than the other three. Which park is different and why?

I seem to remember that the bathrooms at Animal Kingdom all have exit/entrance doors as opposed to just doorways. I'm assuming (and I could be totally wrong) this is so that guests would have somewhere to run to and be safe if an animal gets loose (which is something I've thought about every time I'm in the park. I like to have a plan "just in case".)

 

[disneysteve]

I seem to remember that the bathrooms at Animal Kingdom all have exit/entrance doors as opposed to just doorways. I'm assuming (and I could be totally wrong) this is so that guests would have somewhere to run to and be safe if an animal gets loose (which is something I've thought about every time I'm in the park. I like to have a plan "just in case".)

Bingo! You're absolutely right. At the other parks, most bathrooms just have open entrances - no doors. At AK, the bathrooms all have doors and they have locks on them. This is so that the bathrooms can be used as emergency shelters if an animal gets loose.

 

[Aurora0427]

It works for us. I don't have young children, but when I did, they rarely got sick and still don't.

My child doesn't get sick very much either, but that doesn't mean I find sitting down at a dirty table to eat enjoyable.

 

[Aurora0427]

One time I watched a family completely wipe every exposed thing down with hand sanitizer after getting off Toy Story Mania and thought "wow, kind of OCD, how much of a germophobe is that mom?" Then I saw that family on Extreme Home Makeover and realized they had a very sick little boy. I felt like a complete and total jerk. I remember that every time I judge someone using hand sanitizer, there could be a really good reason and whatever it takes to protect someone, do it!

This is so true.... I'm pregnant this trip and I'll be hand washing even more frequently and wiping things down more than normal. Your immune system is already weaker when pregnant so I just want to be careful. But obviously nowhere serious like a sick little boy!

 

[DisneyMandC]

We usually carry small bottles of hand sanitizer in our pack so we can use them any time we feel. We have been able to stay heathy on our trips.

When we were at DHS and we were in the basement of ToT waiting in the line there was a little kid in front of us that kept licking the railing as everyone moved up the stairs and across the walkway getting to the elevators. His parents were not watching and were not aware.......that would be a little tough to wash.

I saw a kid licking the railing at It's a Small World on my last trips. The parents spotted him and made some comment to the effect of "why don't we just inject you with ebola." It was gross, but pretty humorous at the same time. Kids are kids and you can't always spot them when they decide to do something gross.

But to OP's question, honestly the thought didn't really even enter my mind when we were there for our last trip. I wash my hands after using the bathroom, of course, and I usually use the restroom before eating a meal so I guess then I would be default be washing my hands before a meal. Other than that, we did not carry hand sanitizer or do anything special (except not touch the IASW railing that kid licked).

 

[DisneyOma]

Info: I am immunocompromised. the meds I take suppress my immune system so that it cannot do its job efficiently.

Hand sanitizers are useless. honestly do zero good whatsoever and have in fact made the typical immune system more susceptible to every day crap as you are not building up an immunity. My doctors tell me to ONLY use it when I do not have access to plain old soap and water.

I wash thoroughly before meals and after the restroom. other than that I do nothing unusual.

never been sick once, at Disney or on cruises which are far more self contained

You are so correct about hand sanitizers - they do more harm than good the way people use them. When you constantly use hand sanitizer (as in, after each ride, etc) you are breaking down the good bacteria on your hands and giving the bad bacteria some prime real estate to establish a pretty little colony.

 

[DisneyHardin]

I'm more like the OPs husband. I don't worry too much about germs. I was my hands after the restroom and may use a little hand sanitizer if I feel like I've touched something some what gross.

 

[Maxpowers]

I wouldn't worry about it any more than you do in the "real" world. Wash hands after using the bathroom and before eating, don't lick the ground or rails or other people and you'll be fine IMO. Maybe throw in a few extra hand sanitizer sessions if you touch something grosser than normal.

 

[NavyDad]

Go with strategy 1 - normal (but vigerous) handwashing after using the restrooms and before you eat (or anytime you are touching your mouth/eyes/face).

Regular use of hand sanitizer or even anti-bacterial soap can lower your bodies natural ability to fight off bugs.

Like someone else said - the best defense is proper sleep, healthy diet and excercise routine.

 

[Magpie]

I wash my hands thoroughly after using the bathroom. I'm a crafter/artist with extremely crummy eyes, so I touch everything by habit. It's how I "see" things. I don't generally wash my hands before eating, because I'm an ex-nail biter and my fingers often find their way into my mouth, regardless of my best intentions. (On the other hand, my nails currently look great - yay, me!) So, there's no point.

I won't use hand sanitizer, except when visiting in hospital, because it does terrible things to my hands.

The one thing I always do, however, is get my flu shot. I've made sure all my vaccinations are current, too. I also eat healthy and keep active.

And, oral and tactile fixations aside, I rarely get sick and when I do I recover quickly. And this is despite tutoring assorted runny nosed infectious young children every afternoon in my home. I'm pretty sure my immune system kicks butt.

 

[ZephyrHawk]

Well, I've never made any effort (beyond the basics like washing your hands in a restroom) to avoid germs at any park. I can't particularly recall ever getting sick after a Disney vacation.

 

[OrangeCountyCommuter]

Immune systems are built by exposing your system to things



Those of you trying to live in sanitized bubbles actually make it more likely you will get sick when you actually find a germ.



The only people who should be trying to live in the bubble are those with compromised immune system

 

[danny1649]

I don't think anything we say is going to change either of your minds. So who makes final decisions in your house , then you have your answer.

 

[fabfemmeboy]

We've never paid much attention to hand-washing or sanitizing while at Disney and have never had a problem ::knock wood:: We also don't have kids, which may help because there's no 'gateway patient' into our hotel room. I'm sticking with the "don't lick the hand rails or anyone's face" rule from page 1 and leaving it at that.

 

[jo-jo]

We don't do anything special at home. At disney the only change was perhaps used hand sanitizer a few times and that's it. Until 2 yrs ago. On day 7 of a 10 day trip, DH got some type of bug. Awful ,awful. 36 hrs later I had. Just let me lay here and die sick.

Now I bring some wipes and go over the room somewhat. Using hand sanitizer more, but not like after every ride.

My theory is at home, you get use to the "local" germs. At disney, there is a whole flock of different germs from around the world.