Wipe down that tray table
 

http://www.budgettravel.com/feature/...-a-plane,3506/

We all know there are germs all around us but this does give some more awareness to what we're touching when we get on a plane (or go in a store or restaurant, etc.).
I started wiping down my tray table and seat arms some years ago because I convinced myself it would prevent me from picking up cold viruses. Nowadays it's MRSA.
I know the magazines are going to be dirty but it never occurred to me to consider the entire seat back pouch as dirty.
I'm not going to stop using ice or drinking hot tea after my meals. I'll take my chances there.
And I can't bear to not wash my hands using water. I can use an antiseptic wipe afterward but I can't use only an antiseptic wipe after using the bathroom.

cool

Oh please. There are germs everywhere, and most of us manage to survive just fine anyway. Come to that, your skin and intestines are covered with bacteria, and you still survive. Don't be so precious. This obsession with getting rid of every stray germ is a likely reason for the increase in asthma and allergies.

Well, I always wipe down the armrests and seat tray when I get on the plane. I don't really care that much if I come down with a cold, etc., at home but I don't want to do it when I'm on vacation. I don't think there is anything wrong with taking precautions.

I wipe down the tray and the arm rests -- and if I'm in a window seat planning on propping my pillow on the wall, I wipe that down too! This all stems from a flight where I saw what I believe to be light blood splatter on the wall. Plus, there's always some sort of "leftover" who-knows-what on the tray...

I carry a few alcohol swabs/wipes with me in my carryon bag. They're convenient and inexpensive.

I am probably the least germ-phobic person I know, but I do pack a hand-wipe for plane... and do the tray table when I first get seated. It's gross eating with other people's crumbs and coffee cup rings left behind.

I know that after flying 38 years as a flight attendant that I am one walking petri dish!
I would like to remind everyone to NOT go barefoot or stocking footed on the plane as alot of planes fly to "interesting" places these days and you can pick up some fun things on your feet.

38 years as a flight attendant! You have seen some serious job-description changes in your lifetime, haven't you?

Yes but a fun one!

This may be the dummbest question ever. A whole unopened pkg. of baby wipes was left here. Am wondering if they are as effective as the antiseptic wipes we use for wiping down tray tables, etc. I thought I might as well use them on our next trip if they work on killing germs. My hunch is if they are gentle enough for baby, they are not really good at germ killing.

Probably not, 1965. Though they'll probably clean as much as we really need an area to be cleaned.