Airport Security Lines
 

A quick comment in response to the Stallings remark about flip-flops as quick and easy when shedding shoes at airport security. What about all the bare, unprotected (maybe unwashed) feet that walk the same path as your bare feet? Gross. Almost as gross and sitting in a plane seat that someone with a short skirt, tight shorts, or bare legs just vacated. EEEWWW. It is my suggestion to ALWAYS wear comfortable, long slacks or sweats, and socks with slip-off shoes (no laces). That way you are protected from the yuck factor when traveling these much-used and abused airports and airplanes.

Dear me, how precious! What do you do in hotel rooms? Never mind Buddhist temples...

The response to the OP goes back to the thread about Lurkers on Fodors. People who are newbies or have never posted are put off by an established person having a snipe at tyhem like this. This person obviously has certain hang-ups and it doesn't enhance the board to tell them how precious they are.

None of the OP's points bother me, but they're entitled to their opinion.

We're all entitled to our opinions. I find the OP's post pretty silly and definitely over the top. Have no idea what other thread you're referencing.

One wonders how the OP would shake hands when meeting someone.

I agree with the OP. Airplanes are germ heaven! And airports probably aren't any better.

I always wear slacks with socks and slip on shoes and no jewelry except my watch when flying.

I also wipe down the tray table and armrests with Handiwipes. And I never use the airlines pillow or blanket.

Call me crazy, but since I've started doing this I haven't gotten sick on vacation.

Call me crazy but I never do this and I haven't gotten sick on vacation.

nelsonian, I'm sure many people don't get sick. But that wasn't my experience until I started taking the precautions above. I'm not a germaphobe and I see nothing wrong with taking reasonable measures to insure one's health.

Oh, I also take vitamins. Now how weird is that!

very!

Eh, people have their own germ tolerances and we should all take the precautions that make us feel most comfortable. For myself, I figure that my immune system is up to the task, so I don't worry much.

Under normal circumstances, my immune system works pretty well too. But traveling for 3+ weeks as we do takes a lot of stamina and I believe the change in time and diet can lower your resistance.

Would I get sick if I didn't take the precautions I mentioned above? Probably not, but it's not worth the chance of ruining my vacation.

"But traveling for 3+ weeks as we do takes a lot of stamina and I believe the change in time and diet can lower your resistance."

I've traveled for as long as ten months with nothing worse than one cold, and I didn't take any of these extreme precautions. I actually think that the more precautions you take, the less your immune system is challenged and the weaker it gets. Excessive caution may well be why we're seeing more asthma and allergies than we did back when kids played in (and sometimes ate) dirt.

Fine, thursdaysd, good for you!

This discussion just reminds me how weak many people are at risk assessment. Just read a report that the most deadly, germ laden spot in the house is the kitchen sink handle. Bathrooms are relatively germ free. I am guessing that the floor of the security area would be fairly clean even to bare feet. And the same for airline seats. But it doesn't hurt to wipe down trays because people handle the trays. But we all have our irrational fears. Have a cousin who will never carry an open drink into a bathroom. Same cousin will not get a flu shot because flu shots give you the flu.

But if your actions give you peace of mind, do it.

I actually feel the same as November_Moon and feel that our immune system is less effective because of all the precautions that are being taken, not just by bettyk but by many other people also.

I was reading an article the other day where two kids had done a science experiment, and actually proved that hand sanitizers had no effect at all, you may as well not washed your hands, the only effective way to kill bacteria etc was with soap.

Wow! Two kids and a science experiment! Really?

Well, they better tell the Centers for Disease Control:

According to research performed by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, hand sanitizer is considered as effective at killing germs as washing your hands with soap and water, unless hands are visibly soiled.

The main point to remember, however, is that the alcohol content of the handrub must be at least 60 percent to be effective.

http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/EID/vol12no03/05-0955.htm

That's interesting bettyk, maybe what the kids were using were less that 60% alcohol. We don't have a Center for Disease Control in New Zealand.

It's fairly obvious to me that these two kids were researching as a cover. They were really trying to get at the alcohol.

My bet is that they distilled it out of the handwash, added ice and a slice of lemon and wrote up some findings to get a mark!

One can be totally anal (sorry, pun not intentional) about hygiene, or just forget it. There’s an advert on TV in Australia for some insane household disinfectant. “Kills 99.9% of household germs.” Which means that the remnant, the 0.1%, will be really tough, breed without competition, and create such numbers that they will likely kill you.

Here’s something – the most virulent bacteria – Golden Staph for example – are to be found in hospitals. Not in airport screening lines, not on hotel sheets (refer http://www.fodors.com/community/trav...bed-sheets.cfm for a laugh), not on toilet seats.

Experience in Australia is that kids that grow up among dogs and cats are less prone to asthma. My grand-daughter has an intimate relationship with hers and our cats. Good thing – she’s pretty tough.

Peter, I am quite familiar with hospital infections as I got a Staph infection after my back surgery a couple of years ago. The reason hospitals have these infections is because somebody didn't properly clean their hands or their instruments.

I haven't been sick in quite awhile, but traveling to different locations can expose one to substances they aren't exposed to in their home environment -- familiar substances that they probably have built up an immunity to.

All I'm talking about is basic hygiene.

I know that what a few travelers are doing now is to buy disposable shoe covers, When the remove there shoes they put on the paper shoe covers then walk through. Then they just throw them away.
Unfortunately I have metal in my leg so every time I go through security get the TSA massage

It is disgusting! I hope all airports start using the Mag Shoe. No one will have to take off their shoes again in the airport! When I was researching I found this at www.idosecurityinc.com . I think most travelers would agree that it is so much more sanitary and less time consuming for the traveler.

Seems a bit silly to worry about walking on the floor without shoes when one stays in a hotel, on a mattress that hundreds of other's have stayed on with only a sheet protecting it... it might protect the mattress from dust and dirty, but I am sorry, fellow germophobes... but it doesn't stop other bodily fluids seeping through... Do these people also not touch any door handles, particiularly when coming out of the bathroom... do they press the toilet button - they probably do - and surely that would be a haven for dirty fingers!!!

they press the toilet button with their feet!!

Miss Green, you might like to peruse this most remarkable Fodors thread, which speaks to the desirability of carrying one's own sheets when one travels. I find it pretty funny.

http://www.fodors.com/community/trav...bed-sheets.cfm

I think I fall somewhere in the middle on this. I am not concerned about walking on the floor through security (though I do wear socks, not sandals, as I do most of the time because I don't like how dirty my feet get or how sandals reduce my ability to go anywhere on any surface at speed.

What grosses me out are the people who walk barefoot or in their regular socks on the airplane into the toilet. Those floors are always wet with scattered paper--who knows what. So I either wear shoes or slippers over my socks on the plane when walking around.

I would believe the kitchen faucet as being very germy. I saw results of a study that checked for how/where germs associated with illnesses were in the home and it showed that if an ill person used a bathroom, the germs were as likely to be on the walls as specifically on faucets and handles they touched--airborne. Also have read that public bathroom door handles are some of the nastiest things to avoid since you may have washed your hands after touching the toilet button, but not everyone else.

I ALWAYS use Purell liberally when I return to my seat after using the restroom on the plane and I would NEVER go into that restroom barefoot or in my socks.

I don't get it. If you have socks on your feet isn't that better than barefoot in the airplane bathroom? What's wrong with going barefoot in general though? We don't put our feet in our mouths. ?

sharie, just the possibility of standing in someone else's urine in my stocking feet doesn't appeal to me. Besides, going barefoot is not a healthy thing if you have any cuts or abrasions on the bottom of your feet or if you happen to be diabetic or have a compromised immune system.

If you have no problem with it, then go ahead. Not my place to tell you what you can or cannot do.

ah, I didn't think of it that way ;) thanks

little packets, individual to be sure, that we pass around before eating anything anywhere other than home....keep hands out of face, teeth, ears, etc...don't eat on a plane, if you can help it (she/he sometimes sneeze), and cover your mouth when you or someone around you coughs/...that's all you can do...if you are worried about your socks, trash them after you get thru security and put on a clean pair from your bag.

Today I don't think it matters what you do. Got off a plane on Tuesday and have had a cough for a couple of days. I don't remember the last time I had anything. It's just my turn. Although, I want to blame it on that woman across the aisle who didn't cover her mouth when she cough (a lot) but dh isn't sick.

I agree about going into the airplane bathrooms in my stocking or bare feet. You never know. I'm not big on barefoot anyway.

BTW, I wiped down my tray each flight on Tues and I've never done that.

After cleaning the guest bathroom at my house, the only one that men ever use, I'm pretty disgusted by the entire male gender right now. Honestly if you guys can't hit the mark in a normal bathroom, how could I expect you to hit the mark in an airplane bathroom?? Going into an airplane bathroom in my socks or barefoot is a pretty disgusting thought.

As for going through the security lines, I don't see a problem with wearing flip flops other than the fact that airplanes are always cold and I'd rather pack the flip flops and wear the walking shoes. The germs idea doesn't bother me at all, but I'm not immune compromised and don't have misc cuts and scrapes on my feet. If you're immune-compromised in any fashion you need to take every extra precaution imaginable when traveling.

<i>WATER WINS Water was the most effective at removing stomach bug viruses from the hands, Emory University researchers find. They planted stomach bug viruses on volunteers' fingers and allowed them to dry. The results, presented this week at the American Society for Microbiology Meeting in Orlando, Fla., showed the percentage of the viruses removed by water, hand soap, and alcohol-based hand sanitizer. Water removed 96 percent of the virus; liquid antibacterial soap removed 88 percent; and the hand sanitizer removed only 46 percent.</i>

http://abcnews.go.com/Health/story?id=1993859

Thanks for posting that AA. I wonder if water is the most effective because people spend more time using it than the others?

Time is the best way to wash hands at least 30 seconds. Running through the ABCs, a prayer or a poem.

<i> wonder if water is the most effective because people spend more time using it than the others?</i>

that could be a consideration if the study was uncontrolled, but I believe this study was done in strictly controlled environment, so each subject was given the same amount of time to wash their hands.

Hate the hand sanitizer ritual I see going on with tables of Americans. No one else from other countries do this and I don't think anybody is getting ill more often.

It smells awful and looks tacky, sitting at a table and passing a little bottle of it around. Then if anyone declines, folks look at them like perhaps they are unhygenic. Weird!

Sorry you find us weird, Mainhattengirl. Maybe we should just take our tacky selves and our tourist dollars somewhere else?

Well, that is taking it to extremes. Considering I see it the most when I am at home in America! I never said anything about tourists, so not sure where the "tourist dollars" comment comes from?

Nobody used to do this, then all of a sudden it became popular with Americans. Do you feel like it helps with illnesses? Why don't other countries think it is a good idea?

Perhaps that is why so many kids get ill and have allegires as they are over sanitised?