SAFETY TIPS
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AUGUST SAFETY & DIET TIPS
SAFETY TIP:
Quit smoking. You owe it to yourself. Smoking increases the risk for 5 of the top six leading causes of death in the United States: heart attack, cancer, stroke, emphysema and pneumonia. Within 24 hours of quitting, your risk of heart attack decreases. Within 72 hours your lung capacity improves. Within a year your risk of pneumonia normalizes and within 2 -5 years your risk of heart attack is the same as a non-smoker. As time goes on the risk of various cancers all improve. For more advice talk to your doctor or call 1-800-NO-BUTTS. Do it today. You’ll be healthier, wealthier and wiser.
DIET TIP:
Share your dessert. Whether at home or at a restaurant, sharing a dessert can give you 90% of the pleasure and half of the calories.
JULY SAFETY & DIET TIPS
SAFETY TIP:
Summer is swimming time. Unfortunately ED’s throughout the country are already seeing an increase in the number of drowning victims. Drowning is one of the top causes of death in children. Check those pool fences and watch your kids carefully.
DIET TIP:
Cut up extra veggies for snacks and take nutritious food with you when you are out for the afternoon . Otherwise, when you get hungry the temptation is to go for fast food or to eat something unhealthy.Give the Gift of Safety
JUNE SAFETY & DIET TIPS
Safety Tip:
Soap and water is the best way to prevent just about every type of infection from Staph to the common cold. A good scrub can even prevent rabies after an animal bite. Keep under your fingernails clean too and wash any wounds or injuries right away with soap and water. Hydrogen peroxide, alcohol and iodine are no longer recommended in wounds because they are toxic to your own skin cells and can delay healing. Soap and water is the safest and most effective way to stay clean and stay safe.
Diet Tip:
Do not go to a dinner or a party hungry. Usually the first things served are rich appetizers. If you are hungry, you just dig in and wolf them down. Eat something nutritious and drink some water before leaving home.A book full of Safety Tips
MAY SAFETY TIP
Think again about your kitchen sponge.
You would be scared to know the number of germs that live in most kitchen sponges. Cross-contamination can be a real home health concern, especially in the kitchen. Before you put the soap in your dishwasher when you have a load ready to go, throw in your sponge. Here are some other ideas that may help to keep your sponge a cleaner-upper, rather than a germ-spreader: Soak your sponge overnight in bleach; replace your sponge frequently; use paper towels or sanitary surface wipes to clean up anything that was in contact with uncooked meat or other foods that are high risk for cross-contamination .
Think Twice before you do two things at once.
We all know that using your toaster while in the bathtub is poor planning, but here are a few not so ridiculous things actually seen in the nations ER’s. Putting on your biking gloves while riding your bike - not a good idea. The last person I met who did that broke her pelvis and her elbow. Dial your cell phone while driving - a worse idea. How would you like a totaled car and/or a broken neck?
THANKSGIVING SAFETY
Know your family history.
What diseases run in your family? Unfortunately, many people don’t know the answer to this question. But the fact remains, you are most likely to suffer from the same problems as your brothers or sisters, next your parents, and then your grandparents. Family history helps to predict the risk of heart disease, many cancers, osteoporosis, asthma, suicide, diabetes and more. (NEJM) It is especially important to know about fatal or potentially fatal diseases that run in the family and at what age they tend to develop. So ask your siblings, parents and grandparents about their personal medical history and keep track of the answers. Knowledge of your family history can help you and your doctor tailor preventive health measures to your individual risk. To this end the NIH, the CDC and the Surgeon General have recently designated Thanksgiving as National Family History Day. Go to www.hhs.gov/familyhistory for more advice.
Avoid cross-contamination in the kitchen.
E. coli on raw meat or Salmonella on uncooked poultry will be killed when these foods are properly cooked, but don’t forget that any plates, bowls, cutting boards or counter that they touched may remain a potential biohazard. Clean them immediately or put them in the dishwasher. If you forget and other foods touch them, you may be in for trouble. You would also likely be alarmed by the bacteria counts on your kitchen sponge or in the kitchen sink. A little healthy paranoia is probably warranted in most kitchens. So think twice in the kitchen.
HALLOWEEN SAFETY
Be Street Safe: Avoid dark costumes. Choose light colors or add reflective material. Carry flashlights. Avoid masks that obscure peripheral vision or teach your children to keep the masks tipped up and back until they ring the doorbell. Stay out of the street except for crosswalks and even then be very careful.
Be House Safe: Check your property yearly if not more often for tripping hazards, poor lighting or low branches that could injur a running teen or child. What better month to do this than in October, when on the 31st many strangers may be walking up and back from your front door. Also make sure your pets are not going to put anyone at risk. We see as many injuries from dogs causing trips and falls as we do from bites.
Be Fire Safe: Try to use battery powered lights rather than candles. Avoid costumes with low hanging material or that are not flame-resistant. Teach your children how to “Stop-Drop-and-Roll” (Dropping is the most important part of this)
Be Food Safe: Prepare a large wholesome meal so your family doesn’t overindulge. Inspect candy before your children eat it. Allergies to unfound peanut products cause more ER visits than toxins.
Give the Gift of Safety
CLASSIC SAFETY TIPS
Don’t go to bed without emptying your bladder
Getting up in the middle of the night to urinate when it’s dark and you are half awake is a great way to trip, fall or pass out and end up in the ED. If you feel weak, sit down or lie down before it’s too late. A broken wrist, a fractured neck, a twisted ankle or a head injury. I’ve seen them all from this mistake.
Don’t try too hard to wash or dry the inside of a narrow glass.
When it shatters, your blood will splatter. I have seen this so many times that this accident alone was the inspiration for this book.
Don’t assume that it is safe to cross just because one lane of traffic has stopped.
When you need to cross at an uncontrolled intersection, the first lane of cars may stop, but that doesn’t guarantee that the next lane will also stop. Make sure they see you and that you see them stop.
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