Unless you’re living under a rock, you definitely heard the media talk about the coronavirus.
It has been non-stop coverage about the coronavirus and it’s hard to tell how seriously we should all take it. There’s been tons of misinformation and people saying that you should cancel all travel plans and then people saying that just need to wash your hands to avoid getting sick. Regardless, of who you should actually listen to, the coronavirus has definitely got a lot of people to cancel their travel plans recently or be really fearful of flying. Yes, there are a lot of germs associated when it comes to traveling, but that’s unfortunately life. I personally don’t think you should stop living life from fear, but I think that you need to always be smart, especially when it comes to traveling.
Regardless if you’re stressed about flying with the coronavirus going around or just trying to stay healthy when flying in general, here are things that I always like do when flying, regardless if there’s a virus going around or not.
I think about the fact that there are always people who are sick when you’re traveling so these are things that I always like to do especially when flying to ensure that I stay healthy when I’m traveling.
Clean the Surfaces
I always like to take a pack of disinfectant wipes with me when I’m traveling. The first thing I do when I get to my seat is to wipe all the surfaces down with a disinfectant wipe. This includes the whole seat and headrest, the seat buckles, the back of the seat, and especially the tray table. If I have a window seat, I also wipe the wall and window next to me since there’s a good chance I’ll be leaning on it during my flight.
Airlines do clean the planes regularly and I bet they’re cleaning them more frequently with the whole coronavirus outbreak, but it always gives me peace of mind knowing that I know it’s definitely disinfected with using my own disinfected wipe.
You can easily get a travel pack of disinfectant wipes at your local store or on Amazon. These are great to not only wipe down your surfaces on the plane, but also wipe down any chairs or table surfaces during your layover as well.
Hydrate
One of the best ways to stay healthy when flying is to drink tons of water. Especially when people are sick, drinking extra water will help your body stay balanced and hydrated throughout your trip.
Staying hydrated helps your body naturally eliminate toxins and other bacteria that may cause illness.
Drinking tons of water is always something I do when flying. As I mentioned in many of my flying posts in the past like How to Survive a Long-Haul Flight in Economy or How to Take Care of Your Skin When Flying, drinking tons of water not only helps your body feel somewhat normal after flying but is great for your skin as well.
Overall chugging tons water will do great things for your body when traveling and something that you should be doing regardless if you’re stressed about getting sick or not.
One thing I like to do, especially if I have a window seat and don’t want to bother the person next to me with constantly getting up to use the bathroom is consistently drink a little bit of water throughout my flight but not chug my water. Then, during my layover I like to drink at least a few water bottles before my next flight depending on how long my layover is.
Your hydration prep is actually best when starting the day before your flight. So if you start increasing your water intake a day or two before your flight, you’ll feel a lot better on your actual flight and not having to constantly use the bathroom during your flight.
Get Some Sleep
The more sleep you get the more likely your body will be able to fight off colds and other viruses and infections. Just like drinking tons of water, sleep is vital for your body to stay healthy and happy.
If you can, try to catch some Zzzzs on your flight, but if not, make sure you get a full 8 hours of sleep the night before your flight. This means especially don’t stay up all night packing the last minute. Trust me, you’ll not only feel so much better mentally, but your body will be so much better prepared to fight off any illnesses around you.
To help me fall asleep faster on my flight, especially on international flights, I like to bring some ZzzQuil with me, which is a non-habit forming sleep aid. This just helps me make sure that I get some sleep during my flight. However, if I have a shorter flight and don’t want to take a Zzzquil, taking some Sleep Tea always tends to do the trick for me as well.
Eat Right
Airport food is obviously not the healthiest, most nutritious, food out there. Especially if I’m flying domestically and can pack snacks, I like to pack my own snacks and food with me. Not only will this save you tons of money, but eating tons of fruits and veggies will help your body stay healthy during your trip.
Especially focusing on fruits and vegetables that are high in Vitamin C are great at boosting your immune system. Things like citrus are obviously high in Vitamin C, but also vegetables like broccoli, bell pepper, tomatoes, and all leafy greens are high in Vitamin C as well and should not be overlooked.
Making or purchasing a salad with lots of vegetables, packing an apple instead of a bag of chips, or purchasing a green juice or smoothie when you get through security is feeding your body with the right nutrients and therefore bettering your chances of staying healthy during your flight.
Give Yourself a Boost
Whether you think it’s gimmicky or not, after every time I fly, I always have an Emergen-C packet. I keep a huge pack of Emergen-C at home and whenever I start to feel like I’m getting a little sick or feeling a bit run down, I like to drink on of these to boost my immune system regardless if I’m traveling or not and personally I truly think that it helps.
Flying really takes a toll on your body regardless of illness or not and I find that taking an Emergen-C after flying, my body feels so much better and it’s something so easy to pack and keep with you at all times. You just need to add it to a glass of water and you’re good to go.
Along with Emergen-C, you can always give your system a little boost with some multi-vitamins. However, as always you should do your research and see what works best for you.
Avoid Common Surfaces
Tons of germs are on common surfaces like doorknobs, tables, and even the airport charging ports. Especially when it’s flu season or with the coronavirus going around, avoiding surfaces like this will limit the number of germs your body is exposed to or as I mentioned above, wipe down the common surfaces beforehand with a disinfectant wipe.
Wash Your Hands
I always keep hand sanitizer with me at all times and definitely at the moment, I’m using my hand sanitizer more than ever. That being said, washing your hands is key to truly washing away germs and keeping yourself healthy. As a lot of governments have stated, there’s no need to panic about coronavirus if everyone just washed their hands.
This means that especially now, you should be washing your hands more frequently. Obviously when you go to the bathroom and before eating you should always be washing your hands but now I would definitely make sure that you’re washing your hands after you get off the plane and multiple times throughout your layover and trip.
Especially right now with viruses going around, the more you wash your hands, the better.
You should be washing your hands for at least 20 seconds, which is probably a lot longer than what we’re all used to. So spend a few minutes properly washing your hands, multiple times during your trip to ensure you’re properly washing away those germs.
Don’t Touch Your Face
One of the key ways to stay healthy, regardless if you’re flying or not is to avoid touching your face. This is definitely something that I personally need to work on since I’m always resting my hands on my chin or rubbing my eyes or something of that sort.
Especially when there’s a virus going around, one of the most common ways it spreads is by not washing your hands and then touching your face.
I’ve mentioned before on Our Wandering Mind, I love to do face masks and pampering myself during flights to combat the dry air. However, it’s key to wash your hands before doing any kind of skincare since you are touching my face, which sometimes you just don’t think about.
Wash Everything
Although this doesn’t help you when you’re flying, it definitely helps you avoid getting sick post travel. When you get back home from your trip, make sure to wash and deep clean everything. The first thing I do when I get home after a trip is throw all my airport clothes, neck pillow cover, and sometimes backpacks and fabric surfaces that traveled with us right into the washing machine and I take a shower. This not only helps me feel refreshed after traveling, but truly wash away all the travel germs.
This is also something you should implement when you get to your travel destination if possible. If you have a washer and dryer at your accommodations, I highly recommend washing all your airport clothes as soon as you get to your accommodations.
With the current Coronavirus going around, a lot of people are fearful of traveling. I definitely don’t think that people should stop traveling, but you need to be smart any time of the year about staying healthy when flying, regardless of a virus going around or not.
I think that people tend to forget that year-round there’s always people sick, there’s a flu season every year, and there’s always a chance that you can get sick when traveling. This is why it’s essential to always treat your body with the right nutrients and resources to fight off any sickness that may come your way.
I hope these tips helped you feel confident about traveling right now. Coronavirus or not, as I mentioned, these are all things that I already do when flying and something I recommend you implement in your travel routine, to truly help you stay healthy throughout your trip.
If you would like to check out other of my Must-Haves when it comes to traveling, check out my Amazon Travel Products You Need In Your Life or my post on How to Instantly Feel Better When Sick.
