Staying Healthy while Cruising - How to beat the bugs

[brillohead]

We have a 29 day b2b scheduled for September/October. Fortunately we have our physicals in August and I'm going to ask my doctor if she'll give me a prescription for an antibiotic to bring with me (just in case) and also what we can take ahead of time as a precaution.

 

If your doctor does this, she's an idiot who deserves to have her license revoked!

 

Seriously, this is the STUPIDEST thing you can do. SERIOUSLY, SERIOUSLY STUPID.

 

Go to any hospital and ask any nurse.... every single one will tell you how stupid your idea is.

 

(Note that I'm not saying YOU are stupid... just that this particular idea (a "just in case" prescription and a "precautionary" prescription) is COMPLETELY, insanely stupid.)

[ShakyBeef]

But it's very sad when you see grown women coming out of a stall in the bathroom and not washing their hands. YUCK YUCK YUCK

 

Yes!:mad: Sometimes they even pause before going out to 'primp' in front of the mirror, without so much as glancing at the sink.

[Thetrail]

We are relative pretty healthy people and don't normally get sick at home -

 

That being said - we just returned from 3 days in Key West then 5 days on Independence followed by 10 days on Serenade -

 

We did the normal - wash our hands - drink plenty of water - got plenty of sleep - used hand sanitizers and washed our hands again -

 

Both of us still ended up getting sick and had to visit the doctor the day after we got home..... virus and bronchitis. This is not the first time - I would save at least 50% of the time one of us comes home with 'bugs'.

 

We have heard - drink more water - take vitamin C- wear a mask - take echinacea - turn off your a/c -use a humidifer -

 

WHAT IS THE ANSWER? What helps you from bringing the 'bugs' home with you?

 

Thanks

That you say you are relatively healthy yet come home 50% of the time with "something". Almost 50 cruises, also healthy and have come home from a cruise sick a total of.......0......times.:D

[ali3pt14]

I haven't yet done this, but recently heard of swabbing the inside of your nostrils with Neosporin prior to flying.

[north29]

Yes!:) I hate it when a bathroom only has hand-blow-dryers and a door that one must pull to exit.:(

 

Are not equipped fro handicapped people. I just butt our elbow up against the button and door opens.

 

I think not getting sick is JUST LUCK. Also, if you go out to restaurants/church/grocery stores etc. you will find the same bugs but not the concentration of people as on a cruise ship.

Edited February 20, 2016 by north29

[Hedgeclipperz]

I would recommend Elderberry syrup and Umcka. (There have been quite a few positive studies on both (unlike echinacea; - which I sometimes still take, but with a grain of salt.)). One study has even shown that Elderberry Syrup, when taken regularly, works better than the flu shot!

 

(I buy mine off Amazon, but you can get it at local Whole Foods or Sprouts stores).

 

(PS: I am a Kindergarten teacher, and it helps me when I catch the nasties that even MY immunity can't fight off!)

[jagsfan]

We have a 29 day b2b scheduled for September/October. Fortunately we have our physicals in August and I'm going to ask my doctor if she'll give me a prescription for an antibiotic to bring with me (just in case) and also what we can take ahead of time as a precaution. Our last cruise in September DH started getting sick the last day (everyone in our group caught it) and we were very thorough in keeping our hands washed and cleansed and not touching things. But it's very sad when you see grown women coming out of a stall in the bathroom and not washing their hands. YUCK YUCK YUCK

 

The worst is when you see a woman come out of the stall and out the door. Then you go to your table in the restaurant and she is your server. We just said we changed our minds and left the restaurant. I should have spoken to the manager, but I was too turned off to think straight. It's very sad to me the number of women I've noticed flush and leave, or hold their hands under running water for a couple of seconds, grab a paper towel, and leave.

[jagsfan]

If your doctor does this, she's an idiot who deserves to have her license revoked!

 

Seriously, this is the STUPIDEST thing you can do. SERIOUSLY, SERIOUSLY STUPID.

 

Go to any hospital and ask any nurse.... every single one will tell you how stupid your idea is.

 

(Note that I'm not saying YOU are stupid... just that this particular idea (a "just in case" prescription and a "precautionary" prescription) is COMPLETELY, insanely stupid.)

 

If you are prone to severe bronchitis or pneumonia, you wouldn't be able to look forward to your travels without an antibiotic. My doctor knows I am aware of the dangers of taking antibiotics when they are not necessary, and I'm grateful for his writing the prescription. I come home many a time with the meds intact, but when I have needed them they were there.

[Reader0108598]

If you are prone to severe bronchitis or pneumonia, you wouldn't be able to look forward to your travels without an antibiotic. My doctor knows I am aware of the dangers of taking antibiotics when they are not necessary, and I'm grateful for his writing the prescription. I come home many a time with the meds intact, but when I have needed them they were there.

 

 

My Pulmonologist would never write a script for an antibiotic without seeing me. He would have me in for an xray if pneumonia was suspected.I have been on 25 cruises only visited the doc once for an exacerbation. It was handled very well and I was back to enjoying myself in an hour.

 

Reader

Edited February 20, 2016 by Reader0108598

[Esahuma]

That you say you are relatively healthy yet come home 50% of the time with "something". Almost 50 cruises, also healthy and have come home from a cruise sick a total of.......0......times.:D

 

GREAT FOR YOU - how many cruises in how many years? How many air miles? How many hotels - rental cars - and other factors like your age -

 

 

We don't get sick when we are home - have all our physicals - Just had them before we left and we were completely healthy -

 

50% of the time probably was aiming too high - we have been on 30 cruises and if you figure that usually only one of us has come home with a 'bug' occasionally ??? So I would say each of us has come home with a bug maybe 3-4 times

 

TOTALLY HEALTHY PEOPLE do pick up bugs occasionally -

 

We are from CA so we must ALWAYS fly each way - we must spend a day or two in hotels before the cruise - we ride in taxis - buses - rental cars -

 

Not saying the cruise is what got us sick - just trying to see what other cruisers do to stay healthy -

Edited February 20, 2016 by Esahuma

[Esahuma]

Thank you all for your recommendations - didn't mean to start up a 'war' f words - just hoping we could all help each other!

[BND]

We've been on 18 cruises and DH has caught a relatively minor cold a couple of times and I've never been sick (other than motion sick a couple of times when it was really rough). I rarely get sick at home either. We wash our hands regularly, open bathroom doors with paper towels and push elevator buttons with my knuckles which are all the same things I do when not on vacation. Other than that we really don't take any other precautions. I have never wiped down anything in our cabin (or a hotel room) either.

Edited February 20, 2016 by BND

[brillohead]

If you are prone to severe bronchitis or pneumonia, you wouldn't be able to look forward to your travels without an antibiotic. My doctor knows I am aware of the dangers of taking antibiotics when they are not necessary, and I'm grateful for his writing the prescription. I come home many a time with the meds intact, but when I have needed them they were there.

 

There is a doctor on board who could write you a prescription, ya know. :rolleyes:

 

My Pulmonologist would never write a script for an antibiotic without seeing me. He would have me in for an xray if pneumonia was suspected.I have been on 25 cruises only visited the doc once for an exacerbation. It was handled very well and I was back to enjoying myself in an hour.

 

Your pulmonologist is a good man! :cool: The antibiotic-resistant bugs that are out there these days are quite terrifying these days! :eek:

[Formula280SS]

Thank you all for your recommendations - didn't mean to start up a 'war' f words - just hoping we could all help each other!

 

:eek:

 

Shocking how it unravels.

 

Anyway, here is the 'protection plan procedures my wife and I use (cruises listed below) and never sick (did get sun poisoning in Panama, my fault).

 

1. Pre-Cruise: We fly quite a bit, as family (three sons and families) is on each coast, both north and south. Lysol wipes for us, even the people next to us, to clean the trays, arm and TV and seat buttons, etc. Don't read the flying sales magazines.

 

2. Cruise: Stateroom attack, using a bar of IVORY SOAP and the hand towels with hot water, I wash the entire bathroom(s); seriously, every square inch of it. My wife does the same with every solid surface in the stateroom (she give me the TV remote and I do it 3-4 times). After wash and towel dried, we Lysol wipe everything (I mean everything).

 

3. Cruise: Room steward meet, greet and pay to change the bedding again, including the top covers. We also inquire if the party prior to ours was healthy or if they have been ill.

 

4. Cruise: Around the ship, avoid the handrails, bar counters, signing pens (we do have pens), etc.

 

5. Cruise: In the eateries, we bring our own salt and pepper (seriously, the little white and black ones, or packages). If we go to the buffet (a seriously wicked place of barbarians at the food gate), we use our napkin on the tongs and don't select stuff that others could hand handle. We also "observe" if any of the station staff are sick.

 

6. Cruise: In the pools and especially the hot tubs, we go in early, early AM after they are allowed time to refresh overnight. I we see others coming in that don't shower rinse prior to, we get out.

 

Sounds a bit over the top?

 

We don't care, it works.

 

This would not be need if the real people that can keep "things" from spreading are 'those who are sick act responsibly for the consideration of others.

 

That is rare today.

 

("ducking")

[ShakyBeef]

Are not equipped fro handicapped people. I just butt our elbow up against the button and door opens.

 

 

This has not been my experience (I'm not just talking cruiseship restrooms, but public restrooms in general). I have found the opposite to be true: very few public restrooms have those automatic door-opener buttons. And probably about a third of the public restrooms I've been in have the pull-to-open handle on the inside of the restroom. I'm not missing the button (unless it's cleverly disguised as a hinge or something:p); if it was there, I'd certainly use it rather than dig in my purse for a tissue or resort to using my shirt tail as a barrier between my hand and the nasty door handle.

[tangogulf]

:eek:

 

Shocking how it unravels.

 

Anyway, here is the 'protection plan procedures my wife and I use (cruises listed below) and never sick (did get sun poisoning in Panama, my fault).

 

1. Pre-Cruise: We fly quite a bit, as family (three sons and families) is on each coast, both north and south. Lysol wipes for us, even the people next to us, to clean the trays, arm and TV and seat buttons, etc. Don't read the flying sales magazines.

 

2. Cruise: Stateroom attack, using a bar of IVORY SOAP and the hand towels with hot water, I wash the entire bathroom(s); seriously, every square inch of it. My wife does the same with every solid surface in the stateroom (she give me the TV remote and I do it 3-4 times). After wash and towel dried, we Lysol wipe everything (I mean everything).

 

3. Cruise: Room steward meet, greet and pay to change the bedding again, including the top covers. We also inquire if the party prior to ours was healthy or if they have been ill.

 

4. Cruise: Around the ship, avoid the handrails, bar counters, signing pens (we do have pens), etc.

 

5. Cruise: In the eateries, we bring our own salt and pepper (seriously, the little white and black ones, or packages). If we go to the buffet (a seriously wicked place of barbarians at the food gate), we use our napkin on the tongs and don't select stuff that others could hand handle. We also "observe" if any of the station staff are sick.

 

6. Cruise: In the pools and especially the hot tubs, we go in early, early AM after they are allowed time to refresh overnight. I we see others coming in that don't shower rinse prior to, we get out.

 

Sounds a bit over the top?

 

We don't care, it works.

 

This would not be need if the real people that can keep "things" from spreading are 'those who are sick act responsibly for the consideration of others.

 

That is rare today.

 

("ducking")

 

Great tip - as you are always signing for something on the ship and they hand you a pen that hoards of others have been also using.

[tangogulf]

Given the prevalence of noro outbreaks lately I don't understand why the cruise companies don't highlight the hand washing etc more.

 

Perhaps a flyer in your stateroom on boarding day to outline the hazards and stress the hand washing/sanitiser use.

 

They could also take a minute during the safety drill to emphasise the point.

Also big signs in the public bathrooms would be good too.

 

A couple of years ago we sailed on Celebrity Solstice and their public bathrooms all had electronic doors. There were large white buttons inside and outside you just pushed with your knuckles, elbow, shoulder whatever and bingo door opened automatically. Great idea.

[luvscruising2007]

We don't do anything different than we do at home. We do wash our hands frequently, we use handrails on the stairs, (rather be sick than break a bone), use fingers to push elevator buttons, and avoid hand santizer when possible ( I hate that stuff).

My immune system is very good, we get the flu and pneumonia shot, exercise eat a wide variety of food and sleep..

I guess we are of the fortunate few who don't get sick because we travel.

[BND]

Given the prevalence of noro outbreaks lately I don't understand why the cruise companies don't highlight the hand washing etc more.

 

Perhaps a flyer in your stateroom on boarding day to outline the hazards and stress the hand washing/sanitiser use.

 

They could also take a minute during the safety drill to emphasise the point.

Also big signs in the public bathrooms would be good too.

 

A couple of years ago we sailed on Celebrity Solstice and their public bathrooms all had electronic doors. There were large white buttons inside and outside you just pushed with your knuckles, elbow, shoulder whatever and bingo door opened automatically. Great idea.

 

You mean like the song they play repeatedly on the day you board on the tv? You know the "Wash your hands" that gets stuck in your head. So, they already do.

 

Some ships have automatic door openers. EX for example had them, older ships such as GR do not but I use them where I can, otherwise, that's what paper towels are for and there's always a trash can next to the door.

 

BTW, it's not what you touch (or who touched it before you) that's the problem. It's what you do after you touch things. Keep your hands away from your face is the absolute best way to avoid illness.

Edited February 20, 2016 by BND

[brillohead]

Given the prevalence of noro outbreaks lately I don't understand why the cruise companies don't highlight the hand washing etc more.

 

When was the last time you heard about a noro outbreak on a cruise ship???? :rolleyes::rolleyes::rolleyes:

 

And honestly, if grown adults still don't know that they should WASH THEIR EVERLOVING HANDS FOR THE LOVE OF ALL THAT IS HOLY, a flyer in the stateroom of a cruise ship isn't going to suddenly teach them this point that should have been learned (and learned very well) by the time they are in kindergarten.

 

Some people are stupid.

 

Some people are nasty.

 

Some people are stupid AND nasty.

 

It's just the way of the world.

[oceanblue33]

I know exactly how you feel it seems like I was always catching something. Anything from head colds even pneumonia that was horrible. Then my doctor recommended using airborne a week prior and during. Haven't been sick on our last five cruises.

[LuCruise]

Great thread. A big culprit are buffets. Think about it. The person before you has a cold and just used the salad tongs. Then you use those same tongs to take some salad and a bun. You don't use a fork and knife to eat that bun and you just caught that person's cold. I doubt anyone washes their hands after taking food and before eating.

 

Sent from my ONE E1005 using Tapatalk

[Clarea]

Great thread. A big culprit are buffets. Think about it. The person before you has a cold and just used the salad tongs. Then you use those same tongs to take some salad and a bun. You don't use a fork and knife to eat that bun and you just caught that person's cold. I doubt anyone washes their hands after taking food and before eating.

Drives me nuts when I see someone pick up something with their hands, look at it, then put it back.

[Elvis1209]

I got the Noro on my Norwegian cruise. It put me out of action for 24 hours. I vowed never to get it again. What we do is to wipe down every surface in the room with an disinfective wipe, and I mean every surface! Any place that fingers can touch gets wiped. I also do the telephone and the TV remote. After the room is done I do the bathroom. Every surface and every drawer pull. Don't forget to do the toilet seat and the faucets. After I do the bathroom I go out on the balcony and wipe down the railings and all the arms of any chairs out there. Don't forget to do all the door knobs and handles and the key pad on the safe. If two off you do this it will take about 20 minutes, 30 if you have a suite! It is kind of the Felix Unger approach, but if you've ever had Noro it's really not much to do. I also use hand sanitizer often. You can buy a package of disinfective wipes at the drug store. Like I said 20-30 minutes of work and it's all over. If you think this is over-kill, well, take a look at some of your fellow passengers, especially the children. They are the biggest repositories of germs on the planet! By the way, it's never happened to me or my wife since we started doing this.

[goodycruising]

Has anyone had any luck with spraying the person coughing in the lifts with airborne? What about when you hear people coughing along the hallway outside your room, do you pop out and give the hallway a spray?

 

I am not trying to be smart here, but we were standing next to someone waiting for a lift one day, and she was coughing her lungs up. We walked to the furthest lift and went down instead of up, only to have her get on our lift on the way up and she got real close in my face and asked why we went down. I was so stunned, that I worked really hard to control myself from slapping her. Why do sick people think they should stand around coughing without covering their mouth? We have knee and heel issues, and the stairs are not always something we can do instead.

 

I have now done 2 cruises in 3 months where we have come down ill with a chesty virus a few days before the end, and I have had to take a week or two off work. I mainly stay away from people so that I don't spread it as much as I can. It adds a lot to the cost of the cruise when you then need to lose money from not working as well.

 

We drive 6 hours to get to the ship, so we haven't caught the virus on a plane, it was certainly on the ship each time.

 

As soon as I heard so many people coughing on the last cruise I hoped that I would have built up immunity from the cruise 2 months before, but unfortunately, here I sit feeling ill still, reading in the hope that there is a solution, but very concerned about the next cruise we have booked.

 

We like to book balcony cabins, and hope that helps with fresh air, but there seems to be no way to turn off the air conditioning on Voyager class ships. Even getting the air conditioning to stop going alternately hot and cold is so frustrating. If it is put in the middle on neutral it just seems to blow away with a mind of its own.

 

We went to the MDR for lunch one day and realised the server was handling everyone's water glass picking it up to refill it. Do you think that spreads things from one damp surface to the next?

 

If I have to walk around the ship stressed about having to go back to the room every time I need to go to the loo, and not knowing what I am catching in the buffet, or who is sitting near me coughing in the MDR, lounges, bars etc, then the holiday is not really going to be very good value.

 

It is time for us to give up on cruising? Maybe, as these last two cruises were very expensive, and the value for money really drops when you stay in your room for a few days in consideration of others. Then to be so ill when arriving home is no joke.

 

For those that have done many cruises and not ever been ill, I hope that continues, but lately there has been a lot of talk on these boards and social media about viruses and pneumonia where younger cruisers are ending up in hospital with chest infection illnesses. The noro I understand can be helped with the washy washy, but the air born viruses seem to be on the increase lately, and that 2 or 3 week after effect is not real great.