Help solve a spouse debate on germs, sickness and Disney

[larryz]

spotted at nearby campground. Apparently some people are using their feet to avoid the germs View attachment 128586

The same sign after a teen-ager gets done with it...

 

[jalapeno_pretzel]

My kids will continue to touch everything they come near and then put their hands in their mouth whether I'm fussing at them constantly about it or not. So, I make everyone happier and just don't worry about it. We just wash hands after using the bathroom. And before we eat meals (we're usually using the bathroom before those anyway), but not usually if we're having a snack. Definitely not after every ride. We sometimes carry hand sanitizer, but rarely use it.

In 4 Disney trips, we've picked up 1 stomach bug, and that was due to an active vomiting situation going on in the bathroom when I took DS in to use it. Additionally, there was vomit on the underside of the toilet seat - discovered when he lifted it up. Not sure if the vomiter was going from stall to stall, or if there were multiple vomiters, or how in the world the underside of the toilet seat could be covered in vomit, but, that was the case. 36 hours later he was sick, but luckily it was on the car ride home - only a few hours from home.

 

[BobC]

I always catch a cold after Disney. Not sure if it's germs or just putting more exertion on my body than it's used to (walking 8-10 mi a day/eating garbage.)

Admittedly, my hand washing/santiization is not the best at the parks. I should wash my hands more after rides and avoid railings more often.

 

[GaryDis]

Wait... you use hand sanitizer after every ride? You know that's not actually good for you, right?

http://time.com/96112/why-im-breaking-up-with-hand-sanitizer/

That article correctly criticizes triclosan and similar products, but the inserted update also points out that alcohol-based hand sanitizers aren't an issue. The overwhelming majority of hand sanitizers I see are alcohol based, including Purell.

So there may be other data critical of hand sanitizers in general, but that particular article does nothing to convince me that the common sanitizers are a problem.

 

[mickeymom22]

Someone in my family almost always gets sick after a Disney trip. We call it the Disney funk. This Monday (10/12) was our last day there, and my husband woke up with a cough. He has felt really bad since we came home. This past summer was the first time we went and nobody came home sick!

We try to stay vigilant about washing our hands and using sanitizer. I am all the time telling the kids to get their hands off the handrails. We have seen some pretty unsanitary things done at WDW and always wonder who was holding that handrail before us! Ewww!

 

[SaintsManiac]

DH caught the flu at work and infected half of our family at Christmas dinner. Point is you can get sick anywhere. I don't think Disney is any different from school, work, stores, etc.

Wash hands, eat right, don't run yourself down on the trip. Getting sick is usually being in the wrong place at the wrong time. That could be anywhere.

 

[quakechicago]

I didn't take any special precautions on my last trip and ended up with walking pneumonia on my last day. You get that many people crammed in together, especially lost of little kids, and it's a breeding ground for bacteria. Not to mention the recycled air on the planes so many of us travel there in! Use that hand sanitizer and wipe those Quick Service tables down!

Walking pneumonia is a mycoplasma pneumonia and is a pretty fascinating and virulent. And how I know is I get it about every 5 years and was lucky enough to catch it just after our last trip (you are then immune for the next 5 or so years). It spreads easily and like wildfire through crowds via water droplets in the air with every cough and sneeze, so even not touching your face does not help since you breathe it in.

What would be nice is if people and kics would sneeze and cough into their elbow or a tissue. And even better if they're sick to stay home (or stay in the hotel).

 

[quakechicago]

Epstein-Barr is also spread via droplet. So someone sneezing in a queue without covering their face properly is also a very real possibility for transmission.

^^ This. Lots of stuff floats through the air from planes to lines to restaurants. No need to lick stuff. While you can get sick anywhere, when you pack that many people from that many places (most who do not stay in because it's their vacation even if they're horribly ill), people get sick. Being vaccinated matters most.

 

[bryanb]

Buffets are seriously disgusting and we have two of them on our next trip. I'm wet wiping my hands after every trip to the buffet and making my husband and mom do the same. Luckily our daughter is too young to serve herself. I also wipe down the hotel room and airplane items you mebtioned. I'm paranoid this trip bc I'm pregnant.

I love buffets, especially ones at Disney. I do have a trick though. Choose one hand to touch the serving utensils, say your right hand. Then, use only your left hand to pick up items that are eaten by hand (like rolls, ribs, chicken tenders, etc.). Eat European style, meaning that the fork stays in your left hand when cutting and eating foods like steak. I'm not even a germaphobe but some of those serving utensils have got to be disgusting.

 

[KMcCP]

I'm a bit of a germaphobe at baseline. (I'm also an RN). I'm a big fan of hand sanitizer. Always use it before we eat, after rides when we have to hold onto something, etc. I don't go overboard but always use proper hand hygiene. That being said, we've brought our daughter to Disney three times in the midst of cold and flu season. The first two trips were fine, our most recent trip she got the stomach bug two days in. I'm hoping that since one trip was ruined that we'll have better luck now in the future!

 

[cjparker0110]

Please help solve a little debate for DH and I. We have very different approaches on germs and Disney.

DH approach: touch lots of things without concern, don't wash hands after rides or at all throughout the day, wash hands before meals if it is convenient, hope you don't get sick, but if you do it's just a part of life.

My approach: try not to needlessly run your hands along handrails, etc, use hand sanitizer/wipes after rides, wash with soap and water before eating, try to avoid sickness by doing what you can (while knowing that you can't avoid everything and want to have fun in the process).

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!

I haven't read through all of the replies on here, but here is my basic though on germs at WDW: It's like anywhere else. You wash your hands frequently with soap and water. No need to go in panic mode or anything, but also use common sense. I don't intentionally avoid handrails or anything, but I'm not going to intentionally run my hands on them and then touch my face or eyes to see if I get sick either. Washing hands before a meal is a must...not a convenience.

That said, because we have small children/babies we always have diaper wipes at the very least available to wipe down surfaces. When we go to overly crowded places (malls, amusement parks, etc.) we tend to bring some essential oils (OnGuard by Doterra is a good one) as well as an oil blend called "Flu Shot in a bottle" which is also made up from Doterra oils. We use that frequently throughout the day. I started using it a couple of years ago when I was a grocery store manager. I was always getting sick. After a bit of hesitation I tried it and didn't get sick for over a year!!! Does that mean I never get sick? No. But I sure don't get sick as much as I used to.

Another thing we like to do is to increase Vitamin C intake if we know we are going anywhere. Make sure you take Vitamin D as well as you need that in your body in order to absorb the C. (15-20 minutes a day in the sun gets it naturally, otherwise you can take supplements).

Basically though, don't freak out about germs, but use good hygiene practices. Hand washing is the single number one way to prevent and slow down the spread of diseases. Also be sure to stay hydrated and get plenty of rest (hard to do at WDW, but it's necessary for your body/immune system to work).

 

[edk35]

We are going in Nov. We do get flu shots....getting them this weekend. I started taking vitamins on regular basis to include Vitamin C and probiotics. I was slacking on this this over the summer but pretty much do it year round. I keep wipes and sanitzer in my park purse. Shoot I keep hand sanitizer in my regular purse. I am the type that uses and makes my family use hand sanitizer after handling menus at restaurants here and there. Our kids are older so they aren't putting their hands in their mouths and all. I am not the type that wipes down our resort room and lysols everything but I do bring clorox wipes and a travel size lysol JUST IN CASE one of our goes down for the count. I have had friends that got the stomach virus NOT once but TWICE on trips to Disney but their kid were very young then. Babies and young kids touch everything and their hands and fingers go right into their mouths so I think that is why some families catch things more so than families with teens and young adult children. Good luck.

 

[maxiesmom]

I wash my hands after I use the restroom, and sanitize my hands before eating. I don't avoid hand rails or seat belts or anything like that. I think sanitizing after every ride is going overboard.

 

[ArwenMarie]

Disney is really not like being home though. Well, I guess it depends what you do at home.

Lots of international visitors (not saying they bring anything worse than what we have, but it increases the different types of viruses and bacteria). Lots of people who have also just exposed to air travel as well. Crowds all touching common surfaces, sharing small enclosed areas.

 

[tndisneyfan]

I agree with the OPs husband. I don't worry too much about it. I wash my hands after I use the restroom but I don't usually before we eat. I never use hand sanitizer. I DO try to not run my hands down the handrails and try to not touch my face. I've never gotten sick at WDW or at home right after. DH did get the flu one year when the swine flu was big, he started getting sick on the way home. I have no idea how DS and I didn't get it because we spent 11 hours with him in the car. But, that was one time in 20 odd trips. I still think DH got sick because he's bad to bite his nails.

 

[MakiraMarlena]

Wash hands before meals, and after using the restroom. What else are you going to do? Washing or sanitizing after every ride won't help much. and if you won't touch the bars or seat belts, how do you manage to go on rides that have restraints?

I got on a plane not long ago and a couple sitting in the front of the plane pulled out some essential oils and anointed themselves. They reeked.

 

[summerw]

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.

This made me crack up. Just one dictator per household? Is it an adult or kid? I think DS6 thinks it's him.

 

[LilyWDW]

I wash my hands after I use the restroom, and sanitize my hands before eating. I don't avoid hand rails or seat belts or anything like that. I think sanitizing after every ride is going overboard.

I'm the same. I do the basics like I would do no matter where I was, but I don't do anything crazy. I do carry wipes, but that is to clean off a gross table if needed, not due to wiping everything down due to germs. Never have I gotten ill at Disney.

 

[Rosa Lena]

I definitely would wash hands before meals. I do always carry a little bottle of hand sanitizer with me so I'm not running to the bathroom after everything. You are there to enjoy yourself and have fun! Can't spend all the time in the bathroom =)

 

[chelynnah]

We've never done anything out of the norm, and as I have agreed with PP that the over sterilisation of everything is just making everyone more susceptible in the long run. But there have been a couple of good points on the thread, so we've picked up a pack of individually wrapped sanitizer towelettes to pop in our pockets in case we run into anything particularly gross or a table that needs cleaning. Aside from that, business as usual.