This year, flying has been busier than ever. The U.S. Transportation Security Administration expects to screen more than 4.7 billion people worldwide in 2024, a record number.
However, with more people spending time on airplanes, protecting yourself against germs is extremely important. After all, you want to get to your destination feeling healthy. Cher, a flight attendant and content creator, shared some particularly dirty parts of a plane to avoid.
The flight attendant revealed the ‘filthiest’ parts on an airplane that passengers always touch but are rarely cleaned.
“Number one,” she began in her video. “I’ve never seen the window shades get wiped off ever in my career. Think about how many people are touching those and that they never get wiped off. They’re filthy.”
Considering how many people lay their heads on them to sleep, it’s definitely concerning that they’re never properly cleaned.
“I’ve seen people vomit inside of the bathroom sinks numerous times,” Cher continued. “So if you drop something in there, I would consider it a loss. Never have I ever seen the sinks get cleaned out.”
Cher also advised passengers never to drink water from the bathroom sinks on a plane. In fact, given the amount of bacteria that she claimed is in the water, Cher suggested keeping a bottle of hand sanitizer on deck.
She’s definitely not wrong — according to Aviation Services, tap water is stored in onboard tanks that are rarely cleaned. The stagnating water leads to a buildup of bacteria, and EPA data from 2017 showed that 12% of U.S. commercial planes tested positive for fecal bacteria in their water.
Speaking of the bathroom, during her entire career as a flight attendant, Cher admitted that she only saw the toilet seats get cleaned exactly once.
Cher also advised passengers to think twice before walking around the cabin during a flight without their shoes on. “I’ve seen people vomit on the carpet, rub their bare toes on the carpet. It is filthy,” she said.
Cher encouraged passengers to disinfect their hands after touching the seatbelt or even disinfect the seatbelt itself. “I’ve seen blowout diapers and vomit on it numerous times,” she added.
Lastly, Cher pointed out just how dirty the overhead bins are. “Think about people dragging their bags through the airport bathrooms and then throwing it up there,” she said, adding that for all these reasons, she would never do skincare on a plane.
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Compared to other parts of a travel day, flying is considered ‘low risk.’
Most experts say that the risk of getting sick on a plane is actually quite low. Stacey Rubin Rose, an associate professor of internal medicine and infectious diseases at Baylor College of Medicine in Houston told Verywell Health that germs can live on certain surfaces for hours or days, but wiping down surfaces on a plane might be unnecessary.
“I do not think people need to be overly concerned, though individuals with underlying medical problems or immune deficiencies may want to discuss their travel plans with a healthcare professional,” Rose said.
Despite the mask mandate on planes having since been lifted, passengers are still encouraged to wear one if they want to avoid spreading germs amongst themselves, but as for the plane itself, experts insist that there’s nothing to worry about.
Nevertheless, just like any public area, make sure you’re taking the necessary steps to keep yourself clean. There’s nothing wrong with bringing a little pack of disinfectant wipes to make sure the areas that you’re routinely touching are at least a bit cleaner than when you first entered.
Nia Tipton is a staff writer with a bachelor’s degree in creative writing and journalism who covers news and lifestyle topics that focus on psychology, relationships, and the human experience.
