Fear of Flying If you're planning to take an airline flight over the holidays, and if you haven't flown in awhile, you should be aware of some recent restrictions for carry-on items. Here's a quick lowdown: - Liquids, gels, and aerosols are only allowed in three-ounce containers
- All containers must be placed in a quart-sized, zip-top, clear plastic bag (only one bag per traveler is allowed)
There are a few exceptions. For instance, baby formula, breast milk and liquid medications can be carried on. You can also pack larger containers of gels, liquids, and aerosols in any luggage you plan to check at the ticket counter. And if you happen to be traveling on a very long flight, I have another travel tip that the Transportation Security Administration won't tell you about, but it just might save your life.
Take a seat In the e-Alert "Air Time" (10/9/03), I told you about deep vain thrombosis (DVT), which is a blood clot that can form in the legs or pelvis when a person is confined to a constricted space for a long period. Besides being painful, DVT can turn fatal if fragments of the clot dislodge and travel to the lungs where they can trigger a pulmonary embolism. Airline passengers who sit for hours during a long flight are particularly susceptible to developing DVT. By some estimates, as many as 100,000 airline passengers die from complications associated with DVT every year. One of the most important things to be aware of with DVT is that it can strike healthy people who have no previous cardiovascular problems. Those at highest risk of DVT include: - Anyone who has previously experienced DVT
- Those with a family history of DVT
- Anyone who has experienced trauma to the legs
- Those who have recently had surgery on the legs, feet, or in the abdominal or pelvic areas
- Those who may suffer from diabetes, heart or liver disease, or certain cancers, such as colon, ovarian, stomach, liver, pancreatic, or lymphatic cancers
- Obese people
- Those over the age of 40
Deeply superficial A study published in the journal Clinical Applied Thrombosis/Hemostasis details research conducted by Italian researchers who examined the occurrence of DVT and the far less threatening (although often painful) superficial vein thrombosis (SVT) on a long-haul air flight. This trial also examined the effects of Pycnogenol on about half of the nearly 200 subjects. In previous e-Alerts I've told you about Pycnogenol, the natural antioxidant and anti-inflammatory extracted from French maritime pine bark. All of the subjects in the Italian study were monitored for DVT and SVT before and after their flights, which averaged a little more than eight hours. Those in the treatment group received 200 mg of Pycnogenol two to three hours before their flight, another 200 mg six hours later, and 100 mg the following day. Researchers noted some slight vein inflammation (phlebitis), but no DVT or SVT among subjects who received Pycnogenol. In the placebo group, one subject experienced DVT, while SVT was reported in four subjects. There were no adverse side effects reported. These results run quite similar to a trial that appeared in a 2003 issue of the journal Angiology. In that study, a product called Flite Tabs (which contains Pycnogenol and a soy enzyme called nattokinase) was tested on about 200 subjects during long-haul flights. The legs of all subjects were measured before and after the flights, and ultrasound was used to detect blood clotting. Results showed that none of the subjects in the Flite Tabs group had evidence of blood clots, none experienced any leg swelling, and 15 percent actually showed a decrease in swelling. But in the control group, 5 subjects developed DVT, 2 had superficial thrombosis, and leg swelling increased in 12 percent of the group. Talk to your doctor before trying Flite Tabs or Pycnogenol as a DVT preventive. And whether or not you use these products, be on the lookout for these DVT warning signs after a long flight: muscle pain, swelling or tenderness in the legs, and discoloration in a painful area. Sometimes these symptoms won't occur until many hours after you've arrived at your destination. |
