如何避免在飛機上生病:避免病原體的指南

如何避免在飛機上生病:避免病原體的指南

It's the season for colds and flus — and a newly identified respiratory disease, COVID-19.

現(xiàn)在是感冒和流感的季節(jié)，還有一種新發(fā)現(xiàn)的呼吸道疾病，COVID-19.

To cut your risk of catching a respiratory illness on your next flight, experts offer two pieces of common-sense advice: Wash your hands frequently and keep a distance from people who are sick.

為了降低你在下一次航班上感染呼吸道疾病的風險，專家們提供了兩條常識建議：勤洗手，并與生病的人保持距離。

Where to sit to prevent getting sick

坐在哪里以防生病?

A 2018 study suggests that to minimize contact with other passengers, you should pick a window seat and stay put.

2018年的一項研究建議，為了最大限度地減少與其他乘客的接觸，你應(yīng)該選擇一個靠窗的座位，呆在原地不動。

Vicki Hertzberg, a biostatistician at Emory University, co-led the study on flights and disease transmission with scientists at Boeing.

埃默里大學(xué)生物統(tǒng)計學(xué)家維基·赫茨伯格與波音公司的科學(xué)家共同領(lǐng)導(dǎo)了這項關(guān)于飛行和疾病傳播的研究。

"The window seats are a little less risky than the aisle seats," Hertzberg says.

“靠窗的座位比靠過道的座位風險要小一些，”赫茨伯格說。

Statistically, people in window seats come into contact with fewer passengers because they leave their seats less often than those sitting near the aisle. And they are a few more feet from the action in the aisle, where passersby could be coughing, sneezing and spreading germs.

據(jù)統(tǒng)計，坐在靠窗座位的人接觸到的乘客較少，因為他們離開座位的次數(shù)比坐在過道附近的人少。他們離過道里的活動地點還有幾英尺，那里的路人可能正在咳嗽、打噴嚏和傳播細菌。

Though really, the best place to sit is away from any passenger who's coughing or sneezing.

不過說真的，最好的座位是遠離任何咳嗽或打噴嚏的乘客。

The size of the "transmission zone" depends on the specific pathogen and how it transmits.

“傳播區(qū)”的大小取決于特定的病原體及其傳播方式。

For instance, there's a chance you could catch tuberculosis when you sit within two rows of someone infected with TB and the flight is longer than eight hours.

例如，當你坐在距離感染結(jié)核病的人不到兩排的地方，并且飛行時間超過8小時時，你就有可能感染結(jié)核病。

How to prevent others from getting sick

如何防止他人生病

If you're sick with a respiratory illness, wearing a mask and opening the overhead vent could help prevent transmission.

如果你患有呼吸系統(tǒng)疾病，戴上口罩并打開頭頂?shù)耐L口可以幫助防止傳播。

"When you cough or sneeze, you're ejecting fine particles," Hertzberg says. "Other people near you can inhale them.."

赫茨伯格說：“當你咳嗽或打噴嚏時，你會噴出細小的顆粒。”“你身邊的其他人可以吸入它們。”

Masks, she says, should be worn by people who are infectious to catch droplets from their noses and mouths. If you don't have a mask, the World Health Organization recommends covering coughs and sneezes with tissues or flexed elbows.

她說，有傳染性的人應(yīng)該戴上口罩，以捕捉他們鼻子和嘴里的飛沫。如果你沒有戴口罩，世界衛(wèi)生組織建議用紙巾或彎曲的肘部遮蓋咳嗽和打噴嚏。

Even though you probably won't get sick from the plane, there are additional precautions you can take.

即使你在飛機上可能不會生病，你也可以采取額外的預(yù)防措施。

Really, Hertzberg says, the risk of getting a respiratory infection from a plane is low. "There are very few reports of infectious disease being transmitted on airplanes," she says.

赫茨伯格說，真的，從飛機上感染呼吸道感染的風險很低。“很少有傳染病在飛機上傳播的報告，”她說。

In the course of her research, Hertzberg's team took more than 200 environmental swabs on 10 transcontinental U.S. flights and didn't find a single respiratory virus in the sample (though there was plenty of bacteria).

在她的研究過程中，赫茨伯格的團隊在10架美國橫貫大陸的航班上采集了200多份環(huán)境樣本，在樣本中沒有發(fā)現(xiàn)一種呼吸道病毒(盡管有大量細菌)。

The air on planes is cleaned with high-efficiency filters, and the circulation system constantly brings in fresh air. "In some aspects, the air on a plane is cleaner than what's going on in your office buildings," Hertzberg says.

飛機上的空氣由高效過濾器凈化，循環(huán)系統(tǒng)不斷帶來新鮮空氣。“在某些方面，飛機上的空氣比辦公樓里的要干凈，”赫茨伯格說。

And there are behaviors that can substantially reduce your risk of catching anything.

有些行為可以大大降低你感染任何疾病的風險。

First, drink lots of water — especially on longer flights. In-flight air has low humidity, and it dries out the mucous membranes in the nose, making them less protective against infections, says Dr. Mark Gendreau, chief medical officer at Beverly Hospital.

首先，多喝水--尤其是在長途飛行中。貝弗利醫(yī)院首席醫(yī)療官馬克·根德羅博士說，飛機上的空氣濕度低，會使鼻子里的粘膜變得干燥，使它們對感染的保護作用減弱。

Second, keep your hands microbe-free. "When you look at most infectious diseases, the overwhelming majority are transmitted when you touch a contaminated surface," Gendreau says. "You grab the doorknob of the airplane bathroom and then touch your eyes, nose or mouth."

第二，保持你的手沒有微生物。根德羅說：“當你觀察大多數(shù)傳染病時，絕大多數(shù)都是當你接觸受污染的表面時傳播的。”“你抓住飛機洗手間的門把手，然后觸摸你的眼睛、鼻子或嘴巴。”