Coming homewith cough and cold

[Gail & Marty sailing away]

URI's are quite prevalent on cruise ships, kind of like a kennel cough for humans. For some people it can be quite serious if they have an underlying comorbity. Generally the respiratory infection is viral and spreads easily to others confined in the same space.

Many of us are also exposed to infectious agents on airplanes and pre cruise hotels but the symptoms manifest a day or two later on the ship.

Per my experience poorly functioning HVAC systems on old, poorly maintained cruise ships are a factor.

The original Legionaires outbreak was blamed on a poorly functioning hotel HVAC.

 

Frequent hand washings with hot soap and water are a must. Don't rely on a little bit of hand sanitizer squirted in the palm of your hand. Avoid elevators and tightly crowded places as much as possible, especially if the elevator is full. One sneeze or cough sprays millions of viral particles. Try to avoid rubbing your eyes or touching your face. Wipe down remote controls, keyboards, exercise equipment with a Clorox wipe. Don't smoke and avoid contact with cigarette smoke as much as possible.

 

Thanks for the tips

[poinsettiaplate]

Don't always blame your fellow passengers. My experience has been that it is the ship. They use so many things to keep germs from spreading and all of them are bad for you. They spray, fog or apply antivirals, antibacterials, insecticides and other hyper-sanitation products in the cabins and in the public areas; they use some type of mildewcide/antiviral/antibacterial in the air conditioning system; they use fairly harsh cleaning supplies for the same reasons; some use room deodorizers, air fresheners, scented detergent, dryer sheets, fabric softeners and starch. I ask that none of these be used in my cabin (which they do honor) and I still get some type of sinusitis or rhinitis on every cruise; experimentation has shown that it is the AC system.

 

Now I leave my AC on neutral all the time, open the sliding glass door to the balcony the whole time I am in my cabin, do my exercising on the open decks, and limit time in the casino and theaters.

 

In addition, I note that many tour buses do similar applications, so I have to carry cough drops to get through a shore excursion.

[chengkp75]

Don't always blame your fellow passengers. My experience has been that it is the ship. They use so many things to keep germs from spreading and all of them are bad for you. They spray, fog or apply antivirals, antibacterials, insecticides and other hyper-sanitation products in the cabins and in the public areas; they use some type of mildewcide/antiviral/antibacterial in the air conditioning system; they use fairly harsh cleaning supplies for the same reasons; some use room deodorizers, air fresheners, scented detergent, dryer sheets, fabric softeners and starch. I ask that none of these be used in my cabin (which they do honor) and I still get some type of sinusitis or rhinitis on every cruise; experimentation has shown that it is the AC system.

 

Now I leave my AC on neutral all the time, open the sliding glass door to the balcony the whole time I am in my cabin, do my exercising on the open decks, and limit time in the casino and theaters.

 

In addition, I note that many tour buses do similar applications, so I have to carry cough drops to get through a shore excursion.

 

Wow, don't really know where to begin with this. All of the sanitizing agents used, in particular the fogging and pesticides, is done only when necessary, so if your problem persists every trip its not caused by these agents. But then again, I assume you don't believe the EPA when it says these are safe to use.

 

I would love to see what cruise line uses "scented detergent", "dryer sheets" and "fabric softener". They buy commercial detergents, for the laundry, because the sheer cost of buying "perfumed" products would take away any profit from the cruise.

 

The sanitizing pads in the a/c system are not aerosols, they are in cloth pads that are placed in the water collecting troughs where the humidity condenses. This sanitizes the standing water (due to ship's motion not all water drains immediately), but has no effect on the air flowing to the cabins. Legionella needs moisture to propagate, it won't grow in dry air ducts, which is another reason the ship's a/c drops the humidity so low.

 

And your neighboring passengers thank you for warming up their cabins whenever you leave the balcony door open. Just turning your cabin thermostat to "neutral" does not shut off the fresh air supply to your cabin, which is common to an entire block of cabins. This reduces the fresh air to the other cabins and causes them to draw warm air from the passageways to make up the air balance. It also sends more of that nasty anti-microbial a/c air to your cabin.

 

Given that the USPH/CDC oversee nearly every aspect of cruise ship operations, including the a/c system, that if it were a significant vector for transmission of infectious disease, then the world acknowledged experts on controlling infectious diseases wouldn't do something about it?

Edited May 24, 2016 by chengkp75

[Copper10-8]

Wow, don't really know where to begin with this. All of the sanitizing agents used, in particular the fogging and pesticides, is done only when necessary, so if your problem persists every trip its not caused by these agents. But then again, I assume you don't believe the EPA when it says these are safe to use.

 

I would love to see what cruise line uses "scented detergent", "dryer sheets" and "fabric softener". They buy commercial detergents, for the laundry, because the sheer cost of buying "perfumed" products would take away any profit from the cruise.

 

The sanitizing pads in the a/c system are not aerosols, they are in cloth pads that are placed in the water collecting troughs where the humidity condenses. This sanitizes the standing water (due to ship's motion not all water drains immediately), but has no effect on the air flowing to the cabins. Legionella needs moisture to propagate, it won't grow in dry air ducts, which is another reason the ship's a/c drops the humidity so low.

 

And your neighboring passengers thank you for warming up their cabins whenever you leave the balcony door open. Just turning your cabin thermostat to "neutral" does not shut off the fresh air supply to your cabin, which is common to an entire block of cabins. This reduces the fresh air to the other cabins and causes them to draw warm air from the passageways to make up the air balance. It also sends more of that nasty anti-microbial a/c air to your cabin.

 

Given that the USPH/CDC oversee nearly every aspect of cruise ship operations, including the a/c system, that if it were a significant vector for transmission of infectious disease, then the world acknowledged experts on controlling infectious diseases wouldn't do something about it?

Thank you!

[chengkp75]

My pleasure, John.

[PatsyAnne]

I think the major difference is that I've already caught the colds I'm going to at home, but on trips I'm exposed to exciting (rolls eyes) new viruses from all over the world, whether in airports, airplanes, hotels, or ships. I haven't built up an immunity to those yet, so I'm more likely to get sick.

[RuthC]

And your neighboring passengers thank you for warming up their cabins whenever you leave the balcony door open. Just turning your cabin thermostat to "neutral" does not shut off the fresh air supply to your cabin, which is common to an entire block of cabins. This reduces the fresh air to the other cabins and causes them to draw warm air from the passageways to make up the air balance. It also sends more of that nasty anti-microbial a/c air to your cabin.

This should be posted at least once a day, apparently.

Some people just don't learn, but maybe a few do?

[dakrewser]

Wow, don't really know where to begin with this. All of the sanitizing agents used, in particular the fogging and pesticides, is done only when necessary, so if your problem persists every trip its not caused by these agents. But then again, I assume you don't believe the EPA when it says these are safe to use.

 

I would love to see what cruise line uses "scented detergent", "dryer sheets" and "fabric softener". They buy commercial detergents, for the laundry, because the sheer cost of buying "perfumed" products would take away any profit from the cruise.

 

The sanitizing pads in the a/c system are not aerosols, they are in cloth pads that are placed in the water collecting troughs where the humidity condenses. This sanitizes the standing water (due to ship's motion not all water drains immediately), but has no effect on the air flowing to the cabins. Legionella needs moisture to propagate, it won't grow in dry air ducts, which is another reason the ship's a/c drops the humidity so low.

 

And your neighboring passengers thank you for warming up their cabins whenever you leave the balcony door open. Just turning your cabin thermostat to "neutral" does not shut off the fresh air supply to your cabin, which is common to an entire block of cabins. This reduces the fresh air to the other cabins and causes them to draw warm air from the passageways to make up the air balance. It also sends more of that nasty anti-microbial a/c air to your cabin.

 

Given that the USPH/CDC oversee nearly every aspect of cruise ship operations, including the a/c system, that if it were a significant vector for transmission of infectious disease, then the world acknowledged experts on controlling infectious diseases wouldn't do something about it?

 

Some people just hate it when facts get in the way of a good story...

[dakrewser]

I think the major difference is that I've already caught the colds I'm going to at home, but on trips I'm exposed to exciting (rolls eyes) new viruses from all over the world, whether in airports, airplanes, hotels, or ships. I haven't built up an immunity to those yet, so I'm more likely to get sick.

 

Exactly. Same reason I get a cold after seeing my grandchildren for the dirst time after school starts in the fall...

[TAD2005]

There's a reason why people complain that the AC in their cabin doesn't work. And sometimes it's caused by people opening their balcony door and propping it open with a chair. That loud wind tunnel you feel and hear is sucking passageway air into your cabin and out to the sea. The open door totally wipes out the AC system for all cabins in your area. Your balcony door should be open only when you pass through it entering the balcony or leaving it. Please do not prop it open.

[Heartgrove]

Most of the germ culprits have been mentioned. I will add one more way of transmitting germs and that is a simple pen used on a counter by other passengers.

[JudithLynne]

That is why I always carry a few pens and use them exclusively and I don't lend them out.

This has caused some friction with trivia teams.

[VennDiagram]

Some people just hate it when facts get in the way of a good story...

 

 

Good one :)

 

I agree about not sharing pens! And another way to avoid germs is to use a pen or one's knuckle on PIN pads.

[igraf]

I also believe that the dry air onboard ships is the reason for so many upper respiratory infections. Especially in a sealed cabin without a balcony. I will try to bring some sort of humidifier next time we cruise.

 

igraf

 

 

 

...I believe the main cause is the change in humidity between your home and the interior of the ship. Ship a/c systems are designed to remove far more humidity than land systems (for the most part), by actually cooling the air below a comfortable supply temperature to minimize humidity and then re-heating the air to the proper supply temperature.

[baggal]

Towards the last few days of our British Isles cruise two years ago (Princess) my husband came down with a head cold. No fever, no cough. I was fine. He was feeling better by the last day. We disembarked and transferred directly to Heathrow for our flight back to the USA the same day. We were on a very full jumbo jet. About 2 hours into the flight I started to feel that my throat was closing and my head was completely clogged. Thank goodness, I wasn't coughing yet. The plane landed on time and I don't remember having a ridiculously long wait for our luggage and to go through customs. We live about a 1/2 hour from the airport. By the time I got home I had a fever of 102 which lasted 3 days.

 

My apologies to everyone on that plane - some of who, especially those seated near me, probably did get sick. They say you are most contagious just before you become ill yourself. In that case, I was "patient zero" for not only that plane, but both airports, etc.

 

And that is how you get sick on vacation.

[PatsyAnne]

I also believe that the dry air onboard ships is the reason for so many upper respiratory infections. Especially in a sealed cabin without a balcony. I will try to bring some sort of humidifier next time we cruise.

 

 

 

igraf

 

 

Saline nose spray helps.

[Viesczy]

Thankfully we're all native to this planet and a cold isn't a terminal disease like it was to those nasty Martians in War of the Worlds. ;)

 

You can get sick going to any public place, it is a risk we all take not living in a bubble.

[cabinluvn]

It seems the older we get the less we are able to be exposed to germs and not develop sickness. For the past three years we seem to either catch the crud the last couple of days of the trip or come down with it as soon as we get home. At the end of our land trip of China and Tibet we both had high fever and upper respiratory symptoms. I was afraid the fever detector that China has at the airport was going to snag us(I think they have it for SARS). I felt so sorry for the man sitting next to me on the 13 hour plane ride home. I had a shawl that I put over my head and tried to contain it the best I could. Just returned from a 7 day Alaska on the Westerdam. We try to be so careful and not touch banisters, etc., but I guess you can't avoid all germs. DH got the crud before disembarking and I got bronchitis two days after arriving home. I think the air flow in enclosed spaces exposes one to whatever germs are flying around. We leave today for a short trip to Vegas and I am trying essential oils before, during and after to see if that makes a difference.

 

Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk HD

[chrispb]

I'm unable to give advice about preventing coughs/colds/infections but my aunt mentioned drinking good quality pineapple juice for coughs and chest infections. I'd never heard of this before so I googled it and found that apparently, it's 5 times more effective than cough syrup. Wonder if it works mixed with rum too:cool::)

[JudithLynne]

Saline nose spray helps.

 

It also keeps my husband from snoring in a dry cabin. He applies it a couple of times through the night.

[dobiemom]

Lord knows I tried to keep my vitamin C levels up with copious amounts of strawberry margaritas, but it didn't seem to help much. :eek:

 

I'm unable to give advice about preventing coughs/colds/infections but my aunt mentioned drinking good quality pineapple juice for coughs and chest infections. I'd never heard of this before so I googled it and found that apparently, it's 5 times more effective than cough syrup. Wonder if it works mixed with rum too:cool::)

OK, I'll be eating (drinking) lots of strawberries and pineapple next trip! ;):D

[cabinluvn]

My bronchitis was so bad that cough medicine with codeine did not touch it. I and a recipe with essential oils for bronchitis and sprayed a handkerchief with it and put it on the corner of my pillow. Did not cough all night and haven't coughed since

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Lovely other]

It also keeps my husband from snoring in a dry cabin. He applies it a couple of times through the night.

 

 

I shall try this on my hubby next time ... I couldn't believe how loud his snoring became on our recent cruise and it also meant I went 19 days averaging no more than 3 hours sleep per night ... :(

[RMLincoln]

My bronchitis was so bad that cough medicine with codeine did not touch it. I and a recipe with essential oils for bronchitis and sprayed a handkerchief with it and put it on the corner of my pillow. Did not cough all night and haven't coughed since

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

I often put oils on a tissue inside the pillowcase.... Could you share which oils you used? Thank you, m--

[sammygoose]

Three years ago, I learned about nasal irrigation from the Dr. Oz show. I gave it a try and it has been a true miracle for me. I do it daily except on board a cruise ship and then I do it twice daily, morning and evening. I order distilled water for our cabin prior to embarkation. In the last three years we have done 6 cruises and I have not even had a hint of a URI.

 

Wish I had known about this sooner, it is truly a gift in my life. My husband can't stop talking about the difference in me.

 

I can 110% agree with JudithLynne on the benefits of nasal irrigation and I 110% recommend Nasaline. In addition to the usual precautions using this is a minor miracle. Here are some customer reviews to support:

 

http://www.amazon.com/Nasal-Irrigation-Device-Adult-Nasaline/dp/B001JQGTAY#customerReviews

 

in addition to allergies and sinus issues it hydrates your nasal passages from dry airplanes. It flushes out the beginnings of cruise crud and halts it in its tracks. I really can't say enough about it. I don't use distilled water- I just use warm water to comfort -2 cups, 1 tsp baking powder, 2 tsp salt-non iodised. Mix and use. easy to pack minus the water of course.

Caveat- takes about a week to get used to

 

added bonus- flushes out your ears.... no your husband isn't going deaf.....and safer than lighting your couch on fire trying ear candle waxing after a bottle of wine. OMG yes....it happened. Don't be like me lol.

 

Double added bonus- for those who have noticed I like to add pictures....none here, move along lol.

Edited May 26, 2016 by sammygoose
add