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Drinking tap water on a plane could be harmful to your health. The reason may stop you from doing it… and consuming other drinks.
If you have the idea of refilling your water bottle during your long flight hours, be careful! Indeed, a travel expert warns about the cleanliness of water on planes, as well as other drinks… Doctissimo explains.
Pipes very rarely cleaned
Although it is tempting to fill your water bottle from the plane’s tap to save money, it is not recommended to do so. Anton Radchenko, travel expert and founder of AirAdvisor, tells the newspaper The Mirror the reason : “The pipes on board are rarely cleaned.” He adds : “You are potentially drinking water from dirty pipes”. In fact, on the plane, the drinking water sometimes remains for several weeks without being changed. This explains “its reduced quality” confides the expert.
Airlines must respect certain strict regulations regarding water quality (via regular analyses) but according to this expert, the analyzes are not frequent or complete enough…
This is unsavory news… especially if you have already used this economical method. However, it is important to know this to avoid potential illnesses.
The risks of drinking dirty water
Lack of water sanitation can cause poisoning as well as digestion problems. It would be annoying to catch diarrhea during your flight, before you even land!
Be careful, in the most serious cases, contaminated water can increase the risk of transmission of diseases such as dysentery, typhoid or hepatitis A.
Be careful with water, but not only…
This advice also applies to coffee, hot chocolate and tea. In fact, these drinks are often prepared with tap water.
However, it is still very important to hydrate on a plane because the altitude tends to dry out your body. The solution to staying hydrated? Buy a bottle of water. This is the safest option. And for those who are thrifty, also remember to fill your bottle at the airport! Water fountains are sometimes made available after the control zones.
Of course, alcohol is not an alternative because it will simply increase your dehydration…