What Are the Types of Foot Fungus?
February 5, 2012 | 
Author When people talk about fungal foot infection, they are usually referring to one of two main types of foot fungus: infection of the skin (athlete’s foot), or infection of the toenails (onychomycosis). Both are very common, but athlete’s foot is generally much easier to get rid of.
Both kinds of foot fungus result from the organism invading and beginning to multiply on the foot. The fungus gets nutrients from keratin, a type of protein that is found in skin cells and nails. As it breaks down keratin, skin becomes flaky and scaly and nails start to crumble and discolor. The same type of fungus, most commonly one called Trichophyton rubrum, can cause both kinds of foot fungal infection, though some other types of and various yeasts normally only invade the nails.
Knowing a few foot fungus facts will help get rid of the infection faster. First, a fungal infection should always be properly diagnosed by a physician: other things can cause flaking skin and deformed nails. Second, all types of foot fungus are normally present in the environment: you don’t need to be exposed to someone with an infection to catch one yourself. Your body’s immune system fights off most kinds of foot fungus on its own, but if you do see signs, you should act promptly before it becomes too advanced.
There are other important foot fungus facts, regarding infections, treatment options, and what to expect with various remedies. There are prescription drugs, over the counter medications, homeopathic preparations and home remedies. Antifungal drugs will work against all types of foot fungus, though your doctor may choose a different treatment for a nail infected with yeast.
On the skin, most kinds of foot fungus clear up quite quickly with a topical treatment (creams, ointments, powders), while fungal nail infections are often difficult to cure because topical treatments don’t reach the growth under the thick nail. Treatment may need to be continued for many months. Knowing these foot fungus facts will keep you from getting discouraged if you don’t see treatment results as quickly as you expected.
Practice a few simple things to help your body fight off all kinds of foot fungus. Fungi like damp warm conditions, so keep your feet clean and make sure you dry them well after bathing. Wear shoes in wet public places like swimming pool decks and showers, but if your feet tend to be sweaty, avoid wearing shoes for extended periods – your feet need a chance to dry. Change and launder your socks regularly and use an antifungal powder in your shoes.
Some types of foot fungus are common in soil, but it’s okay to go barefoot as long as you don’t have cuts or irritated skin that could allow a fungus entry. In fact, it’s good for your feet to get fresh air. Finally, remember your foot fungus facts, keep your nails trimmed, apply first aid promptly to any foot injury, and keep an eye on your skin and nails so that you spot a developing fungal foot infection right away.
What Can You Do With Your Food Storage?
You need to plan your food storage in terms of what you can actually MAKE out of the items. Wheat will do you no good if you don’t have other baking items necessary to make edible food out of it. Using the information from the book Marlene’s Magic with Food Storage as a general guideline, I have compiled a list of different food items you can cook depending on what items you currently have in your food storage. This should be a starting point for anyone when determining which items to begin accumulating or to see what items you should add to really enhance your meal options.
I would suggest getting a 3 month supply of all of these items first, and then moving on to a full year’s worth of food. You don’t want to end up with a year’s supply of wheat and unable to make even a loaf of bread because you don’t have the other ingredients.
Foods You Can Make Using Common Food Storage Items
If You ONLY Have: Water, Wheat, Salt, Shortening or Oil
You Can Make:
Sprouted wheat
Cooked cracked wheat
Cooked whole wheat
Wheat grass
Gluten (a strange bread-type food that has a very high protein content)
Tortillas
Just Add: Powdered Milk, Powdered Eggs, Honey or Sugar, Flour
And You Can Make the Items Above PLUS:
Wheat pudding
German pancakes
Crepes
Pasta
Just Add: Yeast, Baking Powder, Baking Soda
And You Can Make the Items Above PLUS:
Puddings/custards
Pancakes
Some varieties of cookies
Waffles
Muffins/English muffins
Breads
Biscuits
Some varieties of crackers
Just Add: Tomatoes, Powdered Butter and Cheese, Unflavored Gelatin, Canned Milk, Canned Fruits
And You Can Make the Items Above PLUS:
Meatless dinners
Meatless casseroles
Cream sauces
Jello salads
Whipped cream desserts
Baby formula
Just Add: Rice, Legumes, Beef/Chicken Broth, Canned Meats, Dried Potatoes, Dehydrated Vegetables
And You Can Make the Items Above PLUS:
Lots of great chunky soups
Chili
Refried beans
Rice dinners
Rice puddings
Sandwiches
Many different dinners and casseroles
Just Add: Extras such as Oats, Raisins, Nuts, Spices, Juice, Peanut Butter, Cream of Tarter, etc.
And You Can Make the Items Above PLUS:
A wide variety of almost any type of food you would want to cook
Summary
As you can see, with a bit of planning (and a fabulous food storage recipe book on hand), you can be confident that you will be able to create healthy, filling, comforting meals for your family should a true emergency occur. It will also be helpful to start using and rotating through these foods in your every day cooking so that you can find the recipes your family likes, get them used to eating these foods, and ensure that all of your storage retains its maximum freshness.
Preparing for a Natural Disaster, Terrorists Attack or Bird Flu Pandemic
How prepared are you? Will you be like thousands of others and wait until the last minute to stock up on food and water? Do you even have a working flashlight in your home or auto? As we have clearly seen, waiting until it is too late does not work. Grocery stores run out, gas stations run dry and we certainly can’t depend on the government to help.
You need to start planning today, preparing for the unexpected so that you and your family can survive. Official sources always recommend having a 72 hour or 3 day kit. While it certainly helps, it is nowhere near adequate for an extended survival situation. As we have seen a natural disaster can last for more than 3 days. A possible bird flu pandemic may keep you housebound for weeks or months at a time. So how much is enough and what do you need?
You should plan on meeting your family’s daily needs for a minimum of a month, preferably up to 3 months or longer. This can include:
Food–Stock up on the basics. Flour, sugar, non-perishable foods like macaroni products, rice (a 25lb bag of rice is around $6.00 at SAM’s club), dried milk. Canned goods usually are good for a year or two. Start adding to your pantry now by buying a few extra items every time you go to the grocery store. Take advantage of sales, coupons and store brands. Buy foods you can fix easily, don’t need a lot of water or don’t need to be cooked at all. You can also add to your supply long term dehydrated foods that you can supplement your other food stores. They are vacuumed sealed and have a shelf life of 20-30 years. MRE’s ready to eat meals can also expand your food stores. Buy food and supplies in bulk at Sams club or Costco. Rotate your stock so you always have the freshest food available. Also include things like high-energy bars. Don’t forget pet food.
Water–You can store water in large containers, 5-gallon mylar water bags, camping jugs and other containers. You should also own a good water purifier.
Tools–are you equipped to handle minor repairs around your home? Fix your auto? Repair or build needed survival supplies? Tools to turn off natural gas, shovels to dig out, chainsaws to cut up downed trees and other essential rescue tools may be needed.
Energy–there may be interruptions or outages in electrical and other utilities. Do you have an alternative way of heating your home? A way of supplying power to lights and other needed electrical devices? Stocked up on batteries? A portable generator can be used for emergency backup. You will need gas to run the generator. Solar panels are handy for charging batteries. Extra propane can be used for a stove, lights or heat. Have several flashlights on hand. Newer flashlights feature L.E.D. bulbs that burn brighter and last forever. Also look for hand cranked flashlights that don’t need batteries. Include lighting such as oil or propane lanterns.
Medical– a good first aid kit is a must have. Over the counter drugs such as ibuprofen, aspirin, antacids, etc. Also personal medications and other first aid supplies. Don’t forget spare glasses/contacts and contact lens solution. Brush up on your first aid skills.
Household supplies–everything from shampoo and toothpaste to toilet paper, soap, detergent, bleach, disinfectants and everything else you use on a daily basis. Don’t forget hair clippers if you can’t get out to the barber. Have supplies on hand to deal with sanitation and garbage.
Communication–Newer walkie-talkies that have a 10-12 mile range will help you stay in touch with your family in the event your cell phone stops working. Give each member of your family one and tune them all to the same channel. Buy an emergency battery for your cell phone. They are good for about 60 minutes of talk time. Portable shortwave radios will help you keep in touch with the world. A small portable tv will also help keep you informed if the power is out. A hand cranked radio is also a must have.
Camping equipment–stoves, tents, sleeping bags can all come in handy especially if you need to relocate. Pick up camping supplies on sale and used equipment at garage sales.
Bicycles–if you need to get around and there is no gas a bike is the best item to have.
Relocating–if you choose not to stay in your home, then you need a plan on how you will relocate-to another town or remote cabin, etc. You may want to stock your vacation home with supplies and be prepared to “bug out” before travel is restricted.
Figure out how far you need to get away. Think about storing extra gas to provide a full tank and enough for your journey. 3 or 4-5 gallon gas cans, could be enough to get you several hundred miles away. Because of the fire danger it is very important that you store them safely and rotate them on a regular basis. Meaning, if you have 3 filled cans, week one dump that in your gas tank and refill that can. Week 2 dump the second can in your gas tank and refill that can. Week 3 dump can 3 into your gas tank and refill that can. Week 4 start over with can one. Using this system you will always have 15 gallons of fresh gas on hand in addition to gas that is already in your gas tank.
Plan your exit strategy from your city or town. Keep a map in your car with the roads out highlighted. Find all the alternative routes out of your city or town. Stay away from main highways if at all possible. Have copies of the map in other vehicles if other family members need to meet you later. Practice your escape route by driving it at least once.
Store your “bug out” survival supplies in containers that can be quickly loaded into your vehicle. Keep a smaller version in your vehicle at all times.
Start today preparing for the unexpected and if it happens you won’t need to divert your time and energy away from caring for your family, waiting in long lines for essential goods and services or waiting for the government or other aid organizations to come to your rescue.
Do We Know the Date of the End of the World?
Do we really know for certain the date of the end of the world? We can read and study prophecy, and we can add our own interpretation to all that we learn. We can read the writing on the wall… if we choose to pull our heads out of the sand. There are prophecies of the possible end of the world made from different sources, by different people, at different times of history, and from different cultures and civilizations. Are these various prophecies now beginning to converge and point to a certain date for the end of the world or to a time of enormous change?
I urge you to see with your eyes and hear with your ears, and heed the warnings of what others of long-ago say about what may very soon transpire. Instead of the world ending with cataclysm, perhaps our earth will experience a great change. We can look at the signs and trends of what is happening in the world today and make educated guesses, and we can look at what past civilizations and seers have said and prophesied about the date of the end of the world.
The Bible – Book of Revelations
In the Book of Revelations, the Bible tells us of terrible droughts, disease,and plagues occurring in the end times. If you look at our world of today you will see that AIDS, Swine Flu, Bird Flu, Mad Cow disease, diabetes, heart disease, starvation, and a full list of cancers, are prevalent or epidemic. Earthquakes, droughts, tsunamis, tornadoes, hurricanes, oil spills, floods, and volcanoes are usually in our news, but now more of these dire things are happening with more rapidity than in any other time. All of this is occurring daily right before our eyes.
Merlin
The historical Merlin was one of Europe’s greatest oracles. Merlin has been described in ancient texts as being a Celtic shaman, a kind of half-man and half-demon. Merlin’s prophecies were published in 1135 and one of the things he predicted was that “A colony shall be founded by virgins in virgin soil.” Does this Merlin prophecy point to the first American colony being established on land that became the state of Virginia? Merlin’s words can certainly be interpreted to indicate this.
Merlin foresaw a British victory over Napoleon at Waterloo, and the horrors and evil of the holocaust. These events came true. Merlin said that a man on the shore of England will speak instantly to a man on the shore of France using a “speaking stone.” That Merlin prediction sounds a lot like our common cell phones of today, doesn’t it?
More important for our concerns, Merlin also predicted global warming and saw the seas rising, terrorist attacks, and planetary catastrophe. Merlin saw what appears to be a nuclear meltdown disaster in Great Britain with 20,000 dead and the River Themes turning red with blood. Merlin also saw that the “planets will run out of their appointed paths, planets will run riot through the signs.” This prediction sounds incredibly similar to what would occur on our planet if the North and South poles changed their locations and a polar shift takes place, which has been proved by science to have happened before.
What happens on December 21, 2012?
Maybe we do know the date of the end of the world. Prophecies of the past provide us with very interesting information to consider. Both the Mayan calendar and the Chinese I Ching (or Book of Changes) predict that great change will soon occur on planet earth. Amazingly, it’s on this date that the Mayan calendar ends, and the I Ching says that the end of days is on December 21, 2012.
Bird Flu: Why Modern Medicine Won’t Save Us
Very often when people begin to learn about bird flu, they jump to the conclusion that because medicine has advanced by quantum leaps since the 1918-19 influenza pandemic (global epidemic), there is nothing to worry about. They are certainly right about the advance of medicine, which has been extraordinary by any measure. Unfortunately, when it comes to dealing with a bird-flu pandemic, these advances fall short in many areas. To name the most significant:
1. Bird flu is caused by an influenza virus, for which there are only four approved antiviral agents in the U.S. The virus has extensive resistance to two of these medicines already, and resistance might develop in the remaining two once they are used more widely in a pandemic. The two remaining medicines, Tamiflu (oseltamivir) and Relenza (zanamivir), are in extremely short supply and, even with planned increases in their manufacture, will remain in short supply for many years to come. These medicines must be given within 48 hours of the onset of symptoms, which can be difficult to accomplish for a variety of reasons. Even when they are available and given on time, their effectiveness is less than 100 percent. And because bird flu is very different than the usual influenza we are used to, higher doses given for longer periods of time may be necessary for optimal effect.
2. While we have many wonderful antibiotic medicines, these are not effective against bird flu, because antibiotics treat only bacterial infections, not viral infections. Antibiotics can be used to treat bacterial infections that develop after viral infections have damaged the body, allowing bacterial infections to “take over.” This can happen, for example, when viral pneumonia turns into bacterial pneumonia. However, this did not happen in the 1918-19 Spanish flu to any extent, nor in the 2003 SARS pandemic, and it doesn’t appear to be a significant factor in the deaths that have occurred so far from bird flu. Hence all our sophisticated antibiotics will not be of much help with bird flu.
3. The most common cause of death from the 1918-19 influenza pandemic, the SARS pandemic, and from bird flu is acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS). The viruses from these diseases cause severe damage to lungs, which results in ARDS. Numerous treatments have been tried but generally have failed. Patients with ARDS require mechanical ventilatory support, meaning they need to be on a mechanical respirator. These are expensive machines, and the supply in the United States is only slightly above demand during the normal flu season. Simply put, when the bird-flu pandemic strikes, there won’t be enough of these machines, and so people who develop ARDS will not have access to this potentially life-saving treatment.
4. There won’t be enough isolation rooms to place the large numbers of patients with bird flu in, which will result in more people becoming ill through exposure to people with bird flu. Likewise, there won’t be enough of some medical equipment, because of increased demand for some items coupled with decreased supply—because of our reliance on a global supply chain, foreign manufacture, and just-in-time delivery. There won’t be enough personal protective equipment (such as disposable gloves, N95 face masks, gowns, face shields or goggles, head caps, and shoe covers), which will increase exposure and infection.
5. During the coming pandemic, there won’t be enough beds in hospitals for all the sick people with bird flu. Makeshift “hospitals” will have to be established outside of existing hospitals to care for all the ill patients.
6. An effective vaccine has yet to be developed, and the chances that one will be developed before a pandemic emerges are practically nonexistent. Once a vaccine is developed, it will be months into the pandemic, and many people will already have become ill. Because we have no natural immunity to this new virus, we might need two immunization shots to develop sufficient immunity. This makes implementing an immunization program more difficult, and decreases the amount of vaccine available for everyone.
Vaccines, like antiviral medicines, are not 100 percent effective in either preventing infection or minimizing symptoms once infected. A startling new report (a) found only limited benefit from influenza vaccines: “In people over 65, the vaccines ‘are apparently ineffective’ in the prevention of influenza, pneumonia and hospital admissions, although they did reduce deaths from pneumonia a bit, by up to 30 percent.”
According to the Influenza Vaccine Supply (IVS) International Task Force, “Whatever scenario, even the most optimistic, the worldwide [vaccine] production capacity will be clearly insufficient in case of pandemic.”
7. Shortages of nurses and other healthcare personnel will be significant, because of overexposure to people with bird flu—and thus a higher illness and death rate among healthcare workers, and because a high proportion will simply decide not to come to work. A similar situation occurred in New Orleans during Hurricane Katrina when 250 members of the police department (one-sixth of the force) abandoned their jobs during the hurricane and flooding. It also happened in Toronto during the SARS outbreak, when some nurses and other healthcare workers submitted their resignations (although many were persuaded to stay).
The shortage of nurses, which is already a big problem in the United States, was highlighted recently by Keji Fukuda of the influenza branch of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). According to Fukuda, scientists are racing to prevent what could be millions of deaths from a flu pandemic, but what could trip them up is the simple lack of nurses and hospital beds. He said, “No matter how good medical technology is, if we don’t have healthcare workers to care for sick people and hospital beds to put them in, it’s not a good situation.”
And it’s not only the limited numbers of nurses—it’s also a question of whether or not healthcare workers would come to work during a bird-flu pandemic. A recent article (b) reported the disturbing findings of a survey of 6,000 healthcare works in and around New York City:
“One assumption blown away by Hurricane Katrina is that if government does nothing else, at least it protects people’s health and safety.
The Mailman School of Public Health at Columbia University in New York City set out to look at how many healthcare workers said they would show up for work, depending on the type of emergency. There was some good news: 87 percent of 6,000 workers surveyed in 47 facilities in and around New York said they would be able to go to work in the event of a mass casualty incident, and 81 percent for an environmental disaster.
Only 61 percent, however, would show up for a smallpox epidemic, just 48 percent during a SARS epidemic and 57 percent during a ‘radiological event.’
That’s a problem, isn’t it? Less than half of healthcare workers expect to work during a SARS [or bird-flu] epidemic, and less than two-thirds if terrorists set off a so-called dirty bomb in the financial district.
‘Although we might assume that healthcare employees have an obligation to respond to these high-impact events, our findings indicate that personal obligations, as well as concerns for their own safety, play a pivotal role in workers’ willingness to report to work,’ said Kristine Qureshi, a researcher in the epidemiology department at Columbia.”
And so “modern medicine,” no matter how advanced, will clearly have difficulty dealing with a bird-flu pandemic. In a sense, the next pandemic could very well be analogous to the Hurricane Katrina situation, with mass confusion, lack of resources, visible dead bodies, acts of cowardice and acts of heroism, financial disaster, panic, and every emotion possible—nothing like we are used to witnessing in America; shocking.
Partly because of the limitations of both government and healthcare capabilities, individuals need to prepare for the coming bird-flu pandemic themselves. There are four specific areas that must be addressed, as I have written in an earlier article (which can be accessed on our Web site.)
(a) Rosenthal E: 2 Studies Find Flu Treatments Fall Far Short. International Herald Tribune. September 22, 2005. Available at: http://www.nytimes.com/2005/09/22/health/22flu.html?th&emc=th. Accessed on September 23, 2005
(b) Olmsted D: Health wrap: of disasters and diseases. Monsters and Critics News, September 9, 2005. Available at: http://news.monstersandcritics.com/health/article_1047166.php/Health_Wrap_Of_disasters_and_diseases. Accessed on September 15, 2005
Bradford Frank, M.D., M.P.H., M.B.A.
The Frank Group
P.O. Box 138
Lakewood, NY 14750
[http://www.AvoidBirdFlu.com]/>
This is the President, I am Here to Interrupt Yet Another Nice Evening and Invade Your TV
Have you ever been watching a television show and you get this horrible sound followed by; This is a test of the Emergency Broadcast System, this is only a test, in the event of a real emergency you will be notified of important information and so on. Well, guess what? They are busy devising a new system where the President of the United States can break into your TV set and give you information. But why now I ask?
Is the Federal Government worried about some future impending event? Is the Federal Government worried that they will need to shut down communication, the Internet, or that it will be hacked down by a foreign government, military, or rouge group of hackers? Well, that’s an interesting question, and one has to ask why the government wants to put the President front and center into your living room during your favorite TV show?
In fact there was a very interesting piece in Federal Radio News Online the other day titled “FCC: Presidential Emergency Alerts to be Tested – Lisa Fowlkes, Deputy Chief, Public Safety and Homeland Security Bureau, FCC” on February 7, 2011 by Susan Kubota (Senior Internet Editor at Federal News Radio [dot] com.
So, what exactly what is the government going to say to us?
“This is the President, I am Here to Interrupt Yet Another Nice Evening and Invade Your TV, unfortunately, I am not here tonight to ask you for more campaign contributions, I am here to tell you that a Super Volcano, Giant Tsunami, Killer Aliens, Super Storm, Bird Flu Pandemic, Nuclear War Heads, or Y2K Internet Attack is coming to get you, and I am declaring Marshall Law and we are going to take away all your freedoms to protect you!”
Indeed, it seems to me that either the FCC leadership or the Obama Administration has been watching too many Science Fiction, Apocalyptic Doom and Gloom, or Al Gore revisited scary movies lately. Besides the government does not have the power or the ability to protect the American People. FEMA, the Department of Homeland Security, and every other agency is completely incompetent, they can’t protect us, we are much safer and better off protecting ourselves.
After what has transpired in the past, if we were potentially ever to face an Armageddon type event, surely it would be a joke to rely on the government to save us. They can’t and we know it, they know it, and it’s no secret. Please consider all this.
Coast to Coast Am Radio Talk Show Has Class
Are you looking for a less that politically correct talk radio. One in which no subject is off limits? One, which dives into phenomena, challenges the scientists, academic theories and is not afraid to debunk or confirm conspiracy theories? How about a radio show, which discusses weather control, Bird Flu, oil price manipulation, secret military projects, mythology, Earth cycles and even ghosts?
Well, radio listening fans there is such a show on the radio and it is Coast-to-Coast Am with radio legends George Noory and on the weekend Art Bell. Two gentleman un-afraid of the dark willing to go our on a limb and talk about the coming super storms, volcanic SuperPlumes, UFOs, human mind control and ancient civilizations, cultures and customs.
Indeed this radio show is called Coast to Coast by it is really a Seven Seas and five continent endeavor with listeners literally around the globe and it is not uncommon for callers to call in from Singapore, Japan, Australia or Guam. Coast to Coast has 13 million listeners with open minds willing to discuss Gods, Religion, Aliens, Agnostic Beliefs and even friendly witches.
It is a show that makes you think. Some of the shows are quite scary indeed as callers often call in with stories of seeing the light and near death experiences or getting messages from beyond the grave. In fact the Coast to Coast Halloween Special does just that and more as they listen to ghost chasers and real ghost stories tell their tales.
The show often hosts prominent scientists, meteorologists, archeologists, climatologists and more. They have storm chasers, ghost busters, ancient history explorers and future predictors. The have Shamans, psychics, dream interpreters, occult experts and collective consciousness researchers. Not a week goes by with the interview of a famous author in any one of several hundred interesting, fascinating and sometimes horrific subject matters.
All the cool people listen to Coast to Coast Am, ask your friends about, they will tell you. It is even on XM radio on the “Ask” station and with affiliates around the globe, you can find them on your radio dial. But beware, there are subjects that can be quite frightful along with the scientific discovery discussions about every possible subject known to mankind. On Coast to Coast they hear you loud and clear. Think on this and thanks for listening.
eLearning in China – Top 10 Safety Courses
Online training (eLearning) is gaining prominence in all industries in China. While eLearning deployments companies tend to focus on traditional training areas such as management, communication, leadership and finance, safety training is moving online too.
What’s driving this? Companies are realizing the economic and business advantages to online training and want to use the best types of training available for their workforce. When you are talking about preventing injury and safety lives, it’s important to have the best tools available.
Many companies in China have not traditionally invested in safety training for their employees, and this is now changing too. Here’s a list of the top 10 most popular online safety training modules in China today:
1. Fire Safety. Especially after the CCTV fire, companies want to make sure that their employees know how to prevent and respond to fires.
2. Emergency Preparedness. China organizes a lot of big events and has a lot of big buildings. These require meticulous planning to make sure people are prepared if something goes wrong.
3. Food safety. There have been multiple food safety scares in China in the past couple of years, and now food producers and distributors are making sure the public knows they are safe.
4. Personal Protective Equipment. Chinese industrial environments have no shortage of loud noises, falling objects, flying sparks, toxic chemicals, whirling blades and belts, etc, so it’s no surprise there’s a lot of interest in this set of courses.
5. Construction Safety. The crane may not be China’s national bird, but you would be forgiven for thinking so if you saw the skyline in Beijing, Shanghai, or any other large Chinese city. Developers and construction bosses know they have to keep their people safe.
6. First Aid. This is one of the most simple and effective way to save lives, and these skills can easily be reviewed online.
7. Industrial Ergonomics. This course is about preventing and musculoskeletal problems that arise from long-term jobs in tough environments. Used in construction, transportation, mining and similar industries.
8. Preventing Slips, Trips and Falls. Fairly inexpensive and easy, but often ignored in the daily routine of trying to get work done quickly and efficiently.
9. Office Ergonomics. The goal of this learning module is to assist employees in evaluating and modifying their own office work environment to reduce ergonomic risk.
10. Pandemic Influenza. SARS is still fresh in the collective Chinese memory, so employers today are making sure everyone knows how to react to H1N1 or similar threats.
Top Tips for Surviving Through Dangerous Situations
At the time of natural disaster or some dangerous situation, the techniques used by a person to save themselves as well as others are known as Survival Skills. Providing basic necessities like food, shelter, water and habitat for yourself as well as your family are the main criteria. Other than these, first aid, signal for help, and to navigate safely are also some of the important aspects to be taken care of.
For survival preparation, you need to be prepared mentally, physically as well as with equipments and plans. The most critical element in protecting yourself is taking shelter at an appropriate place. The below given tips would help you in surviving through dangerous situations as well as keep you prepared for emergencies:
- Food and portable water is the basic necessity for your family. Store at least 1 gallon of water per person and keep at least 3-4 days supply of water always available.
- Make a list of some food items that do not require cooking and have a long shelf life.
- At the time of any disaster be self reliant and do not depend on any body else to come and help you out. Think and plan for yourself the different ways to come out of these situations.
- Assemble a first aid kit for your home and keep checking it every 3 months so that you can purchase the ones which are missing.
Practice makes a man perfect. After learning the basic survival skills you can practice them so that you and your family can be well prepared to survive in the worst scenario.
The Importance Of A Bird Flu Mask
Though the avian influenza virus is hosted by birds, some particular subtype might affect other mammals too, including humans. In a direct manner the virus is contacted from infected birds, mostly domestic poultry but sometimes wild birds also can infect hunters, tribal people, etc. In an indirect manner the infection can enter the human system via edibles infected with the virus, polluted water, objects, air, food, etc. by the bodily secretions or excretions of infected birds. The flu virus being airborne, the contamination in the air could be reasonably high, in cases of epidemic or pandemic proportions. Infected people carry the flu virus with them wherever they travel and spread it in air and on objects they touch via their nasal secretions and bodily discharges.
Personal Protective Equipment or PPE as they are called are equipments designed for health professionals to use if they are working in contaminated environments. Nose and mouth respirators or ‘Masks’ are the ones most widely used. Bird flu masks are very specific pertaining to the fact that the bird flu virus is microscopic and is not easily filtered out from the environment using conventional filters.
These masks are designed on the guidelines given by National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH). Based on filtering efficiency, the filters used in the masks fall under 3 categories, namely Type 95, Type 99 and Type 100. The proportions of microscopic (0.3 micron wide) particles filtered out by these filters are 95%, 99% and 99.7%, respectively. Also the filters are categorized based on filter efficiency degradation and are hence labeled as, N (non-resistant to oil), R (oil resistant) and P (oil proof). Each individual mask is tested in laboratory settings before being approved for sale. But N95 ones are disposable and cannot be cleaned.
The most common ones are N-95 filtering respirators which have been approved by NIOSH (also called as Filtering Facepieces) as being effective drastically cutting down exposure risks to airborne viruses like SARS or Avian Influenza. The usage of masks is recommended to people working in high contamination situations, like health care workers attending to patients, or field workers involved in destroying the infection sources, etc.
Another set of very powerful, protective masks are Powered Air-Purifying Respirators (PAPRs). They are more effective than N-95 masks in offering better protection. These are used by persons who cannot wear N-95 masks, like people with facial hair. This battery operated mask has a face piece with breathing tube and filters.
Even though any mask is not a guarantee against influenza infection, they dramatically cut down the chances of infection from airborne viruses. It remains to be said however, that the capabilities of the masks degrade over time from usage. Aerosols, if present in the working environments, degrade the filters even more. Hence, bird flu masks should not be used with 100% reliance, but only as one of the preventive tool. More so, there are guidelines that need to be adhered to while (re)using such PPE. It is hence clear that the best defense does not lie in any amount of measures taken but rather in the knowledge with which they are implemented