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Comment by ravenstine | Hacker News Reader

I haven't had to take a dump on an airplane in years.

My rule is to eat and drink as little as possible before a flight, ideally not eating at all. If I do eat, hopefully it's high protein and low in fiber. As a result I usually don't need to use the lavatory, which is nice because it has made me much less apprehensive about getting a window seat.

I wish more people had this mindset. On so many flights I've had, seemingly half the plane is ready to take a shit. My only explanation is that they're overnourished on the Standard American Diet. Imagine how much less waste would have to be pumped out of airplanes.

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* My only explanation is that they're overnourished on the Standard American Diet. Imagine how much less waste would have to be pumped out of airplanes.*

A lot of folks poop on a schedule: Making sure you don't poop on the plane might very well involve adjusting food for a few days before a flight, depending on how often you poop. Some folks poop multiple times a day, some folks poop a few times a week. Some women poop more during their monthly cycle, too - which, by the way, does not happen at the same time every month nor do you always have notice.

You'd be able to eat not too long before the flight, though, if you are healthy simply because most folks don't process food too terribly fast (but the timing varies). Adjusting what you eat for days just isn't worth it, and not everyone can do this.

Also, not everyone on the flight is going to be American, but the chances are higher if you are taking in-country flights in the US. I personally don't encounter many Americans on flights - I'm often the only one. But then again, I don't live in the US either.

But that's exactly the reason why healthy people, whatever healthy means, should starve: If those who can control their asses do so, then there are more toilets available to those in need.

Holding back on food is fine, but you should try to stay adequately hydrated while flying, especially longer flights where you may be more susceptible to deep vein blood clots.

I get this for short haul flights, but I can’t imagine not having to pee over the course of a >12h flight…

That would not be healthy indeed. Dehydration combined with sitting still for so long is a recipe for thrombosis.

One could also consider that not everyone is in the healthiest state due to illness or chronic disease and not just immediately assume moral failing.

OK that first sentence was the line I have least expected to start a Hacker News comment ever. Also you are correct on all counts. I developed these same techniques to avoid peeing during the opera but they ported well to air travel.

I can't even understand why people are eating/drinking in planes, I haven't take a flight since several years but usually you've a bit of adrenaline, thus no hunger

I fly small planes and I'm usually into a snack bar before I level off. I do try to make one liter of water last the whole flight, though, which can be up to 5 hours.

Flying dehydrates you - the cabin is pressurized by constantly pumping outside air into the pressure vessel that is the fuselage, and the air at cruising altitudes is extremely dry in addition to having less oxygen than we are accustomed to at ground level. We increase our respiration rate due to the lower oxygen content, and lose a fair amount of water in the process as the dry air drains it from us.

I've never been on a flight long enough that I needed to eat, but even on a regional flight I find myself wanting at least something to drink because my throat feels a little dry.

> "adrenaline"

If you're not used to flying (like yourself) this might be the case. For regular flyers (like me) it's often more like taking the subway or commuting to work. Personally I always get an aisle seat, take at least two liters of water with me to combat the dehydration and let me get to work/family/whatever in the best shape I can be when I land. I always eat ahead of time or at the airport (lounges make this more reasonable) because I also know that on the other end of the flight there's baggage, a taxi, checking into the hotel, getting to dinner, etc. So figure at least two hours of hassle before a dinner or snack is possible, usually more.

Never took a dump on a plane, but I hate airports, and usually find myself at the bar before boarding which more than often has led to a painful urge to pee at the worst times.

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