Add Lysol, Hand Cleaner, Etc. To Your Packing List

[disnut8]

Originally Posted by Eliza32

I never 'sanitize' anything. I wash my hands with soap and water when needed.....been to Disney loads (including a 9.5 hr plane ride each way) and never caught anything. Maybe I have better immunity that those of you who Clorox eveything to death....just saying!

Same here. Was going to post but you summed it up much better than I could ever. I can't tell you the last time I had a cold or the flu. The only time I use a "sanitizer" is after I eat a seafood meal and then the "sanitizer" is the lemon juice from the wedge on my plate.

[dansdad]

Originally Posted by disnut8

Same here. Was going to post but you summed it up much better than I could ever. I can't tell you the last time I had a cold or the flu. The only time I use a "sanitizer" is after I eat a seafood meal and then the "sanitizer" is the lemon juice from the wedge on my plate.

This!

[ZOOMAMA]

Originally Posted by Eliza32

I never 'sanitize' anything. I wash my hands with soap and water when needed.....been to Disney loads (including a 9.5 hr plane ride each way) and never caught anything. Maybe I have better immunity that those of you who Clorox eveything to death....just saying!

Same here (except for the 9.5 hr flight- ). Our family wash with soap and water, we never use hand sanitizer, we don't wear shoes in the house, and we let DD eat the occasional Cheerio off the floor when she was little- rarely have any of us been ill. I do wipe down communal use phones and keyboards at work prior to use with sanitizing cloths because I work in hospital laboratories and gloves get pretty yucky. My work shoes are for work only and I change out of my scrubs as soon as I get home. Our friends who sanitize the sanitizer have permanent runny noses, hacking coughs, and never ending "tummy bugs." Could be coincidental or luck or diminished immune systems from sanitizing overload and decreased exposure. Either way, I don't wish a sick little one or spouse on anyone's vacation.

[fla4fun]

Originally Posted by rocketmom

Regular hand sanitizer will not kill norovirus. Products containing Benzalkonium Chloride will help kill noroviuus (not sure if they will completely kill it). Wet Ones hand wipes have this and Germ X makes a foam hand sanitizer with this ingredient also.

I carry the individually packaged Wet Ones with me. I use one before I eat or drink anything in the parks. Other than that I don't worry about what I touch - I just make sure I don't touch my face (unless I use another Wet One to clean my hands first). Since I started using these, I haven't been sick at Disney, and it's been several years now (including a very virulent outbreak of Norovirus in December a few years back).

Another thing is that I use Bonine for motion sickness. It's an antiemetic, and works on nausea caused by many things other than motion sickness. So I don't get motion sick, and it helps give a little added protection against nausea from other sources as well.

Nothing is totally foolproof, but so far (knocking on wood) this has worked for me.

[aubriee]

Originally Posted by fitgirl36

Me too, but I put the personal size Lysol in my quart bag. It's never been taken. Hmmmm.

I guess some TSA agents are more vigilant than others. The TSA agent in Dallas took my little travel size Lysol out of the 3-1-1 bag, saying it was not a toiletry, so was not allowed. That was when I was doing carry only. They've never bothered it though when it was in a checked bag..

[honeymo78]

Another fan of good old fashioned hand washing. 30 or more trips with family since the age of 2 and only sicknesses for anyone have been sunstroke and kidney stones. The only time I use hand sanitizer is to get the printer toner off my hands at work or to remove some sticky/dirty substance when I'm not near a sink.

[goofy4tink]

Originally Posted by Eliza32

I never 'sanitize' anything. I wash my hands with soap and water when needed.....been to Disney loads (including a 9.5 hr plane ride each way) and never caught anything. Maybe I have better immunity that those of you who Clorox eveything to death....just saying!

Me too. Yes, I bring those 'chlorox' wipes on the plane with me. That's to wipe down that nasty tray!!! Dear God...does anyone ever clean those???
Anyway....in my room? I don't much wipe stuff down. Maybe run a wipe over door knobs and such but that's about it.
The place you have to worry about is in the parks!!! Stand and watch what touches those railings in attractions!! You'll be horrified. Those little kids are wiping all sorts of 'stuff' as they touch the hand rails!! So, we use the bathrooms a lot and are washing our hands almost every 90 mins!!! Yes, I carry hand sanitizer with me, but seldom use it. Hand washing is much more effective. And, keeping your hands away from your face!!! That's a biggie as well.

There is always some kind of germ going around at WDW. The only time we have had illness hit us was during a mid-Dec trip. We arrived on Wednesday, and dd was sick on Thursday. Raging fever, achy body. But, after a day in the room, she was much better. She most likely had the germs in her when she left home!!!

[gwynne]

Originally Posted by honeymo78

Another fan of good old fashioned hand washing. 30 or more trips with family since the age of 2 and only sicknesses for anyone have been sunstroke and kidney stones. The only time I use hand sanitizer is to get the printer toner off my hands at work or to remove some sticky/dirty substance when I'm not near a sink.

We prefer hand washing, too, whenever possible. I am not a fan of gloppy hand "sanitizers". We travel with single use wet ones, good for times when a sink isn't available. They are also good for wiping off surfaces like airplane tray tables, and anyplace else that needs a quick swipe. I don't see any real plus in bothering to bring lysol. And as others have said, it isn't (according to TSA rules) allowed in 311 bags.


And an aside--I also kind of wonder about something else. There seem to be lots of threads these days about tummy illnesses...wonder if something else is playing into this. It sure seems to be more frequent that I ever remember that someone is talking on the phone while using the facilities in public restrooms. I also see lots of phones being used while dining out. Bite of hamburger, check messages, back to hamburger. Hmmm...I'm thinking some of these groups must intersect. Yucky, but I don't think folks are really considering this. Gosh, some of those phones must be bio-hazards.

[ZOOMAMA]

Originally Posted by gwynne

…


And an aside--I also kind of wonder about something else. There seem to be lots of threads these days about tummy illnesses...wonder if something else is playing into this. It sure seems to be more frequent that I ever remember that someone is talking on the phone while using the facilities in public restrooms. I also see lots of phones being used while dining out. Bite of hamburger, check messages, back to hamburger. Hmmm...I'm thinking some of these groups must intersect. Yucky, but I don't think folks are really considering this. Gosh, some of those phones must be bio-hazards.

This is a very valid point. Studies show that flushing a toilet with the lid open (in this case, toilets without lids to close) can spray diarrhea-causing bacteria and viruses into the air a minimum of 10 inches and possibly up to 4 feet, depending on the force of toilet flush and particle size. Some viruses which cause gastroenteritis, including norovirus can "live" on surfaces up to 2 weeks.

[SA mom]

FYI: Clorox wipes do not contain bleach. It says "Bleach Free" on the container. They are a wonderful product and we use them frequently.

We are hand washers, but will use an occasional wipe for sticky fingers or other ickiness. We've used the Clorox wipes on our hands before when we were in a pinch.

[Anonomom]

I'm usually fairly laid-back about germs (we rely on handwashing), but I'll admit I'm extra paranoid about stomach bugs. When DD was 20 months old, she spent the first two days of our Disney trip touching everything she could and even crawling on the floor at CRT, then the next three days throwing up. Our son will be 20 months old for our upcoming trip and I'll be traveling with plenty of wipes/sanitizer. I realize it doesn't kill all germs, but it's one brick in the wall.

I recently found some wipes that claim they can kill germs on surfaces for up to 30 days (they deposit some kind of polymer on the surface wiped). I bought one to use on the doorknobs/remote at the hotel when we're in WDW. Can't hurt, could help.

[ocalla]

I have to say I never knew that Hand Sanitizers couldn't kill Noro. Now, myself and my family have NEVER been ill with any virus like Noro at home or at the park, but you never know when it could happen!!!

Glad to know that just good old fashioned soap and water is a better option!!

Should I even bother with wiping down the room knobs with clorox wipes?? or is that a waste of time.

Clueless in LA

[TNS_Tinkerbell]

Look, its great that we have all this sanitizing wipes and sprays and gels, that kill 99.99% of germs, but the bottom line is it actually harms more than it helps.

The number one thing they taught us in Nursing School was wash your hands with soap and water, hot enough to tolerate a good scrubbing, and not just the 30 second kids skimp through water, like the full on scrub between your fingers, wrist and all.

We had a lab demo once that used black light and orange "germs" liquid, and it is amazing how little areas of skin can hold on to those germs even after a good, scrub.

Look at your hands right now, I am serious. Any rough patches? Any areas that have deep cracks ?? Dry skin around the nail beds? Those are the places hardest to clean.

The sprays, gels and wipes in theory are great, but the actually cause more harm, by making those bugs become tolerant and resistant to the wipes, and sprays. By making everything so sanitary and clean, we are hurting our own immunity.

Yes, in between, taking off gloves, or small things, the gels work, but trust me, they break your skin down, and you get SUPER dry, tough skin, that leaves you at risk, as now the cracks form and bugs can get in there too...

So the best practice is to wash our hands.

Noro-virus (or Norwalk like) and other stomach aliments aren't going to stop being around. You have to wash your hands, and you have to be sensible about doing it every time you eat and use the bathroom.

Disney is wonderful and has so much to touch and experience, but before you eat. WASH YOUR HANDS.

Okay, I'll get off my soap box, and the idea about the remote and baggie is awesome btw!

[TNS_Tinkerbell]

One last tip, about immunity...

Before you go on a trip, start taking Vitamin C, or a least a good quality multivitamin... you can help your immunity by having these essential vitamins, in your system.

And if you do get sick, be sure to hydrate, hydrate, hydrate, especially with a stomach bug.

Orlando, is hot. Anaheim is hot. And being sick is not so fun. But being sick and dehydrated is really bad in the hot places!

[disneyag]

We don't go nuts with all the sanitizers and, thankfully, never get sick at Disney. We do frequently wash our hands with soap and water. I wonder if all the people who are so vigilant about Clorox, Lysol, etc. at WDW also do those same things at the grocery store, in the mall, at school, in a doctor's office, at the library, etc, etc, etc. These threads could make a person paranoid about visiting Disney, when, in fact, germs are found everywhere!!!.