For warm climates the tourist season is also cold and flu season, meaning thousands of travelers coming from colder areas will find themselves nursing runny noses – or worse – within a week or two of stepping off their planes. Many will get sick from sitting too close to someone who already is ill or from touching germ-laden surfaces, such as tray tables, overhead bins and lavatory handles. With so many travelers from so many places, some passengers will be exposed to bacteria, viruses, parasites and other organisms they have no immunity to.
While ventilation systems in planes filter out many contagions, they can't stop the burst of a sneeze – and a common cold – from traveling a few feet every direction. And all passengers become vulnerable if those circulation systems are shut down because tarmac delays. "You cannot be germ-phobic if you fly," said Steve Landes of Boynton Beach, director of the South Florida Airline Commuters Association. "If the guy next to you is coughing, you're out of luck."
Overall, air passengers are 20 percent more at risk of catching an illness than the general population, according to studies.
Most flu and cold viruses are spread by hand, and passengers leave their prints all around their seat areas, said Dr. Larry Bush, an infectious disease specialist at the JFK Medical Center in West Palm Beach. "That's why hand-washing is so important," he said. He also noted too many people fail to practice "cough etiquette," where you bury your face in your underarm. Because of that, he said, "When you're sitting next to someone, and they're sneezing or coughing, you're likely going to inhale those organisms."
To protect yourself, Bush recommends getting a flu shot about two weeks before you fly, as it takes that period of time for the shot to immunize the body. Other experts suggest bringing disinfecting wipes to clean off tray tables and other surfaces.
Germs on a plane - South Florida Sun-Sentinel.com
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