The Road-Ready Health Wire for October 1, 2004

Copyright© 2004, Marlene R. Fedin; no reprint or reuse, on or offline,

without express permission of the author

 

TRAVEL-HEALTH NEWS  •  FITNESS ON THE GO  •  FOOD ON THE FLY   • SPA NEWS

Please, Don't Drink the Water: Need more evidence that you should avoid imbibing (and washing your face or brushing your teeth with) the tanked water on airplanes (which can also show up in airline-supplied tea and coffee)? Consider the findings of a recent  EPA (Environmental Protection Agency) study: The drinking water on one of every eight planes tested didn't meet the agency's standard for bacteria. Net-net: It was contaminated and unsafe for consumption.

Water samples were collected on 158 randomly selected U.S. and foreign airplanes (small commuter aircraft as well as jets) at seven airports this summer. Findings include:

• More than half of the planes with contaminated water originated outside the U.S.

• The water on 20 planes tested positive for coliform bacteria.

• Two were positive for E. coli, a bacteria that can cause severe gastrointestinal problems (think diarrhea, vomiting, and stomach cramps) and even death (think food poisoning).

The EPA would not identify the airlines that had contaminated water.

According to the study, no airline passengers reported becoming ill from the airplane water and there is no "imminent health threat." However, consumer health advocates question the findings and caution that many travelers might have gotten sick without associating a subsequent illness with having ingested tanked water.

CAUTION: The results are especially important for individual travelers with compromised immune systems who are more vulnerable to possible infection. These travelers should only drink unopened canned or bottled beverages. And they should also avoid washing up with lavatory water.

Although the EPA said the findings were preliminary, it is considering what action airlines may need to take even before additional testing to accurately assess the risks is undertaken. Airlines may be required to: clean and disinfect water storage tanks more frequently; initiate more stringent water testing, including developing new guidelines for frequency and sampling size, for tank water and water that is added at various airports.

Unsurprisingly, the Air Transport Association (ATA) refuted the study's findings noting that both an ATA and FDA study deemed airline water contaminant-free.

FYI: To be safe, only drink the bottled water that you bring aboard or from an unopened, airline-supplied bottle that is first opened in front of you before it is served. A 2002 Wall Street Journal review indicated that flight attendants often refilled empty water bottles with airplane tank water!

Melbourne Court Ruling Will Allow DVT Test Case: A Melbourne High Court ruled in mid-September that Brian Povey could appeal a decision that would stop him from suing Qantas and British Airways. Povey, who says he had short-term memory loss as a result of a DVT-induced stroke on a flight from London to Sydney in 2000, contends that the airlines knew the risks but failed to warn passengers of the dangers of flight-induced deep-vein thrombosis.

The fate of some 300+ other claims rests on the outcome of Povey's case, which is expected to be heard in early 2005. A British DVD test case is set for December, within weeks of Povey's case. The High Court ruling could take six months or longer.

Related News: The American College of Chest Physicians has issued guidelines for air travelers concerned about developing blood clots (also known as economy-class syndrome). Dr. Jack Hirsh, who led the panel making the recommendations, told The New York Times that "...the risk (of DVT) has been enormously exaggerated... there's no question that it does constitute an increased risk. But the risk is small."

Nothing new in terms of recommendations. The same, but valid advice medical professionals have been advocating for flights over six hours: Drink lots of water; avoid tight clothing below the waist; stretch your calf muscles frequently; and consider support hose and special anti-coagulation medication if you're at an increased risk of deep-vein thrombosis.

The Air Up There Is...'Adequate': After monitoring cabin air quality on four flights and surveying some 400 passengers and flight crew, ASHRAE (American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers) has released selected data for the first phase of its cabin air research (Project 1262, Relate Air Quality and Other Factors to Comfort and Health Related Symptoms Reported by Passengers and Crew on Commercial Transport Aircraft). The results will be used to develop the second and larger study.

Both passengers and crew described the overall cabin air quality as "adequate". However, there were elevated levels (but within guidelines) of carbon dioxide for all flights, "especially during boarding and deplaning"; carbon monoxide and fine particulate matter were "well below levels of concern." Ozone levels, while higher in the cabin during cruising than during deplaning or boarding, only reached a "level of concern with respect to direct exposure" on one flight.

Among the released passenger "health and comfort" data:

• 31 percent experienced dry eyes

• 22 percent experienced a dry/sore throat

• 14 percent experienced sinus problems

• 8 percent experienced coughing

• 5 percent experienced difficulty breathing

Airlines supply a mix of fresh and re-circulated air to airplane cabins. With the high cost of jet fuel, many carriers have been reducing the amount of fresh air circulated in the cabin. (Getting accurate information from airlines on the amount of air that is re-circulated ranks right up there with deciphering the myriad fare codes and pricing.) The cost-cutting method can drastically affect passengers' comfort levels and, according to many flyers, up their risk of respiratory problems during and after flights.

FYI: Without knowing the air circulation rates on the participating aircraft, it's difficult to accurately relate the results to the specific cabin environments. And given the number of other relevant variables among flights, a study of just four flights can hardly be viewed as definitive.

TOP

Smoking Ban Updates: Province-wide smoking bans for almost all indoor public places (including coffee shops, lounges, restaurants, and bars) for Manitoba and New Brunswick are effective October 1. ...A similar ban will be imposed in January, 2005, for Saskatchewan. ...Norway's 1988 ban on smoking in public buildings and transportation has been extended to cover bars, nightclubs, and restaurants. ...Sweden will ban smoking in 2005. ...New Zealand will ban smoking in bars and restaurants beginning in December. ...According to the nonprofit American Nonsmokers' Rights Foundation, some 727 U.S. municipalities had some smoking restrictions in place as of July 1, 2004. Delaware, Massachusetts, and New York have nixed smoking in all workplaces as well as restaurants and bars. California and Connecticut have similar bans. ... Anti-smoking advocates are again pushing for a statewide smoking ban that includes bars and restaurants in New Jersey after years of unsuccessful attempts to restrict smoking.

And Here's Why Smoking Bans Matter: According to a study published in the September issue of the Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, smoke-filled bars and casinos—with 50x more cancer-causing particles—present a greater health risk than rush-hour roadways (city streets and highways) that were permeated with diesel-truck fuel fumes.  When the facilities were retested after the imposition of smoking bans, the level of cancer-causing substances dropped an astonishing 90 percent (or more). Learn more about the study.