Norovirus

[alfiemom]

On our evening new today, they interviewed a doctor with Northwestern University about the influx of patients with Norovirus….one of 2 stomach viruses hanging around.  One interesting thing she said was that hand sanitizers do not kill the Norovirus.  Best thing is good olde soap and water.  So anyone boarding a ship, don’t rely strictly on the hand sanitizer to keep you safe.

[Ken the cruiser]

And don’t use public bathrooms on the ship either if you can avoid it. Just think of where someone might head if they’re feeling the symptoms. Just a suggestion.

[cruisestitch]

25 minutes ago, alfiemom said:

On our evening new today, they interviewed a doctor with Northwestern University about the influx of patients with Norovirus….one of 2 stomach viruses hanging around.  One interesting thing she said was that hand sanitizers do not kill the Norovirus.  Best thing is good olde soap and water.  So anyone boarding a ship, don’t rely strictly on the hand sanitizer to keep you safe.

Some hand sanitizers do.  He was oversimplifying.    Look for ones that have benzalkomium chloride.  Their labels usually say 99.99 % effective, not 99% effective, which alcohol-based sanitizers are.   If you see alcohol as the only active ingredient, that’s not the stuff you want.

 

here’s a good one to look for

 

 

Edited March 4, 2023 by cruisestitch

[mahasamatman]

In general, very few hand sanitizers are effective against viruses. Soap and water is always a better solution.

[chengkp75]

Nothing new in the fact that hand sanitizers don't work against noro.  And, just to be precise, neither does soap and water.  All soap is, is a lubricant that breaks the surface tension (combined with the friction of rubbing the hands together) between the outer layer of skin cells (dead) and the underlying skin, and allows the water to wash these cells, and any bacteria or viruses away, without killing them.

 

As for Benzalkonium Chloride, yes it will kill noro, but it needs between 1-2 hours of contact time to do so.  That means the hands need to be wetted with BAC for that entire contact time to work.  Even the package of "Wet Ones" posted above advertises them as "anti-bacterial" and not "anti-viral".

Edited March 4, 2023 by chengkp75

[Cruise a holic]

We also avoid any buffets.  Unfortunately some people do not wash after using the bathroom.  

[EatonDoolittle]

I saw that news report as well.

As a person familiar with the virus (tho not for years, now), I certainly have sympathy for any sufferers. 

 

However, wasn't it nice to see a story about Norovirus that did not mention cruise ships?

 

[phoenix_dream]

10 hours ago, cruisestitch said:

Some hand sanitizers do.  He was oversimplifying.    Look for ones that have benzalkomium chloride.  Their labels usually say 99.99 % effective, not 99% effective, which alcohol-based sanitizers are.   If you see alcohol as the only active ingredient, that’s not the stuff you want.

 

here’s a good one to look for

 

 

I was curious about this so did some research online.  All I could find was that they might have some impact on norovirus if applied for 10 minutes or more.  Since that is not likely to happen I'm not sure these are any better than any other wipe or sanitizer.  My unscientifically trained mind would suggest, however, that wiping with any wipe might actually remove the virus particles from your hands.  But killing the virus?  I don't think so.

[sunonfire]

I bought hydrogen peroxide to spray my counters during Covid. 2 cruises I sprayed the peroxide.At the height of Covid I kept a spray bottle of peroxide in the car to clean my hands. We didn’t get it using my peroxide. It didn’t bother my hands and they are sensitive.

 

My last cruise I didn’t spray. After 3 vaccinations we both caught Covid I can’t say for sure it was from the cruise. We had gone out to eat at two different restaurants when we returned and before we became sick. Lucky me I also had the Norovirus. I had to go to the ER and that’s when I found out I had Covid. We didn’t have any of the typical symptoms. We were just achy - no fever -  no congestion. I have a Celebrity cruise booked for November.

 

Here is an article about the peroxide.

 

https://www.insider.com/guides/health/does-hydrogen-peroxide-kill-germs-and-viruses