Here are some healthy habits that everyone can follow to avoid the spread of germs this flu season:
- Frequently wash hands with soap and water, or an alcohol-based cleanser
- Refrain from touching the eyes, nose or mouth - the virus can only be caught in the membranes of these body parts
- Cover your nose and mouth with a tissue when you sneeze and dispose it in the trash
- Cough into your elbow or tissue
- Avoid contact with people affected with cold and flu
- Use a germ-killing disinfectant to clean surfaces
- Stay home from school or work if you become infected with the flu
This info should also help to keep the H1N1 swine flu away.
Showing posts with label Safety. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Safety. Show all posts
Monday, August 31, 2009
Sunday, August 2, 2009
Dusting Or Huffing
Years ago, when working at Sonitrol, we had dispatched the Providence police to Harris Lumber which used to be located on Atwells Avenue for a break-in. We could hear that someone was in the building moving around. When the police arrived, they found a teenage girl inside the store sniffing paint. Seems she needed to get high so bad that she broke a window to get inside.
I have never forgotten that. It just seemed so sad. Nowadays, there is a newer way of getting high. It's called dusting or huffing and it's deadly. Compressed air to clean your computer is being inhaled and killing kids, many dying the first time they use it.
Here's a link to an article on Snopes about a 14 year old boy who died. It's tragically sad and I hope that people read about it and learn.
http://www.snopes.com/medical/toxins/dustoff.asp
I have never forgotten that. It just seemed so sad. Nowadays, there is a newer way of getting high. It's called dusting or huffing and it's deadly. Compressed air to clean your computer is being inhaled and killing kids, many dying the first time they use it.
Here's a link to an article on Snopes about a 14 year old boy who died. It's tragically sad and I hope that people read about it and learn.
http://www.snopes.com/medical/toxins/dustoff.asp
Friday, May 1, 2009
An Inconvenient Route
Town officials Friday afternoon shut down a 20-foot-long bridge on South Road just east of Route 2 after discovering that its support structure had rotted and its road surface had dropped two to three inches.
The state Department of Transportation inspected the bridge Friday afternoon and agreed to the town's decision to shut it down. Concrete blocks were placed at either end of the bridge by mid-afternoon Friday.
Public Works Director Joseph C. Duarte said the steel and concrete bridge, which goes over the Hunt River, will be closed indefinitely.
"It's got to be repaired, which will take months and months," he said. The bridge is on a town road, so the town will be responsible for fixing it, he said.
The town received a call just before noon that something seemed wrong with the bridge, which officials say is about 30 years old.
Town Manager William Sequino said the School Department and the bus company that busses local students had been notified.
South Road is just south of the intersection of Routes 2 and 4, near Richard's Pub. It feeds the Woodland Greens Golf Club.
Seeing that I live just one house down from this bridge and it is the route I take to get to the highway, it should be an inconvenience every time I go out. I knew this would happen after all of the trucks that were used to transport the hundreds of trees that were taken down last year by National Grid. I should have called the town and/or the state at that time so this problem could have been averted.
My plan is to write some letters and see what can be done to get National Grid to pay for some of the repair.
Pandemics In Perspective
This is the best article I have read regarding the H1N1 flu. acdc
How bad can a flu epidemic get? The raw numbers indicate that over the past 90 years, far more people have been killed by relatively run-of-the-mill seasonal flu viruses than by the exotic bugs that have grabbed most of the headlines - such as bird flu or the current strain of swine flu.
But to get a more useful perspective on a flu epidemic's potential impact, you have to go back to the mother of all pandemics: the "Spanish flu" of 1918.
Newly published research supports the view that the H1N1 virus behind the current outbreak is a distant cousin of the virus that sparked the infamous 1918 epidemic. But all the signs so far indicate that the 1918 flu was much more lethal. In fact, some researchers report that today's headline-making microbe lacks some of the molecular machinery that made past versions of the virus deadlier.
Citing such reports, the Los Angeles Times noted today that the current outbreak "may not even do as much damage as the run-of-the-mill flu outbreaks that occur each winter without much fanfare."
So far, the raw numbers bear that out. Typically, about 36,000 Americans die each year due to flu complications, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The worldwide toll is estimated at 250,000 to 500,000 annually. If you go back to the most recent officially recognized flu pandemic, the 1968-69 Hong Kong flu, the death toll is about the same: 34,000 in the U.S., 500,000 globally. The figures for the 1957-58 Asian flu pandemic are 70,000 U.S. deaths and 2 million deaths worldwide.
Even those figures pale in comparison with the 1918-19 flu pandemic: At least 550,000 people died in the United States alone. The worldwide death toll was estimated at 20 million to 40 million, or perhaps even as many as 100 million by some accounts. The flu killed more people than World War I (which may have contributed to its spread).
Compared to past pandemics, the current swine-flu outbreak is hardly a blip on the chart. (Speaking of charts, you can click onto a couple that show you mortality rates since 1900 and since 1950.) Last year, MIT researcher Peter Doshi pointed out that not all pandemics turn out to be as serious as the annual seasonal flu. And in its swine-flu FAQ, the Canadian government makes a similar point.
So does that mean the current outbreak is just a piddling pandemic? Not necessarily.
For one thing, it's far too early to assess how this outbreak will end up. For another thing, the pattern of the deaths so far is distressing. Both those caveats draw on the lessons learned from the 1918 flu.
The age factor
"The big difference between seasonal flu and pandemic flu is that when you move to pandemic flu, you get a pattern that the older people are not affected," said Lone Simonsen, an epidemiologist at George Washington University who is also the founder and president of SAGE Analytica. The age distribution curve for a typical seasonal flu looks like a "U," while the distribution pattern for the 1918 flu was more of a "W," as seen on this chart.
Experts worry that the distribution pattern for the current outbreak looks similar. Every death from the flu is a tragedy, but it's particularly tragic when a significant number of the fatalities come in the 20-to-50 age bracket rather than the over-85 bracket.
"That's a lot of life years lost," Simonsen said. "It has another flavor to it."
Simonsen and her colleagues are still trying to figure out why the 1918 flu hit people in the prime of their lives so hard. One hypothesis is that the virus could somehow push a healthy immune system into such a violent response that the body suffered irreparable damage. Another idea is that the older people had acquired immunity from a previous flu epidemic, while younger people missed out. Simonsen said a third possibility is that some sort of bacterial co-infection made the flu worse. Or it could have been a combination of factors.
Wave of the future
Even if the current outbreak turns out to be relatively mild, that's not necessarily the end of the story. "When you look at the past pandemics, you observe that they often come in waves," Simonsen said.
She said a review of the records from 1918 show that the year's first flu flare-up actually came in the spring and summer, in the form of a less lethal but highly transmissible infection. That appears to have been the precursor for the deadlier waves of influenza that swept across the world that fall.
If the current outbreak turns out to follow a similar pattern, that would be "good and bad news," Simonsen said. It's bad news because a worse outbreak could conceivably follow. But it's good news, she said, because we'd have "more time to defend ourselves," using all the defenses that have been developed since 1918.
Patrolling the pigs
In recent years, the biggest concern on the minds of epidemiologists has been avian flu, not swine flu - but the current outbreak is a sign that experts will have to pay attention to the pigs as well, said Juergen Richt, a veterinary researcher at Kansas State University.
He and his colleagues infected pigs with the 1918 "Spanish flu" virus, as well as a virus from 1930 that is thought to be a descendant of the 1918 strain, under Biosafety Level 4 lab conditions. The experiment, described in the May issue of the Journal of Virology, showed that the swine suffered mild respiratory disease but recovered from the infection.
"A virus which is lethal to monkeys, ferrets and mice, and was lethal to people [in 1918], is not lethal to pigs," Richt told me. That suggests that swine could have played a role in maintaining and spreading the 1918 flu, he said.
It also suggests that swine populations might have to be monitored more closely for evidence of potentially dangerous disease strains, perhaps through diagnostic screening. It's not enough to wait until pigs drop dead, he said.
Richt said swine-flu strains appear to be undergoing mutations more rapidly today than they did a decade ago. "Something happened 10 years ago, where the whole evolution of swine flu changed and became very dynamic," he said. Why? Richt said the reason is unknown, although it may have something to do with a genetic change enhancing the virus' ability to jump between pigs, birds and people.
Richt is a big advocate for research that bridges the gap between human medicine and veterinary medicine, and he told me the current flap over flu viruses just underscores the point.
"It's not only bird flu and swine flu," he said. "There are lots of zoonotic diseases - tuberculosis, Rift Valley fever, Lyme disease. ... We have to realize that only together can we solve these problems."
Alan Boyle covers the physical sciences, anthropology, technological innovation and space science and exploration for MSNBC.com. He is a winner of the AAAS Science Journalism Award, the NASW Science-in-Society Award and other honors; a contributor to "A Field Guide for Science Writers"; and a member of the board of the Council for the Advancement of Science Writing.
How bad can a flu epidemic get? The raw numbers indicate that over the past 90 years, far more people have been killed by relatively run-of-the-mill seasonal flu viruses than by the exotic bugs that have grabbed most of the headlines - such as bird flu or the current strain of swine flu.
But to get a more useful perspective on a flu epidemic's potential impact, you have to go back to the mother of all pandemics: the "Spanish flu" of 1918.
Newly published research supports the view that the H1N1 virus behind the current outbreak is a distant cousin of the virus that sparked the infamous 1918 epidemic. But all the signs so far indicate that the 1918 flu was much more lethal. In fact, some researchers report that today's headline-making microbe lacks some of the molecular machinery that made past versions of the virus deadlier.
Citing such reports, the Los Angeles Times noted today that the current outbreak "may not even do as much damage as the run-of-the-mill flu outbreaks that occur each winter without much fanfare."
So far, the raw numbers bear that out. Typically, about 36,000 Americans die each year due to flu complications, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The worldwide toll is estimated at 250,000 to 500,000 annually. If you go back to the most recent officially recognized flu pandemic, the 1968-69 Hong Kong flu, the death toll is about the same: 34,000 in the U.S., 500,000 globally. The figures for the 1957-58 Asian flu pandemic are 70,000 U.S. deaths and 2 million deaths worldwide.
Even those figures pale in comparison with the 1918-19 flu pandemic: At least 550,000 people died in the United States alone. The worldwide death toll was estimated at 20 million to 40 million, or perhaps even as many as 100 million by some accounts. The flu killed more people than World War I (which may have contributed to its spread).
Compared to past pandemics, the current swine-flu outbreak is hardly a blip on the chart. (Speaking of charts, you can click onto a couple that show you mortality rates since 1900 and since 1950.) Last year, MIT researcher Peter Doshi pointed out that not all pandemics turn out to be as serious as the annual seasonal flu. And in its swine-flu FAQ, the Canadian government makes a similar point.
So does that mean the current outbreak is just a piddling pandemic? Not necessarily.
For one thing, it's far too early to assess how this outbreak will end up. For another thing, the pattern of the deaths so far is distressing. Both those caveats draw on the lessons learned from the 1918 flu.
The age factor
"The big difference between seasonal flu and pandemic flu is that when you move to pandemic flu, you get a pattern that the older people are not affected," said Lone Simonsen, an epidemiologist at George Washington University who is also the founder and president of SAGE Analytica. The age distribution curve for a typical seasonal flu looks like a "U," while the distribution pattern for the 1918 flu was more of a "W," as seen on this chart.
Experts worry that the distribution pattern for the current outbreak looks similar. Every death from the flu is a tragedy, but it's particularly tragic when a significant number of the fatalities come in the 20-to-50 age bracket rather than the over-85 bracket.
"That's a lot of life years lost," Simonsen said. "It has another flavor to it."
Simonsen and her colleagues are still trying to figure out why the 1918 flu hit people in the prime of their lives so hard. One hypothesis is that the virus could somehow push a healthy immune system into such a violent response that the body suffered irreparable damage. Another idea is that the older people had acquired immunity from a previous flu epidemic, while younger people missed out. Simonsen said a third possibility is that some sort of bacterial co-infection made the flu worse. Or it could have been a combination of factors.
Wave of the future
Even if the current outbreak turns out to be relatively mild, that's not necessarily the end of the story. "When you look at the past pandemics, you observe that they often come in waves," Simonsen said.
She said a review of the records from 1918 show that the year's first flu flare-up actually came in the spring and summer, in the form of a less lethal but highly transmissible infection. That appears to have been the precursor for the deadlier waves of influenza that swept across the world that fall.
If the current outbreak turns out to follow a similar pattern, that would be "good and bad news," Simonsen said. It's bad news because a worse outbreak could conceivably follow. But it's good news, she said, because we'd have "more time to defend ourselves," using all the defenses that have been developed since 1918.
Patrolling the pigs
In recent years, the biggest concern on the minds of epidemiologists has been avian flu, not swine flu - but the current outbreak is a sign that experts will have to pay attention to the pigs as well, said Juergen Richt, a veterinary researcher at Kansas State University.
He and his colleagues infected pigs with the 1918 "Spanish flu" virus, as well as a virus from 1930 that is thought to be a descendant of the 1918 strain, under Biosafety Level 4 lab conditions. The experiment, described in the May issue of the Journal of Virology, showed that the swine suffered mild respiratory disease but recovered from the infection.
"A virus which is lethal to monkeys, ferrets and mice, and was lethal to people [in 1918], is not lethal to pigs," Richt told me. That suggests that swine could have played a role in maintaining and spreading the 1918 flu, he said.
It also suggests that swine populations might have to be monitored more closely for evidence of potentially dangerous disease strains, perhaps through diagnostic screening. It's not enough to wait until pigs drop dead, he said.
Richt said swine-flu strains appear to be undergoing mutations more rapidly today than they did a decade ago. "Something happened 10 years ago, where the whole evolution of swine flu changed and became very dynamic," he said. Why? Richt said the reason is unknown, although it may have something to do with a genetic change enhancing the virus' ability to jump between pigs, birds and people.
Richt is a big advocate for research that bridges the gap between human medicine and veterinary medicine, and he told me the current flap over flu viruses just underscores the point.
"It's not only bird flu and swine flu," he said. "There are lots of zoonotic diseases - tuberculosis, Rift Valley fever, Lyme disease. ... We have to realize that only together can we solve these problems."
Alan Boyle covers the physical sciences, anthropology, technological innovation and space science and exploration for MSNBC.com. He is a winner of the AAAS Science Journalism Award, the NASW Science-in-Society Award and other honors; a contributor to "A Field Guide for Science Writers"; and a member of the board of the Council for the Advancement of Science Writing.
Wednesday, April 29, 2009
Flu Prevention
Avoid close contact.
Avoid close contact with people who are sick. When you are sick, keep your distance from others to protect them from getting sick too.
Stay home if sick.
If possible, stay home from work, school, and errands when you are sick. You will help prevent others from catching your illness.
Cover your mouth and nose.
Cover your mouth and nose with a tissue when coughing or sneezing. It may prevent those around you from getting sick.
Clean your hands.
Washing your hands often will help protect you from germs.
Avoid touching your eyes, nose or mouth.
Germs are often spread when a person touches something that is contaminated with germs and then touches his or her eyes, nose, or mouth.
Practice other good health habits.
Get plenty of sleep, be physically active, manage your stress, drink plenty of fluids, and eat nutritious food.
Avoid close contact with people who are sick. When you are sick, keep your distance from others to protect them from getting sick too.
Stay home if sick.
If possible, stay home from work, school, and errands when you are sick. You will help prevent others from catching your illness.
Cover your mouth and nose.
Cover your mouth and nose with a tissue when coughing or sneezing. It may prevent those around you from getting sick.
Clean your hands.
Washing your hands often will help protect you from germs.
Avoid touching your eyes, nose or mouth.
Germs are often spread when a person touches something that is contaminated with germs and then touches his or her eyes, nose, or mouth.
Practice other good health habits.
Get plenty of sleep, be physically active, manage your stress, drink plenty of fluids, and eat nutritious food.
Friday, April 24, 2009
Swine Flu
I have previously warned about bird flu and a possible pandemic. It seems that this newest flu has taken the World Health Organization by surprise. Here's a link to help you know what to do to prepare for any type of global virus or pandemic: http://www.pandemicflu.gov/health/whatyoucando.html
A unique strain of swine flu is the suspected killer of dozens of people in Mexico, where authorities closed schools, museums, libraries and theaters in the capital on Friday to try to contain an outbreak that has spurred concerns of a global flu epidemic.
The worrisome new virus — which combines genetic material from pigs, birds and humans in a way researchers have not seen before — also sickened at least eight people in Texas and California, though there have been no deaths in the U.S.
"We are very, very concerned," World Health Organization spokesman Thomas Abraham said. "We have what appears to be a novel virus and it has spread from human to human ... It's all hands on deck at the moment."
The outbreak caused alarm in Mexico, where more than 1,000 people have been sickened. Residents of the capital donned surgical masks and authorities ordered the most sweeping shutdown of public gathering places in a quarter century. President Felipe Calderon met with his Cabinet Friday to coordinate Mexico's response.
The WHO was convening an expert panel to consider whether to raise the pandemic alert level or issue travel advisories.
It might already be too late to contain the outbreak, a prominent U.S. pandemic flu expert said late Friday.
Given how quickly flu can spread around the globe, if these are the first signs of a pandemic, then there are probably cases incubating around the world already, said Dr. Michael Osterholm at the University of Minnesota.
Epidemiologists are particularly concerned because the only fatalities so far were in young people and adults.
The geographical spread of the outbreaks also concerned the WHO — while 13 of the 20 deaths were in Mexico City, the rest were spread across Mexico — four in central San Luis Potosi, two up near the U.S. border in Baja California, and one in southern Oaxaca state.
Scientists have long been concerned that a new flu virus could launch a worldwide pandemic of a killer disease. A new virus could evolve when different flu viruses infect a pig, a person or a bird, mingling their genetic material. The resulting hybrid could spread quickly because people would have no natural defenses against it.
The most notorious flu pandemic is thought to have killed at least 40 million people worldwide in 1918-19. Two other, less deadly flu pandemics struck in 1957 and 1968.
A unique strain of swine flu is the suspected killer of dozens of people in Mexico, where authorities closed schools, museums, libraries and theaters in the capital on Friday to try to contain an outbreak that has spurred concerns of a global flu epidemic.
The worrisome new virus — which combines genetic material from pigs, birds and humans in a way researchers have not seen before — also sickened at least eight people in Texas and California, though there have been no deaths in the U.S.
"We are very, very concerned," World Health Organization spokesman Thomas Abraham said. "We have what appears to be a novel virus and it has spread from human to human ... It's all hands on deck at the moment."
The outbreak caused alarm in Mexico, where more than 1,000 people have been sickened. Residents of the capital donned surgical masks and authorities ordered the most sweeping shutdown of public gathering places in a quarter century. President Felipe Calderon met with his Cabinet Friday to coordinate Mexico's response.
The WHO was convening an expert panel to consider whether to raise the pandemic alert level or issue travel advisories.
It might already be too late to contain the outbreak, a prominent U.S. pandemic flu expert said late Friday.
Given how quickly flu can spread around the globe, if these are the first signs of a pandemic, then there are probably cases incubating around the world already, said Dr. Michael Osterholm at the University of Minnesota.
Epidemiologists are particularly concerned because the only fatalities so far were in young people and adults.
The geographical spread of the outbreaks also concerned the WHO — while 13 of the 20 deaths were in Mexico City, the rest were spread across Mexico — four in central San Luis Potosi, two up near the U.S. border in Baja California, and one in southern Oaxaca state.
Scientists have long been concerned that a new flu virus could launch a worldwide pandemic of a killer disease. A new virus could evolve when different flu viruses infect a pig, a person or a bird, mingling their genetic material. The resulting hybrid could spread quickly because people would have no natural defenses against it.
The most notorious flu pandemic is thought to have killed at least 40 million people worldwide in 1918-19. Two other, less deadly flu pandemics struck in 1957 and 1968.
Thursday, March 26, 2009
Guide For Head Injuries
Last week, when Natasha Richardson died so quickly after falling and hitting her head during a ski lesson, I wondered how often that happens to other people. Come to find out, it doesn't happen all that often. But, any head injury should be attended to. Here's a list of things to look for and do.
In most cases, it's pretty clear when someone needs medical attention after a head injury, says Greg Ayotte, a spokesperson for the Brain Injury Association of America and a cognitive rehabilitation therapist. "They're confused, they're agitated, or they might be dizzy or unresponsive," he says.
But then there's what doctors call the "talk and die" scenario, where someone seems fine, only to die hours, or sometimes even days later.
"Talk and die" can happen with several different kinds of brain injuries. In the case of epidural hematomas, the injury Richardson had, blood pools in the area between the lining of the brain and the skull. "Fluid is building up in a contained space, creating pressure. Something's got to give, and that something is the brain," Ayotte says. If you don't get to the hospital to have surgery to drain the fluid, "the deterioration can happen very quickly."
Here, from Ayotte and other experts, is a list of what to do after someone has suffered a head injury.
1. Be vigilant
Keep an eye on someone who has hit his head, even if the person never lost consciousness. "A lot of folks are still under the assumption that as long as you're not knocked out, you're OK, and that's not true," Ayotte says.
2. Look for dizziness, vomiting, headache and confusion
If the injured person has these signs, take him or her to an emergency room, says Dr. Jam Ghajar, clinical professor of neurological surgery at Weill Cornell Medical College in New York, and president of the Brain Trauma Foundation.
3. Look for changes in symptoms and behavior
Any sudden change, such as a headache going from mild to severe in minutes, means the person needs medical attention. For example, Ghajar says, if a person gets suddenly sleepy in the first 12 hours after a hit, it may mean the parts of the brain responsible for staying awake are experiencing pressure from a bleed.
4. Be especially wary if someone a) has been drinking alcohol, b) is on blood thinners, c) is elderly or d) is a young athlete
It's tough to distinguish brain-injured behavior from drunken behavior, so when in doubt, take the person to the hospital, Ghajar says. Also, blood thinners can turn a mild bleed into a major bleed, so be especially vigilant if the injured person is taking blood thinners such as warfarin.
He also warns people to be extra vigilant when an elderly person hits his or her head. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has information on traumatic brain injury and senior citizens. The CDC also has information on concussions in young athletes.
5. Go to a certified trauma center if you can
The American College of Surgeons has a list of certified trauma facilities; a hospital that's not a trauma center may not have a neurosurgeon on call. You can also look on this map from the American Trauma Society. Find your state, select trauma centers, update the map, and you can find information about trauma centers in your area.
In most cases, it's pretty clear when someone needs medical attention after a head injury, says Greg Ayotte, a spokesperson for the Brain Injury Association of America and a cognitive rehabilitation therapist. "They're confused, they're agitated, or they might be dizzy or unresponsive," he says.
But then there's what doctors call the "talk and die" scenario, where someone seems fine, only to die hours, or sometimes even days later.
"Talk and die" can happen with several different kinds of brain injuries. In the case of epidural hematomas, the injury Richardson had, blood pools in the area between the lining of the brain and the skull. "Fluid is building up in a contained space, creating pressure. Something's got to give, and that something is the brain," Ayotte says. If you don't get to the hospital to have surgery to drain the fluid, "the deterioration can happen very quickly."
Here, from Ayotte and other experts, is a list of what to do after someone has suffered a head injury.
1. Be vigilant
Keep an eye on someone who has hit his head, even if the person never lost consciousness. "A lot of folks are still under the assumption that as long as you're not knocked out, you're OK, and that's not true," Ayotte says.
2. Look for dizziness, vomiting, headache and confusion
If the injured person has these signs, take him or her to an emergency room, says Dr. Jam Ghajar, clinical professor of neurological surgery at Weill Cornell Medical College in New York, and president of the Brain Trauma Foundation.
3. Look for changes in symptoms and behavior
Any sudden change, such as a headache going from mild to severe in minutes, means the person needs medical attention. For example, Ghajar says, if a person gets suddenly sleepy in the first 12 hours after a hit, it may mean the parts of the brain responsible for staying awake are experiencing pressure from a bleed.
4. Be especially wary if someone a) has been drinking alcohol, b) is on blood thinners, c) is elderly or d) is a young athlete
It's tough to distinguish brain-injured behavior from drunken behavior, so when in doubt, take the person to the hospital, Ghajar says. Also, blood thinners can turn a mild bleed into a major bleed, so be especially vigilant if the injured person is taking blood thinners such as warfarin.
He also warns people to be extra vigilant when an elderly person hits his or her head. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has information on traumatic brain injury and senior citizens. The CDC also has information on concussions in young athletes.
5. Go to a certified trauma center if you can
The American College of Surgeons has a list of certified trauma facilities; a hospital that's not a trauma center may not have a neurosurgeon on call. You can also look on this map from the American Trauma Society. Find your state, select trauma centers, update the map, and you can find information about trauma centers in your area.
Tuesday, January 6, 2009
How To Avoid Carbon Monoxide Poisoning
What are the symptoms?
The most common symptoms of carbon monoxide poisoning are headache, dizziness, weakness, nausea, vomiting, chest pain and confusion. High levels of carbon monoxide ingestion can cause loss of consciousness and death. Unless suspected, carbon monoxide poisoning can be difficult to diagnose because the symptoms mimic other illnesses. People who are sleeping or intoxicated can die from carbon monoxide poisoning before ever experiencing symptoms.
How does carbon monoxide poisoning work?
Red blood cells pick up carbon monoxide quicker than they pick up oxygen. If there is a lot of carbon monoxide in the air, the body may replace oxygen in blood with carbon monoxide. This blocks oxygen from getting into the body, which can damage tissues and result in death.
Who is at risk from carbon monoxide poisoning?
All people and animals are at risk for poisoning. Certain groups — unborn babies, infants and people with chronic heart disease, anemia or respiratory problems — are more susceptible to its effects. Each year, more than 500 Americans die from unintentional carbon monoxide poisoning, and more than 2,000 commit suicide by intentionally poisoning themselves.
How can I prevent poisoning in my home?
• Have your heating system, water heater and any other gas, oil or coal-burning appliances serviced by a qualified technician every year.
• Do not use portable flameless chemical heaters indoors. Although these heaters don't have a flame, they burn gas and can cause carbon monoxide to build up inside your home, cabin or camper.
• Install a battery-operated carbon monoxide detector in your home and check or replace the battery when you change the time on your clocks each spring and fall.
• Never burn anything in a stove or fireplace that isn’t vented.
• Have your chimney checked or cleaned every year. Chimneys can be blocked by debris. This can cause carbon monoxide to build up inside your home or cabin.
• Never patch a vent pipe with tape, gum or anything else. This kind of patch can make carbon monoxide build up in your home, cabin or camper.
How can I heat my house safely or cook when the power is out? • Never use a gas range or oven for heating. Using a gas range or oven for heating can cause a buildup of carbon monoxide inside your home, cabin or camper.
• Never use a charcoal grill or a barbecue grill indoors. Using a grill indoors will cause a buildup of carbon monoxide inside your home, cabin or camper unless you use it inside a vented fireplace.
• Never burn charcoal indoors. Burning charcoal — red, gray, black or white — gives off carbon monoxide.
• Never use a portable gas camp stove indoors. Using a gas camp stove indoors can cause carbon monoxide to build up inside your home, cabin or camper.
• Never use a generator inside your home, basement, or garage or near a window, door, or vent.
How can I avoid poisoning from my vehicle?
• Have a mechanic check the exhaust system of your car every year. A small leak in your car's exhaust system can lead to a build up of carbon monoxide inside the car.
• Never run a car or truck in the garage with the garage door shut. Carbon monoxide can build up quickly while your car or truck is running in a closed garage. Never run your car or truck inside a garage that is attached to a house and always open the door to any garage to let in fresh air when running a car or truck inside the garage.
• If you drive a vehicle with a tailgate, when you open the tailgate, you also need to open vents or windows to make sure air is moving through your car. If only the tailgate is open carbon monoxide from the exhaust will be pulled into the car.
Source: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
The most common symptoms of carbon monoxide poisoning are headache, dizziness, weakness, nausea, vomiting, chest pain and confusion. High levels of carbon monoxide ingestion can cause loss of consciousness and death. Unless suspected, carbon monoxide poisoning can be difficult to diagnose because the symptoms mimic other illnesses. People who are sleeping or intoxicated can die from carbon monoxide poisoning before ever experiencing symptoms.
How does carbon monoxide poisoning work?
Red blood cells pick up carbon monoxide quicker than they pick up oxygen. If there is a lot of carbon monoxide in the air, the body may replace oxygen in blood with carbon monoxide. This blocks oxygen from getting into the body, which can damage tissues and result in death.
Who is at risk from carbon monoxide poisoning?
All people and animals are at risk for poisoning. Certain groups — unborn babies, infants and people with chronic heart disease, anemia or respiratory problems — are more susceptible to its effects. Each year, more than 500 Americans die from unintentional carbon monoxide poisoning, and more than 2,000 commit suicide by intentionally poisoning themselves.
How can I prevent poisoning in my home?
• Have your heating system, water heater and any other gas, oil or coal-burning appliances serviced by a qualified technician every year.
• Do not use portable flameless chemical heaters indoors. Although these heaters don't have a flame, they burn gas and can cause carbon monoxide to build up inside your home, cabin or camper.
• Install a battery-operated carbon monoxide detector in your home and check or replace the battery when you change the time on your clocks each spring and fall.
• Never burn anything in a stove or fireplace that isn’t vented.
• Have your chimney checked or cleaned every year. Chimneys can be blocked by debris. This can cause carbon monoxide to build up inside your home or cabin.
• Never patch a vent pipe with tape, gum or anything else. This kind of patch can make carbon monoxide build up in your home, cabin or camper.
How can I heat my house safely or cook when the power is out? • Never use a gas range or oven for heating. Using a gas range or oven for heating can cause a buildup of carbon monoxide inside your home, cabin or camper.
• Never use a charcoal grill or a barbecue grill indoors. Using a grill indoors will cause a buildup of carbon monoxide inside your home, cabin or camper unless you use it inside a vented fireplace.
• Never burn charcoal indoors. Burning charcoal — red, gray, black or white — gives off carbon monoxide.
• Never use a portable gas camp stove indoors. Using a gas camp stove indoors can cause carbon monoxide to build up inside your home, cabin or camper.
• Never use a generator inside your home, basement, or garage or near a window, door, or vent.
How can I avoid poisoning from my vehicle?
• Have a mechanic check the exhaust system of your car every year. A small leak in your car's exhaust system can lead to a build up of carbon monoxide inside the car.
• Never run a car or truck in the garage with the garage door shut. Carbon monoxide can build up quickly while your car or truck is running in a closed garage. Never run your car or truck inside a garage that is attached to a house and always open the door to any garage to let in fresh air when running a car or truck inside the garage.
• If you drive a vehicle with a tailgate, when you open the tailgate, you also need to open vents or windows to make sure air is moving through your car. If only the tailgate is open carbon monoxide from the exhaust will be pulled into the car.
Source: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
Tuesday, December 16, 2008
Finally Adam Walsh Can Rest In Peace
Could you imagine if you didn't know where your child was? I can't even imagine that.
In 1981, little Adam Walsh was with his mother in a mall when he just disappeared.
I remember when this happened and felt so sad for the Walsh family at that time. The picture above was all over the news and I can recall that everyone was talking about it and wondering how it could have happened.
Today, the police have finally said that the case is solved - a serial killer took their son and we can only imagine what horror that little boy went through before he was killed and decapitated.
Out of that terrible tragedy many good things happened. Mrs Walsh founded the Center For Missing and Exploited Children and Mr Walsh went on to host America's Most Wanted. Laws were changed. This case contributed to massive advances in police searches for missing youngsters across the country.
Mr Walsh's subsequent activism on his behalf helped put faces on milk cartons, shopping bags and mailbox fliers, started fingerprinting programs and increased security at schools and stores. It spurred the creation of missing persons units at every large police department.
Even President Idiot finally got something right when in 2006 he signed the Adam Walsh Child Protection Act to establish a national sex offender registry and to make it harder for predators to reach children on the Internet.
I've posted this before, but here it is again.
About 100 children a year are abducted and murdered, and the Center for Missing and Exploited Children expects that number to remain about the same for 2009. Seventy-five percent of those children are murdered within three hours, the center says.
Peter Banks, a former Washington, D.C., police officer who is the center's director of training and outreach, says parents should prepare their children by talking to them because an abduction can turn violent. "Most abductions are not really abductions: They are seductions by people whose sole ambition is to use their guile and cunning to victimize helpless children," Banks said.
"The No. 1 weapon to arm a child with is self-esteem. Tell your kids you love them and make them feel proud. If you don't tell them you love them, then someone else will."
Whatever you do, don't try to scare your kids. Dr. Carl Metzger, a Portland-based child psychiatrist, recommends parents try not to instill fear in their children or harp on the topic. Repetitive warnings make the parent seem weak or unable to provide care. "Instilling fear ruins the balance for a young child. It would make them fearful or anxious," Metzger said. "The most effective approach is for parents to give a warning in context, such as if something appears on television or a child brings the subject up. That's the perfect time to give the message."
And what is the message? Metzger says it depends on the age of the child. You can talk to a 9-year-old about how it is unsafe to go with a stranger. But you might want to tell a 5-year-old that they may go only with Mommy or Daddy. Metzger says parents need to be vigilant because society has changed in recent years. "There has been a lessening of the network that keeps children safe, and by that I mean children are often left on their own while their parents work," Metzger said. He recommends that children not veer from their destination, avoid occupied parked cars, and if someone does try to physically overpower them, shout, scream and kick.
Police have found that many abductors will flee if a child reacts in that way. As with most attempted abductions, never let yourself be taken to a second location, do whatever needs to be done to get away. "It's fight or flight. You don't have a lot of options."
Steps to take to keep your kids safe:
-Never leave a child unattended in a parked car, park, playground or store.
-Have a family "code" word to use when someone other than the parents is picking up the child. If the "code" word isn’t give, the child should not go with that person.
-Let children know that they don’t always have to listen to adults. If someone they don’t know tells them to do something, let them know that it’s okay not to listen. They should draw attention to themselves in whatever way is necessary to avoid a predator.
-The number one target of predators is adolescent girls, mostly between the ages of 8 and 15. Most girls in this age group should be warned of the dangers to them. Have a plan of action as to what they should do in any instance of danger.
In 1981, little Adam Walsh was with his mother in a mall when he just disappeared.
I remember when this happened and felt so sad for the Walsh family at that time. The picture above was all over the news and I can recall that everyone was talking about it and wondering how it could have happened.
Today, the police have finally said that the case is solved - a serial killer took their son and we can only imagine what horror that little boy went through before he was killed and decapitated.
Out of that terrible tragedy many good things happened. Mrs Walsh founded the Center For Missing and Exploited Children and Mr Walsh went on to host America's Most Wanted. Laws were changed. This case contributed to massive advances in police searches for missing youngsters across the country.
Mr Walsh's subsequent activism on his behalf helped put faces on milk cartons, shopping bags and mailbox fliers, started fingerprinting programs and increased security at schools and stores. It spurred the creation of missing persons units at every large police department.
Even President Idiot finally got something right when in 2006 he signed the Adam Walsh Child Protection Act to establish a national sex offender registry and to make it harder for predators to reach children on the Internet.
I've posted this before, but here it is again.
About 100 children a year are abducted and murdered, and the Center for Missing and Exploited Children expects that number to remain about the same for 2009. Seventy-five percent of those children are murdered within three hours, the center says.
Peter Banks, a former Washington, D.C., police officer who is the center's director of training and outreach, says parents should prepare their children by talking to them because an abduction can turn violent. "Most abductions are not really abductions: They are seductions by people whose sole ambition is to use their guile and cunning to victimize helpless children," Banks said.
"The No. 1 weapon to arm a child with is self-esteem. Tell your kids you love them and make them feel proud. If you don't tell them you love them, then someone else will."
Whatever you do, don't try to scare your kids. Dr. Carl Metzger, a Portland-based child psychiatrist, recommends parents try not to instill fear in their children or harp on the topic. Repetitive warnings make the parent seem weak or unable to provide care. "Instilling fear ruins the balance for a young child. It would make them fearful or anxious," Metzger said. "The most effective approach is for parents to give a warning in context, such as if something appears on television or a child brings the subject up. That's the perfect time to give the message."
And what is the message? Metzger says it depends on the age of the child. You can talk to a 9-year-old about how it is unsafe to go with a stranger. But you might want to tell a 5-year-old that they may go only with Mommy or Daddy. Metzger says parents need to be vigilant because society has changed in recent years. "There has been a lessening of the network that keeps children safe, and by that I mean children are often left on their own while their parents work," Metzger said. He recommends that children not veer from their destination, avoid occupied parked cars, and if someone does try to physically overpower them, shout, scream and kick.
Police have found that many abductors will flee if a child reacts in that way. As with most attempted abductions, never let yourself be taken to a second location, do whatever needs to be done to get away. "It's fight or flight. You don't have a lot of options."
Steps to take to keep your kids safe:
-Never leave a child unattended in a parked car, park, playground or store.
-Have a family "code" word to use when someone other than the parents is picking up the child. If the "code" word isn’t give, the child should not go with that person.
-Let children know that they don’t always have to listen to adults. If someone they don’t know tells them to do something, let them know that it’s okay not to listen. They should draw attention to themselves in whatever way is necessary to avoid a predator.
-The number one target of predators is adolescent girls, mostly between the ages of 8 and 15. Most girls in this age group should be warned of the dangers to them. Have a plan of action as to what they should do in any instance of danger.
Tuesday, August 19, 2008
Fruit Juices Block Common Drugs
(WebMD) Grapefruit, orange, and apple juices block drugs commonly used to treat infections, allergy, transplant rejection, cancer, and high blood pressure.
In 1991, David G. Bailey, PhD, and colleagues found that grapefruit juice increased blood concentrations of the blood pressure drug Plendil to possibly dangerous levels.
Grapefruit juice, they later learned, slows down a key liver enzyme that clears Plendil - and about 40 other drugs - from the body.
Now Bailey reports that grapefruit, orange, and apple juices decrease the absorption of several important medications:
The allergy drug Allegra, available generically as fexofenadine
The antibiotics ciprofloxacin (Cipro, Proquin), levofloxacin (Levaquin), and itraconazole (Sporanox)
The beta-blocker blood pressure drugs atenolol (Tenormin), celiprolol, and talinolol
The transplant-rejection drug cyclosporine (Gengraf, Neoral)
The cancer chemotherapy etoposide (Toposar, Vepesid)
"This is just the tip of the iceberg. I'm sure we'll find more and more drugs that are affected this way," Bailey says in a news release.
Bailey revealed the new findings in a report to the 236th annual meeting of the American Chemical Society. A substance in grapefruit juice called naringin seems to be the culprit. The compound apparently blocks OATP1A2, a transporter molecule in the gut, which carries some drugs from the small intestine into the blood. Orange juice contains hesperidin, a naringin-like substance. The culprit in apple juice remains unidentified.
"The concern is loss of benefit of medications essential for the treatment of serious medical conditions," Bailey says.
In their studies, Bailey and colleagues had healthy volunteers take fexofenadine with either a glass of grapefruit juice, a glass of water mixed with naringin, or pure water.
Taking the drug with grapefruit juice or the naringin mixture halved the amount of drug that reached the bloodstream. People should take their pills only with water, advises Bailey, a professor of clinical pharmacology at the University of Western Ontario, London, Canada.
He suggests that people taking medications should check with their doctor or pharmacist before taking medications with fruit juices or whole fruits.
By Daniel DeNoon
In 1991, David G. Bailey, PhD, and colleagues found that grapefruit juice increased blood concentrations of the blood pressure drug Plendil to possibly dangerous levels.
Grapefruit juice, they later learned, slows down a key liver enzyme that clears Plendil - and about 40 other drugs - from the body.
Now Bailey reports that grapefruit, orange, and apple juices decrease the absorption of several important medications:
The allergy drug Allegra, available generically as fexofenadine
The antibiotics ciprofloxacin (Cipro, Proquin), levofloxacin (Levaquin), and itraconazole (Sporanox)
The beta-blocker blood pressure drugs atenolol (Tenormin), celiprolol, and talinolol
The transplant-rejection drug cyclosporine (Gengraf, Neoral)
The cancer chemotherapy etoposide (Toposar, Vepesid)
"This is just the tip of the iceberg. I'm sure we'll find more and more drugs that are affected this way," Bailey says in a news release.
Bailey revealed the new findings in a report to the 236th annual meeting of the American Chemical Society. A substance in grapefruit juice called naringin seems to be the culprit. The compound apparently blocks OATP1A2, a transporter molecule in the gut, which carries some drugs from the small intestine into the blood. Orange juice contains hesperidin, a naringin-like substance. The culprit in apple juice remains unidentified.
"The concern is loss of benefit of medications essential for the treatment of serious medical conditions," Bailey says.
In their studies, Bailey and colleagues had healthy volunteers take fexofenadine with either a glass of grapefruit juice, a glass of water mixed with naringin, or pure water.
Taking the drug with grapefruit juice or the naringin mixture halved the amount of drug that reached the bloodstream. People should take their pills only with water, advises Bailey, a professor of clinical pharmacology at the University of Western Ontario, London, Canada.
He suggests that people taking medications should check with their doctor or pharmacist before taking medications with fruit juices or whole fruits.
By Daniel DeNoon
Friday, May 16, 2008
May Is Motorcycle Safety Month
According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), a motorcyclist may be 35 times more likely than a passenger in a car to die in a traffic crash. And often, it’s because a driver did not see the motorcycle.
May is Motorcycle Safety Month, and the Motorcycle Safety Foundation (MSF) wants to remind you always make sure you stay in plain view of other drivers. Taking a few simple precautions could help make sure you stay on top of your bike:
Always keep your headlights on.
Always signal your intent to turn or change lanes.
Always wear the proper clothing and safety gear.
The MSF has created the SEE system—an easy to remember checklist to keep in mind every time you get on your bike. SEARCH, EVALUATE, EXECUTE.
For more information on how you can stay safe on your motorcycle, check out the Motorcycle Safety Foundation’s website. Also, check out the NHTSA’s site for even more motorcycle safety tips.
May is Motorcycle Safety Month, and the Motorcycle Safety Foundation (MSF) wants to remind you always make sure you stay in plain view of other drivers. Taking a few simple precautions could help make sure you stay on top of your bike:
Always keep your headlights on.
Always signal your intent to turn or change lanes.
Always wear the proper clothing and safety gear.
The MSF has created the SEE system—an easy to remember checklist to keep in mind every time you get on your bike. SEARCH, EVALUATE, EXECUTE.
For more information on how you can stay safe on your motorcycle, check out the Motorcycle Safety Foundation’s website. Also, check out the NHTSA’s site for even more motorcycle safety tips.
Friday, April 25, 2008
Burglary Facts
Here are some burglary facts from the FBI which I found online today.
Burglary is the unlawful entry of a structure to commit a felony or a theft. A person can be convicted of burglary even if nothing was actually stolen.
A burglary occurs approximately every 15 seconds in the United States.
On average, a burglary results in a dollar loss of about $1,600.
About 30 percent of all burglaries are classified as "unlawful entry," meaning the burglar was able to gain entry without using force — often through an unlocked door or window.
Nearly 66 percent of all burglaries are residential, and of those, 62 percent occur during the daytime. Most burglaries occur between 9 a.m. and 3 p.m., when no one is likely to be at home.
Renters are more likely to be the victims of property crime than homeowners.
Only 13 percent of reported burglaries are solved, or "cleared," by the police.
Only about 15 percent of property stolen in burglaries is recovered by the police.
Nearly 85 percent of all burglaries occur in large metropolitan areas.
Almost half of the nation's reported burglaries occur in the South: 45 percent, as opposed to the Northeast's 11, the Midwest's 20 and the West's 24.
The highest percentage of burglaries occur during the summer months of July and August, when many people are away from their homes on vacation, or have left windows open for ventilation.
Arrest records reported to the FBI indicate that approximately 70 percent of all burglary arrestees are white and 86 percent are male.
About 30 percent of private homes have security systems. Homes without security systems are two to three times more likely to be broken into.
Thursday, March 20, 2008
Energy Efficiency vs Kidney And Brain Damage
Those great light bulbs that we've all been encouraged to buy - Compact fluorescent light bulbs, long touted by environmentalists as a more efficient and longer-lasting alternative to the incandescent bulbs that have lighted homes for more than a century, are running into resistance from waste industry officials and some environmental scientists, who warn that the bulbs’ poisonous innards pose a bigger threat to health and the environment than previously thought.
All CFLs contain mercury, a neurotoxin that can cause kidney and brain damage.
The amount is tiny — about 5 milligrams, or barely enough to cover the tip of a pen — but that is enough to contaminate 6,000 gallons of water beyond safe drinking levels, Stanford University environmental safety researchers found. Even the latest lamps promoted as “low-mercury” can contaminate more than 1,000 gallons of water beyond safe levels.
There is no disputing that overall, fluorescent bulbs save energy and reduce pollution in general. An average incandescent bulb lasts about 800 to 1,500 hours; a spiral fluorescent bulb can last as long as 10,000 hours. In just more than a year — since the beginning of 2007 — 9 million fluorescent bulbs have been purchased in California, preventing the release of 1.5 billion pounds of carbon dioxide compared with traditional bulbs, according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.
Manufacturers and the EPA say broken CFLs should be handled carefully and recycled to limit dangerous vapors and the spread of mercury dust. But guidelines for how to do that can be difficult to find, as Brandy Bridges of Ellsworth, Maine, discovered.
“It was just a wiggly bulb that I reached up to change,” Bridges said. “When the bulb hit the floor, it shattered.”
When Bridges began calling around to local government agencies to find out what to do, “I was shocked to see how uninformed literally everyone I spoke to was,” she said. “Even our own poison control operator didn’t know what to tell me.”
The state eventually referred her to a private cleanup firm, which quoted a $2,000 estimate to contain the mercury. After Bridges complained publicly about her predicament, state officials changed their recommendation: Simply throw it in the trash, they said. WRONG!
Before cleanup: Vent the room
1. Open a window and leave the room for 15 minutes or more.
2. Shut off the central forced-air heating/air conditioning system, if you have one.
Cleanup steps for hard surfaces
3. Carefully scoop up glass fragments and powder using stiff paper or cardboard and place them in a glass jar with metal lid (such as a canning jar) or in a sealed plastic bag.
4. Use sticky tape, such as duct tape, to pick up any remaining small glass fragments and powder.
5. Wipe the area clean with damp paper towels or disposable wet wipes and place them in the glass jar or plastic bag.
6. Do not use a vacuum or broom to clean up the broken bulb on hard surfaces.
Cleanup steps for carpeting or rug
3. Carefully pick up glass fragments and place them in a glass jar with metal lid (such as a canning jar) or in a sealed plastic bag.
4. Use sticky tape, such as duct tape, to pick up any remaining small glass fragments and powder.
5. If vacuuming is needed after all visible materials are removed, vacuum the area where the bulb was broken.
6. Remove the vacuum bag (or empty and wipe the canister), and put the bag or vacuum debris in a sealed plastic bag.
Disposal of cleanup materials
7. Immediately place all cleanup materials outside the building in a trash container or outdoor protected area for the next normal trash.
8. Wash your hands after disposing of the jars or plastic bags containing cleanup materials.
9. Check with your local or state government about disposal requirements in your specific area.
Some states prohibit such trash disposal and require that broken and unbroken lamps be taken to a recycling center.
Future cleaning of carpeting or rug
10. For at least the next few times you vacuum, shut off the central forced-air heating/air conditioning system and open a window prior to vacuuming.
11. Keep the central heating/air conditioning system shut off and the window open for at least 15 minutes after vacuuming is completed.
Source: U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
My advice: Don't break the bulb in the first place.
All CFLs contain mercury, a neurotoxin that can cause kidney and brain damage.
The amount is tiny — about 5 milligrams, or barely enough to cover the tip of a pen — but that is enough to contaminate 6,000 gallons of water beyond safe drinking levels, Stanford University environmental safety researchers found. Even the latest lamps promoted as “low-mercury” can contaminate more than 1,000 gallons of water beyond safe levels.
There is no disputing that overall, fluorescent bulbs save energy and reduce pollution in general. An average incandescent bulb lasts about 800 to 1,500 hours; a spiral fluorescent bulb can last as long as 10,000 hours. In just more than a year — since the beginning of 2007 — 9 million fluorescent bulbs have been purchased in California, preventing the release of 1.5 billion pounds of carbon dioxide compared with traditional bulbs, according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.
Manufacturers and the EPA say broken CFLs should be handled carefully and recycled to limit dangerous vapors and the spread of mercury dust. But guidelines for how to do that can be difficult to find, as Brandy Bridges of Ellsworth, Maine, discovered.
“It was just a wiggly bulb that I reached up to change,” Bridges said. “When the bulb hit the floor, it shattered.”
When Bridges began calling around to local government agencies to find out what to do, “I was shocked to see how uninformed literally everyone I spoke to was,” she said. “Even our own poison control operator didn’t know what to tell me.”
The state eventually referred her to a private cleanup firm, which quoted a $2,000 estimate to contain the mercury. After Bridges complained publicly about her predicament, state officials changed their recommendation: Simply throw it in the trash, they said. WRONG!
Before cleanup: Vent the room
1. Open a window and leave the room for 15 minutes or more.
2. Shut off the central forced-air heating/air conditioning system, if you have one.
Cleanup steps for hard surfaces
3. Carefully scoop up glass fragments and powder using stiff paper or cardboard and place them in a glass jar with metal lid (such as a canning jar) or in a sealed plastic bag.
4. Use sticky tape, such as duct tape, to pick up any remaining small glass fragments and powder.
5. Wipe the area clean with damp paper towels or disposable wet wipes and place them in the glass jar or plastic bag.
6. Do not use a vacuum or broom to clean up the broken bulb on hard surfaces.
Cleanup steps for carpeting or rug
3. Carefully pick up glass fragments and place them in a glass jar with metal lid (such as a canning jar) or in a sealed plastic bag.
4. Use sticky tape, such as duct tape, to pick up any remaining small glass fragments and powder.
5. If vacuuming is needed after all visible materials are removed, vacuum the area where the bulb was broken.
6. Remove the vacuum bag (or empty and wipe the canister), and put the bag or vacuum debris in a sealed plastic bag.
Disposal of cleanup materials
7. Immediately place all cleanup materials outside the building in a trash container or outdoor protected area for the next normal trash.
8. Wash your hands after disposing of the jars or plastic bags containing cleanup materials.
9. Check with your local or state government about disposal requirements in your specific area.
Some states prohibit such trash disposal and require that broken and unbroken lamps be taken to a recycling center.
Future cleaning of carpeting or rug
10. For at least the next few times you vacuum, shut off the central forced-air heating/air conditioning system and open a window prior to vacuuming.
11. Keep the central heating/air conditioning system shut off and the window open for at least 15 minutes after vacuuming is completed.
Source: U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
My advice: Don't break the bulb in the first place.
Wednesday, March 19, 2008
10 Safest States For Kids
By Karen Cicero for Parents magazine
To give you a quick idea of how much location matters, consider this: Kids are six times more likely to die from a violence-related injury in Alaska than they are in Massachusetts. In California, public playgrounds must meet all federal government safety recommendations, but 34 states offer no standards for where your kids climb, jump and swing. Connecticut and 20 other states have made big improvements in school-bus crossings, while 13, including Nebraska and Arizona, are way behind.
Surprisingly, basic safety devices like booster seats and bike helmets aren’t required in most states — 31 fail to mandate one or both of them. “Having a law is essential, even if you wouldn’t dream of putting your preschooler in the car without a booster seat,” says Alan Korn, director of public policy for Safe Kids Worldwide, an advocacy group in Washington, D.C. “Not only does a law educate parents who might not be as safety-conscious as you, but it also makes it easier for you to handle protests from your kids. When my 7-year-old says he’s too big for a bike helmet, I just remind him that it’s the law. Argument over.”
While no state has a perfect track record, Parents’ investigation turned up a top 10 ranking of those that are at least trying hard. If you live in these states, consider yourself lucky:
1. Connecticut
2. Rhode Island
3. New Jersey
4. New York
5. California
6. Maine
7. Pennsylvania
8. Massachusetts
9. Maryland
10. Oregon
To give you a quick idea of how much location matters, consider this: Kids are six times more likely to die from a violence-related injury in Alaska than they are in Massachusetts. In California, public playgrounds must meet all federal government safety recommendations, but 34 states offer no standards for where your kids climb, jump and swing. Connecticut and 20 other states have made big improvements in school-bus crossings, while 13, including Nebraska and Arizona, are way behind.
Surprisingly, basic safety devices like booster seats and bike helmets aren’t required in most states — 31 fail to mandate one or both of them. “Having a law is essential, even if you wouldn’t dream of putting your preschooler in the car without a booster seat,” says Alan Korn, director of public policy for Safe Kids Worldwide, an advocacy group in Washington, D.C. “Not only does a law educate parents who might not be as safety-conscious as you, but it also makes it easier for you to handle protests from your kids. When my 7-year-old says he’s too big for a bike helmet, I just remind him that it’s the law. Argument over.”
While no state has a perfect track record, Parents’ investigation turned up a top 10 ranking of those that are at least trying hard. If you live in these states, consider yourself lucky:
1. Connecticut
2. Rhode Island
3. New Jersey
4. New York
5. California
6. Maine
7. Pennsylvania
8. Massachusetts
9. Maryland
10. Oregon
Wednesday, March 12, 2008
Safety First
It's getting pretty scary out there for young women and girls. Each day we hear or read about another pretty young college student who is missing or has been killed.
Helping people to stay safe is something I've been doing since the 70's. It has become part of who I am, not just what I did for a living.
I'd like to encourage all - not just young people - to go to the bottom of this page and click on the safety category. You will find my safety blogs where there is some very good information on how to stay safe.
Please don't pass up the opportunity to learn how easy it is to keep yourself and your family safe.
Helping people to stay safe is something I've been doing since the 70's. It has become part of who I am, not just what I did for a living.
I'd like to encourage all - not just young people - to go to the bottom of this page and click on the safety category. You will find my safety blogs where there is some very good information on how to stay safe.
Please don't pass up the opportunity to learn how easy it is to keep yourself and your family safe.
Friday, February 15, 2008
Staying Safe While Being A Good Witness
In just a split second, you could find yourself face to face with an attacker, but would you be able to get away and be able to help police track down the suspect?
Here is some advice that could help you survive a dangerous situation and help you to provide police with information to help track down your attacker.
Always be aware of your surroundings. I cannot stress this enough.
For you moms with small kids or babies, it is especially important for you to know what's going on around you at all times. Pay attention when strapping your child into their seat.
When leaving a store or mall, look into the parking lot before you step away from the building. What type of auto is parked next to your car? Are there other people around? There is safety in numbers!
If there is a van or other large vehicle parked next to your car, don't approach your vehicle from that side. Get in from the other side, even if you have to climb over the console.
Once in your car, lock your doors. I'm always amazed at how many people drive around with their doors unlocked.
Don't be talking on your cell phone when walking. Stop and look around to see what's going on if your phone rings while walking. Let the call go to voice mail, you can always call them back from the safety of your locked car.
If you are approached, do everything and anything to get away or bring attention to yourself. Scream as loud as you can.
Never, ever let yourself be taken to a second location. Odds are you will not return.
Assess the situation, is there an easy way to escape safely? Is the attacker armed?
If the attacker gets into into your car and forces you to drive them somewhere, drive erratically to call attention. Try to drive to a police station.
If they are forcing you to drive to an ATM, this may be a chance for you to escape. They are expecting you to get out and move around. Take off running.
If you have a child with you, comply with the attacker and make sure you let them you will do anything so that they do not hurt the child.
In these split second decision making moments, you’ve got to do anything you can do to make sure you protect you and your family.
Look for physical characteristics, such as height, weight, eye color and race or ethnicity.
If they are armed, try to identify the type of weapon. If it was a gun, was it black or silver?
If a knife was it a switchblade, kitchen knife, dagger?
You may not have much time in a very dangerous situation, but any information about the attacker that you are able to pass on to police could be critical to taking the creep off of the streets.
Thursday, January 10, 2008
Protect Yourself Against Violence or Abuse
When I was on the road in sales, I had registered with America's Most Wanted for their updates, just in case I ever ran across anyone they had listed. I guess it's good that I didn't. I still get the updates and today they sent this, which I think is important to know. Here's the link to a video on how to protect yourself: http://www.amw.com/safety/
Every day, people of all cultures, races and economic background are victims of violence and abuse. These actions can range from physical abuse, to emotional or sexual abuse, and can have a significant impact on family, friends or anyone who is witnesses to the violence. Whether you are involved in a violent relationship or are the victim of a random attack, it’s important for you to know how to protect yourself; how to get out of that situation as quickly as possible. Martial arts expert Jose Fernandez of the YWCA Capital Dojo leads self defense training classes for men and women, and teaches you tips on how to make some quick and smart moves in an emergency situation.
Fernandez suggests first off, enrolling in a self defense class, in order to become accustomed to reacting to violence. Most people immediately freeze when they are attacked, but taking self defense sessions repeatedly will help you be prepared to make split second decisions. Besides self defense class, he recommends a few things for you to think about that can help you defuse a violent situation.
-Try to remain calm and speak in a softer, even tone.
-Keep your hands up, try not to tense up.
-Maintain eye contact and keep them busy with your voice
With a rise in dating violence, he suggests a offers a few tips to protect yourself
-Take your time in getting to know the person better
-Avoid being alone with the person in the beginning, plan your dates in crowded places.
-Get to know their friends, introduce them to your friends.
-If you are alone with the person, avoid alcohol.
Every day, people of all cultures, races and economic background are victims of violence and abuse. These actions can range from physical abuse, to emotional or sexual abuse, and can have a significant impact on family, friends or anyone who is witnesses to the violence. Whether you are involved in a violent relationship or are the victim of a random attack, it’s important for you to know how to protect yourself; how to get out of that situation as quickly as possible. Martial arts expert Jose Fernandez of the YWCA Capital Dojo leads self defense training classes for men and women, and teaches you tips on how to make some quick and smart moves in an emergency situation.
Fernandez suggests first off, enrolling in a self defense class, in order to become accustomed to reacting to violence. Most people immediately freeze when they are attacked, but taking self defense sessions repeatedly will help you be prepared to make split second decisions. Besides self defense class, he recommends a few things for you to think about that can help you defuse a violent situation.
-Try to remain calm and speak in a softer, even tone.
-Keep your hands up, try not to tense up.
-Maintain eye contact and keep them busy with your voice
With a rise in dating violence, he suggests a offers a few tips to protect yourself
-Take your time in getting to know the person better
-Avoid being alone with the person in the beginning, plan your dates in crowded places.
-Get to know their friends, introduce them to your friends.
-If you are alone with the person, avoid alcohol.
Saturday, November 10, 2007
Self CPR
Since many people are alone when they suffer a heart attack, this information may be helpful.
Without help, the person whose heart is beating improperly and who begins to feel faint, has only about 10 seconds left before losing consciousness. However, these victims can help themselves by coughing repeatedly and very vigorously.
A deep breath should be taken before each cough, and the cough must be deep and prolonged, as when producing sputum from deep inside the chest. A breath and a cough must be repeated about very two seconds without let up until help arrives, or until the heart is felt to be beating normally again.
Deep breaths get oxygen into the lungs and coughing movements squeeze the heart and keep the blood circulating. The squeezing pressure on the heart also helps it regain normal rhythm. In this way, heart attack victims can get to a hospital.
Tell as many other people as possible about this, it could save their lives!
Monday, October 1, 2007
Brain Eating Amoeba
PHOENIX (AP) - It sounds like science fiction but it's true: A killer amoeba living in lakes enters the body through the nose and attacks the brain where it feeds until you die.
Even though encounters with the microscopic bug are extraordinarily rare, it's killed six boys and young men this year. The spike in cases has health officials concerned, and they are predicting more cases in the future.
"This is definitely something we need to track," said Michael Beach, a specialist in recreational waterborne illnesses for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
"This is a heat-loving amoeba. As water temperatures go up, it does better," Beach said. "In future decades, as temperatures rise, we'd expect to see more cases."
According to the CDC, the amoeba called Naegleria fowleri (nuh-GLEER-ee-uh FOWL'-erh-eye) killed 23 people in the United States, from 1995 to 2004. This year health officials noticed a spike with six cases - three in Florida, two in Texas and one in Arizona. The CDC knows of only several hundred cases worldwide since its discovery in Australia in the 1960s.
In Arizona, David Evans said nobody knew his son, Aaron, was infected with the amoeba until after the 14-year-old died on Sept. 17. At first, the teen seemed to be suffering from nothing more than a headache.
"We didn't know," Evans said. "And here I am: I come home and I'm burying him."
After doing more tests, doctors said Aaron probably picked up the amoeba a week before while swimming in the balmy shallows of Lake Havasu, a popular man-made lake on the Colorado River between Arizona and California.
Though infections tend to be found in southern states, Naegleria lives almost everywhere in lakes, hot springs, even dirty swimming pools, grazing off algae and bacteria in the sediment.
Beach said people become infected when they wade through shallow water and stir up the bottom. If someone allows water to shoot up the nose - say, by doing a somersault in chest-deep water - the amoeba can latch onto the olfactory nerve.
The amoeba destroys tissue as it makes its way up into the brain, where it continues the damage, "basically feeding on the brain cells," Beach said.
People who are infected tend to complain of a stiff neck, headaches and fevers. In the later stages, they'll show signs of brain damage such as hallucinations and behavioral changes, he said.
Once infected, most people have little chance of survival. Some drugs have stopped the amoeba in lab experiments, but people who have been attacked rarely survive, Beach said.
"Usually, from initial exposure it's fatal within two weeks," he said.
Researchers still have much to learn about Naegleria. They don't know why, for example, children are more likely to be infected, and boys are more often victims than girls.
"Boys tend to have more boisterous activities (in water), but we're not clear," Beach said.
In central Florida, authorities started an amoeba phone hot line advising people to avoid warm, standing water and areas with algae blooms. Texas health officials also have issued warnings.
People "seem to think that everything can be made safe, including any river, any creek, but that's just not the case," said Doug McBride, a spokesman for the Texas Department of State Health Services.
Officials in the town of Lake Havasu City are discussing whether to take action. "Some folks think we should be putting up signs. Some people think we should close the lake," city spokesman Charlie Cassens said.
Beach cautioned that people shouldn't panic about the dangers of the brain-eating bug. Cases are still extremely rare considering the number of people swimming in lakes. The easiest way to prevent infection, Beach said, is to use nose clips when swimming or diving in fresh water.
"You'd have to have water going way up in your nose to begin with" to be infected, he said.
David Evans has tried to learn as much as possible about the amoeba over the past month. But it still doesn't make much sense to him. His family had gone to Lake Havasu countless times. Have people always been in danger? Did city officials know about the amoeba? Can they do anything to kill them off?
Evans lives within eyesight of the lake. Temperatures hover in the triple digits all summer, and like almost everyone else in this desert region, the Evanses look to the lake to cool off.
It was on David Evans' birthday Sept. 8 that he brought Aaron, his other two children, and his parents to Lake Havasu. They ate sandwiches and spent a few hours splashing around.
"For a week, everything was fine," Evans said.
Then Aaron got the headache that wouldn't go away. At the hospital, doctors first suspected meningitis. Aaron was rushed to another hospital in Las Vegas.
"He asked me at one time, 'Can I die from this?'" David Evans said. "We said, 'No, no.'"
On Sept. 17, Aaron stopped breathing as his father held him in his arms.
"He was brain dead," Evans said. Only later did doctors and the CDC determine that the boy had been infected with Naegleria.
"My kids won't ever swim on Lake Havasu again," he said.
Even though encounters with the microscopic bug are extraordinarily rare, it's killed six boys and young men this year. The spike in cases has health officials concerned, and they are predicting more cases in the future.
"This is definitely something we need to track," said Michael Beach, a specialist in recreational waterborne illnesses for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
"This is a heat-loving amoeba. As water temperatures go up, it does better," Beach said. "In future decades, as temperatures rise, we'd expect to see more cases."
According to the CDC, the amoeba called Naegleria fowleri (nuh-GLEER-ee-uh FOWL'-erh-eye) killed 23 people in the United States, from 1995 to 2004. This year health officials noticed a spike with six cases - three in Florida, two in Texas and one in Arizona. The CDC knows of only several hundred cases worldwide since its discovery in Australia in the 1960s.
In Arizona, David Evans said nobody knew his son, Aaron, was infected with the amoeba until after the 14-year-old died on Sept. 17. At first, the teen seemed to be suffering from nothing more than a headache.
"We didn't know," Evans said. "And here I am: I come home and I'm burying him."
After doing more tests, doctors said Aaron probably picked up the amoeba a week before while swimming in the balmy shallows of Lake Havasu, a popular man-made lake on the Colorado River between Arizona and California.
Though infections tend to be found in southern states, Naegleria lives almost everywhere in lakes, hot springs, even dirty swimming pools, grazing off algae and bacteria in the sediment.
Beach said people become infected when they wade through shallow water and stir up the bottom. If someone allows water to shoot up the nose - say, by doing a somersault in chest-deep water - the amoeba can latch onto the olfactory nerve.
The amoeba destroys tissue as it makes its way up into the brain, where it continues the damage, "basically feeding on the brain cells," Beach said.
People who are infected tend to complain of a stiff neck, headaches and fevers. In the later stages, they'll show signs of brain damage such as hallucinations and behavioral changes, he said.
Once infected, most people have little chance of survival. Some drugs have stopped the amoeba in lab experiments, but people who have been attacked rarely survive, Beach said.
"Usually, from initial exposure it's fatal within two weeks," he said.
Researchers still have much to learn about Naegleria. They don't know why, for example, children are more likely to be infected, and boys are more often victims than girls.
"Boys tend to have more boisterous activities (in water), but we're not clear," Beach said.
In central Florida, authorities started an amoeba phone hot line advising people to avoid warm, standing water and areas with algae blooms. Texas health officials also have issued warnings.
People "seem to think that everything can be made safe, including any river, any creek, but that's just not the case," said Doug McBride, a spokesman for the Texas Department of State Health Services.
Officials in the town of Lake Havasu City are discussing whether to take action. "Some folks think we should be putting up signs. Some people think we should close the lake," city spokesman Charlie Cassens said.
Beach cautioned that people shouldn't panic about the dangers of the brain-eating bug. Cases are still extremely rare considering the number of people swimming in lakes. The easiest way to prevent infection, Beach said, is to use nose clips when swimming or diving in fresh water.
"You'd have to have water going way up in your nose to begin with" to be infected, he said.
David Evans has tried to learn as much as possible about the amoeba over the past month. But it still doesn't make much sense to him. His family had gone to Lake Havasu countless times. Have people always been in danger? Did city officials know about the amoeba? Can they do anything to kill them off?
Evans lives within eyesight of the lake. Temperatures hover in the triple digits all summer, and like almost everyone else in this desert region, the Evanses look to the lake to cool off.
It was on David Evans' birthday Sept. 8 that he brought Aaron, his other two children, and his parents to Lake Havasu. They ate sandwiches and spent a few hours splashing around.
"For a week, everything was fine," Evans said.
Then Aaron got the headache that wouldn't go away. At the hospital, doctors first suspected meningitis. Aaron was rushed to another hospital in Las Vegas.
"He asked me at one time, 'Can I die from this?'" David Evans said. "We said, 'No, no.'"
On Sept. 17, Aaron stopped breathing as his father held him in his arms.
"He was brain dead," Evans said. Only later did doctors and the CDC determine that the boy had been infected with Naegleria.
"My kids won't ever swim on Lake Havasu again," he said.
Tuesday, September 25, 2007
Smoke Detectors And Fire Safety
Entry level fire protec tion
Every home should have working smoke alarms on each level, and protecting each sleeping area. The Home Safety Council recommends installing smoke alarms inside bedrooms as well. For the best detection and notification protection, install both ionization and photoelectric type smoke alarms. Some models provide dual coverage. The type will be printed on the box or package.
Kids and Smoke Detectors
Did you know that despite a piercing 70-85 decibel signal, children often sleep through the sound of a home smoke alarm? A quick response is essential in a fire emergency, so if children don't waken to the signal, parents and caregivers must wake them. Interconnected smoke alarms can make a life-saving difference. Interconnected smoke alarms are hard-wired into a home's electrical system and each alarm is connected together so that when one alarm signals, they all signal, no matter where the fire starts.
With interconnected smoke alarms, you'll have early warning of the fire wherever you are, because the smoke alarm in your room will sound at the same time as the alarm in the room with the fire. If your children or someone else in the household isn't aroused by the smoke alarm, you'll be able to waken them, hastening their safe escape.
Danger: Even with interconnected alarms, emerging research has demonstrated that sleeping children may be able to tune out the blaring sound. Make sure your children wake and properly respond when the smoke alarms signal. Empowering children with basic fire escape skills is a very good idea - everyone should know to react immediately to the sound of the alarm and how to get outside quickly. But before assuming children will react appropriately to a late-night fire, parents must learn if their children will be roused immediately or sleep through the smoke alarm. Even those who awaken to the sound of the alarm may be groggy or move with indecision.
Learn if your children will awaken
To find out for certain, the Home Safety Council urges parents to hold regular family fire drills. Children can participate in the drills by helping to draw the fire escape plan. Once kids have mastered fire escape skills, hold a drill when children are sleeping to learn how they will respond to the sound of the smoke alarm (this is of utmost importance.) Push the "test" button on the closest alarm during the drill. If children don't readily waken and demonstrate the ability to move with decision, parents must make a contingency plan for awakening them in family drills and in a fire emergency.
Important: Children aren't the only ones who sleep through smoke alarms. Research shows that teenagers and even adults can tune out the loud sound while they sleep. Additionally, people with hearing impairments may not be able to hear conventional alarms; special smoke alarms with strobes and/or vibration are available for purchase online and through local fire equipment distributors. Make sure everyone in your family is protected by the early warning that smoke alarms provide.
Every home should have working smoke alarms on each level, and protecting each sleeping area. The Home Safety Council recommends installing smoke alarms inside bedrooms as well. For the best detection and notification protection, install both ionization and photoelectric type smoke alarms. Some models provide dual coverage. The type will be printed on the box or package.
Kids and Smoke Detectors
Did you know that despite a piercing 70-85 decibel signal, children often sleep through the sound of a home smoke alarm? A quick response is essential in a fire emergency, so if children don't waken to the signal, parents and caregivers must wake them. Interconnected smoke alarms can make a life-saving difference. Interconnected smoke alarms are hard-wired into a home's electrical system and each alarm is connected together so that when one alarm signals, they all signal, no matter where the fire starts.
With interconnected smoke alarms, you'll have early warning of the fire wherever you are, because the smoke alarm in your room will sound at the same time as the alarm in the room with the fire. If your children or someone else in the household isn't aroused by the smoke alarm, you'll be able to waken them, hastening their safe escape.
Danger: Even with interconnected alarms, emerging research has demonstrated that sleeping children may be able to tune out the blaring sound. Make sure your children wake and properly respond when the smoke alarms signal. Empowering children with basic fire escape skills is a very good idea - everyone should know to react immediately to the sound of the alarm and how to get outside quickly. But before assuming children will react appropriately to a late-night fire, parents must learn if their children will be roused immediately or sleep through the smoke alarm. Even those who awaken to the sound of the alarm may be groggy or move with indecision.
Learn if your children will awaken
To find out for certain, the Home Safety Council urges parents to hold regular family fire drills. Children can participate in the drills by helping to draw the fire escape plan. Once kids have mastered fire escape skills, hold a drill when children are sleeping to learn how they will respond to the sound of the smoke alarm (this is of utmost importance.) Push the "test" button on the closest alarm during the drill. If children don't readily waken and demonstrate the ability to move with decision, parents must make a contingency plan for awakening them in family drills and in a fire emergency.
Important: Children aren't the only ones who sleep through smoke alarms. Research shows that teenagers and even adults can tune out the loud sound while they sleep. Additionally, people with hearing impairments may not be able to hear conventional alarms; special smoke alarms with strobes and/or vibration are available for purchase online and through local fire equipment distributors. Make sure everyone in your family is protected by the early warning that smoke alarms provide.
Install smoke alarms on every level of your home, including the basement. Heat detectors are best for attics where the temperature can be extremely high and near the furnace or boiler.
Make sure there is a smoke detector IN every bedroom. If a fire starts in a bedroom where someone is sleeping and the bedroom door is closed the smoke detector is in the hallway outside will do no good, whatsoever!! Install about 3 feet in from doorway in EACH bedroom.
Choose an installation location that is well away from the path of steam from bathrooms and cooking vapors from the kitchen, which can result in false, or nuisance alarms.
Put new batteries in your smoke alarms twice each year, when springing forward and falling back.
Blocked Lint in the Clothes Dryer
When is the last time you cleaned out your clothes dryer vent hose? You're probably asking, "what and huh?" You should never, ever leave your clothes dryer running when away from the house. Vacuum underneath and behind dryer at least once per year to get rid of any lint.
Clean the vent hose annually. If it's an old white plastic vent hose replace it immediately with a foil or tin one. Available for just a few dollars at Home Depot!
Keep fire extinguishers around the house; kitchen, basement, laundry area, hallway by bedrooms.
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