Is It Easier to Catch the Flu In an Enclosed Room or on an Outdoor Crowded Dance Floor?

Many factors, both general and specific, can influence influenza (flu) virus transmission, whether in an enclosed room or on an outdoor, crowded dance floor.

General Transmission

• The four suspected means of influenza transmission are touching an infected person, touching something an infected person touched, being sneezed or coughed on directly by an infected person and inhaling tiny droplets that stay in the air after an infected person coughs or sneezes. All of these could occur on a crowded dance floor, indoors or outdoors.

Humidity Factor

• Humidity can influence the survival and transmission of flu virus. According to a 2009 "Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences" article, "...humidification of indoor air...may help decrease the spread and the toll of influenza during influenza season."

  A physical activity such as dancing tends to raise the humidity level by increasing respiration and perspiration. It is more difficult to catch the flu in an enclosed space with humid air, therefore, than on an outdoor, crowded dance floor.

Considerations

• Reviving the Victorian-era custom of gentlemen wearing white gloves and changing them after each dance may decrease flu transmission indoors and outdoors. General precautions such as washing your hands frequently and keeping them away from your nose and eyes, though, also decrease flu transmission.