The day-to-day decisions that most impact your health aren’t the ones you make in the grocery store, say, deciding between the organic and the regular apples. They’re high impact things like getting vaccines and wearing your seatbelt.
On Twitter, registered nurse Angela Simpson asked people in medical specialties to share what they wish everyone knew. Here are a few:
Wash your hands and get your vaccines
These are no-brainers that came up over and over again. Vaccines can prevent serious diseases and their complications; getting those vaccines on time makes sure that young children are protected as soon as possible. Vaccines do have risks, but those risks are minuscule compared to the benefits.
Hand washing stops the spread of all kinds of diseases, from colds and flu to…well, just about everything.
Wear your seatbelt and your helmet
As a paramedic:
Wear your seatbelt
Wear your seatbelt
Wear your seatbelt
Wear your seatbelt
Wear your seatbelt
Wear your seatbelt
Wear your seatbelt
Wear your seatbelt
Wear your seatbelt
Wear your seatbelt
Pull to the right AND STOP when you see us
Wear your seatbelt https://t.co/HvgEFv0WgY— The_???????????? (@the_rbf) February 22, 2019
Seatbelts reduce crash-related injuries and fatalities by half. Bicycle and motorcycle helmets also drastically reduce injuries and fatalities. The people who work in ambulances and emergency rooms see what happens when you don’t.
Beware of assuming somebody is drunk
Neuro ITU:
1. Don’t assume that a decreased level of consciousness, muddled speech and limb deficits are the result of intoxication, or intoxication alone
2. Wear your damn seatbelt and stick to speed limits
3. One blow is all it takes to end a life and ruin your own. https://t.co/nXXcYmiYyT— Kate (@Apelsinklyfta95) February 26, 2019
A lot of serious conditions, including a stroke, can superficially look like somebody is drunk: slurred speech, trouble moving limbs, not being fully awake and aware of the world. A few other things that can cause symptoms that look like drunkenness: Head injuries, dangerously low blood sugar, the effects of poisoning from various drugs, hypothermia. Basically, all sorts of bad things happening to your brain. If you’re not sure, get emergency help.
Trust your gut when it comes to your kid
1/ As a new parent give yourself some credit- you know more than you think
2/ If you’re given child rearing advice by friends and family and it seems wrong – it likely is
3/ Vaccines cause adultsPaediatrics https://t.co/iS9PxQFllK
— Rick MacDonald MD ????✒️???? (@Kidsdoc1Rick) February 26, 2019
New parents have a lot to worry about, and yeah it’s easy to freak out over something that turns out to be normal. But trust your gut if something seems like it’s really wrong. You know when your kid is in a serious level of pain, when they’re not acting like themselves, when some part of their tiny adorable body looks or feels different than normal.
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