Ship Board Virus - Purell No Good

Just watched the TODAY show and all week they have been doing a story
on germs and viruses. This morning they focused on Cruise Ships. All
and all not a bad job of cleaning by the ships crew. The worst areas
were the cabin bathrooms (toilet seat especially) and the ships hot tub
(no surprise there). But what they did report (which I found
surprising) was that the hand sanitizers like Purell don't work against
the Norwalk Virus. For the last few years I been taking a bottle of
Lysol Wipes with me and wiping down the phone, door knobs, bathroom, tv
remote. Really just about the entire cabin. Does anyone else do this?

Yep. We do it all the time. We wipe the remote control, light switches,
in and outside of toiletries cabinet, door handles etc, etc. We carry a
small bottle of Purell and after getting our meal in the Lido we wash
our hands. We don't touch the ketchup or salt & pepper containers etc.
We will continue to do this because we have not gotten Norwalk or any
other intestinal problems. As they say, if it aint broke don't fix it.

Yep. We do it all the time. We wipe the remote control, light switches,
in and outside of toiletries cabinet, door handles etc, etc. We carry a
small bottle of Purell and after getting our meal in the Lido we wash
our hands. We don't touch the ketchup or salt & pepper containers etc.
We will continue to do this because we have not gotten Norwalk or any
other intestinal problems. As they say, if it aint broke don't fix it.

RICK DAVIS wrote:
But what they did report (which I found
surprising) was that the hand sanitizers like Purell don't work
against
the Norwalk Virus.

Why is this surprising? Purell and other anti BACTERIAL agents kill
BACTERIA. Norwal virus is a VIRUS!!! Same confusion people have with
antibiotics - antibiotics target bacterial infection, not viral
infections like the common cold. Wash your hands frequently with plain
old soap and water, keep your hands away from your face, etc., etc.,
etc.

Lee

RICK DAVIS wrote:
But what they did report (which I found
surprising) was that the hand sanitizers like Purell don't work
against
the Norwalk Virus.

Why is this surprising? Purell and other anti BACTERIAL agents kill
BACTERIA. Norwal virus is a VIRUS!!! Same confusion people have with
antibiotics - antibiotics target bacterial infection, not viral
infections like the common cold. Wash your hands frequently with plain
old soap and water, keep your hands away from your face, etc., etc.,
etc.

Lee

Lysol wipes have made my cruise packing list as well. Even though for the
most part the cabin looks clean, I feel better knowing I have taken the
extra precaution. And after all, my family gets the grand chance to make
fun of me for cleaning a clean room. . .but at least they stay relatively
well enough to do so. As for Purell, I don't believe it is a good
substitute for plain old good handwashing techniques but I guess it's better
than nothing. I just think it gives people a false sense of security. All
of this is just MY opinion. For all those out there who believe in Purell,
I am not trying to offend anyone. :-)
MZT

"RICK DAVIS" wrote in message
...
Just watched the TODAY show and all week they have been doing a story
on germs and viruses. This morning they focused on Cruise Ships. All
and all not a bad job of cleaning by the ships crew. The worst areas
were the cabin bathrooms (toilet seat especially) and the ships hot tub
(no surprise there). But what they did report (which I found
surprising) was that the hand sanitizers like Purell don't work against
the Norwalk Virus. For the last few years I been taking a bottle of
Lysol Wipes with me and wiping down the phone, door knobs, bathroom, tv
remote. Really just about the entire cabin. Does anyone else do this?

Lysol wipes have made my cruise packing list as well. Even though for the
most part the cabin looks clean, I feel better knowing I have taken the
extra precaution. And after all, my family gets the grand chance to make
fun of me for cleaning a clean room. . .but at least they stay relatively
well enough to do so. As for Purell, I don't believe it is a good
substitute for plain old good handwashing techniques but I guess it's better
than nothing. I just think it gives people a false sense of security. All
of this is just MY opinion. For all those out there who believe in Purell,
I am not trying to offend anyone. :-)
MZT

"RICK DAVIS" wrote in message
...
Just watched the TODAY show and all week they have been doing a story
on germs and viruses. This morning they focused on Cruise Ships. All
and all not a bad job of cleaning by the ships crew. The worst areas
were the cabin bathrooms (toilet seat especially) and the ships hot tub
(no surprise there). But what they did report (which I found
surprising) was that the hand sanitizers like Purell don't work against
the Norwalk Virus. For the last few years I been taking a bottle of
Lysol Wipes with me and wiping down the phone, door knobs, bathroom, tv
remote. Really just about the entire cabin. Does anyone else do this?

Don't believe Lysol wipes kill virus bugs either. It's not just the fact
that they are killed, just washing, even with plain soap and water, gets
them off of you before they do any damage.

If you are relying just on the chemical action to kill the stuff, then you
can pretty much expect to get sick.

There are very few anti viral products available over the counter.





"RICK DAVIS" wrote in message
...
Just watched the TODAY show and all week they have been doing a story
on germs and viruses. This morning they focused on Cruise Ships. All
and all not a bad job of cleaning by the ships crew. The worst areas
were the cabin bathrooms (toilet seat especially) and the ships hot tub
(no surprise there). But what they did report (which I found
surprising) was that the hand sanitizers like Purell don't work against
the Norwalk Virus. For the last few years I been taking a bottle of
Lysol Wipes with me and wiping down the phone, door knobs, bathroom, tv
remote. Really just about the entire cabin. Does anyone else do this?

Don't believe Lysol wipes kill virus bugs either. It's not just the fact
that they are killed, just washing, even with plain soap and water, gets
them off of you before they do any damage.

If you are relying just on the chemical action to kill the stuff, then you
can pretty much expect to get sick.

There are very few anti viral products available over the counter.





"RICK DAVIS" wrote in message
...
Just watched the TODAY show and all week they have been doing a story
on germs and viruses. This morning they focused on Cruise Ships. All
and all not a bad job of cleaning by the ships crew. The worst areas
were the cabin bathrooms (toilet seat especially) and the ships hot tub
(no surprise there). But what they did report (which I found
surprising) was that the hand sanitizers like Purell don't work against
the Norwalk Virus. For the last few years I been taking a bottle of
Lysol Wipes with me and wiping down the phone, door knobs, bathroom, tv
remote. Really just about the entire cabin. Does anyone else do this?

Besides keeping hands away from our faces, we try to avoid touching
things like handrails, elevator buttons, door handles, anything in
public areas that are constantly touched by others. Mike is right, it's
not the chemical action that gets rid of the viruses, it's the
mechanical scrubbing and then rinsing that's important. As for wiping
down the toilet, etc. again it's the scrubbing that works, not the
liquid in the wipe. Just my two cents. Helen