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| FAST FACTS FROM DIANA FAIRECHILD |
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You are welcome to join the growing numbers of air travelers now flying smart class. The following ten strategies are a good place to start to upgrade your personal flying experience. Instead of suffering downtime after landing, maintain your health, safety, and peace of mind by learning how best to eat, sleep, exercise, and more on board. 1. FOOD. Should I eat on the airplane? It's hard to resist the dinky airline meal when the carts roll down the aisles. Summon up the will power and avoid that defrosted meal full of chemical preservatives. Besides, it's not reported how many passengers get food poisoning. Yes. It's true. If that's not enough, airline meals are served at times which increase your jetlag. I recommend that you nibble on carbohydrate snacks (from home) to tide you over, then enjoy a real meal after landing, which will help you acclimatize to the new local time zone. 2. CLOTHING. Loose and layered. Wear loose clothing on the airplane. The low-air pressure inside the cabin creates an "interior altitude" of 8000 feet. This low-pressure environ ment is similar to a mountain resort, where our bodies swell up. Tight clothing can dangerously impede circulation and trigger deep vein thrombosis. Important: No belts, girdles, tight bras, too tight wedding rings and, especially, beware of tight shoes. 3. AIRPORT. You want me to get there early? Yes. Arrive at the airport with plenty of time to spare. You'll get a better seat selection, and have a leisurely (un-stressful) pace when negotiating Security. More important, you won't miss your flight! 4. GERMS. Protect yourself. Airplane cabins are one of the most crowded biospaces you can find yourself in and the low ceilings combined with minimal fresh air create a breeding ground for germs. Two tips to help keep the germs at bay: (A) Protect the delicate membranes of your nostrils by coating them with a food-grade oil such as olive oil so viruses can't penetrate the immune system through the tiny cracks, and (B) Wear a handkerchief over your nose and mouth to further block the spread of germs from other passengers. 5. WATER. Is airplane water as bad as they say? Yes. This is a problem you really have to prepare for. There is not enough potable water on the plane, and the cabin air will dehydrate you. Cabin air is drier than any desert, so you must drink bottled water every hour. Only drink airplane water if it comes in sealed bottles or cans. And BYO. Alcohol and coffee are dehydrating, so drink extra water if you indulge. 6. SLEEP. To sleep or not to sleep. And how? To help adjust your sleep cycle from jetlag, you need to sleep at night (not during the day). This is a top priority. So avoid sleeping on the plane if it arrives at night. This way you will be tired after landing and able to sleep. If your flight lands in the morning, however, do your best to get some sleep on board so you can stay up until it's dark. When I was a flight attendant, I had to get adequate sleep on layovers in order to be helpful and congenial to passengers. I developed a lot of expertise in this area over 21 years and have written extensively about sleeping and flying in Jet Smarter. The art of sleeping on board, is offered free on Fyana.com. 7. OXYGEN. Where's the air up there? To get more fresh air on the airplane, ask your flight attendant to request the pilot for "less recirculated air and more fresh air, please." If the air in the cabin continues to remain stuffy, politely ask your flight attendant to bring you an oxygen bottle. Say: "I'm having trouble breathing. I feel sick." You might even say: "I might throw up." Flight attendants hate that. Anyway, there are at least a dozen portable bottles on every wide body aircraft. Warning: Don't mention the air quality before takeoff, as your airline may refuse to take you. 8. EXERCISES. Embarassed to exercise in public? So -- sing the Rocky theme song to yourself when you exercise on board. Exercise is vital when you fly to help blood circulation. You really need to exercise as much as possible on board. Here's some easy things you can do. While seated, contract/release every muscle in your body. Also, whenever you can, get up and walk around the plane and do some stretches. This will help reduce many physical and mental symptoms of jetlag. Jet Smarter offers a number of origonal and very effective exercises for physical and mental relief when flying. Office Yoga has more exercises you can do in the air (and on the ground). 9. ATTITUDE. Stay "up" in the air. How we talk to ourselves affects our health. This is a known fact in healing and in business. For flying, here's an affirmation, which you might want to try in case you feel nervous on board: I count my Blessings and do my best. I have faith that the Almighty Pilot takes care of the rest. 10. DETOXIFY. Poisons in the air. The ostrich technique doesn't work here. The aircraft environment is one of the most toxic places you can find. Luckily, you don't live there. But you need to take heed. After landing, rid yourself of toxins from the plane. ASAP, make a point to breathe some good quality air and take a brisk walk to get your circulation going. Also, take hot baths and drink lots of water for several days to help with detoxification. |
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FROM READERS "Thanks so much for your information. As I recently contracted flu, which led to pneumonia in the middle of a hectic series of flights, I will now try to pluck up my courage and ask for more oxygen. The only problem is that I'm British, and Brits are notoriously bad at demanding their rights! The book is fantastic, and I hope you sell millions of copies! I'm not convinced that public pressure will change the airlines' minds, unless the support is truly gigantic. At any rate, we should try. Thanks again." --Gareth Morrell "As a passenger on a 727 on a major airline from Oklahoma City to Philadelphia, I heard this beeping noise. I was kinda joking with my friend about someone's pager going off. Well, after awhile of the beeping, it turned out that it was my Oxygen Indicator Meter sounding its alarm. The oxygen meter I carry lets me know if the oxygen level drops below 19.5%, that is supposed to be the borderline of sustaining human life. Personal indications of oxygen deficiency are: dizziness, light-headedness, and happy/goofy feelings. The whole flight of three hours, my meter continued to sound its alarm; the only way we have of turning them off is to get out of the environment which cannot sustain human life. In my job as a hazardous container inspector, I have to test the atmosphere where I work with an oxygen meter." --name withheld "I just wanted to say thank you for sharing your time and experience. Thanks for your spirit and willingness to help others."-- Jimmy Dominguez "Thank you for all of the info on flying. Last trip, one passenger passed out--an elderly lady that they put in the aisle. Could it have been the no oxygen policy of the airline? I will look for your book at my bookstore. Thank you for all of the excellent advice on flying. --Larry Priebe "I'd like to thank you for the little prayer to the Almighty Pilot which I've started implomenting in my daily life. I'm okay as long as I have the Almighty Pilot to guide me." --J Delaney "My 87 yr. old mother has had two minor heart attacts a day after her last two flight." --Betty Arnovitz |
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