THE LAST TIME I cracked open my home's first-aid kit, I had one thumb swaddled in bloody paper towels after I'd accidentally nicked it while chopping onions. Fumbling through the zippered compartments as my thumb throbbed, I discovered nothing but a few yellowed bandages, dried-out antiseptic wipes, some gauze, tape and a pair of scissors like the kind kids use in kindergarten.
Luckily I managed to stem the bleeding with the gauze and went on to cook a decent spaghetti Bolognese. But I'd come to the sober realization that my cheap, neglected first-aid kit would do my family no good in an honest-to-goodness emergency.
"First-aid kits are most commonly used for minor injuries like cuts, but they can also help you in less-common emergency situations, such as heart attacks or life-threatening bleeding," says Nathan Charlton, an emergency physician in Charlottesville, Virginia, who serves on the Scientific Advisory Council for the American Red Cross. That's why our list is so comprehensive. Build yourself a good kit, then keep one at home and one in the car and be sure to take one along if you go camping.
To help you make sure your kits contain all the right things, we spoke to experts in emergency medicine. These are the items they recommend:
Aspirin Two 81-milligram tablets of chewable aspirin can be lifesaving if taken within the first hour of a suspected heart attack. But call a doctor first and await instructions; it's not safe for everyone (for example, those on other blood thinners).
Disposable non-latex gloves When helping another person, put these on first.
Hand sanitizer If you can't wash your hands, use this before treating any wounds. Wash or sanitize hands before putting on gloves.
Bu hikaye Reader's Digest India dergisinin September 2023 sayısından alınmıştır.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber ? Giriş Yap
Bu hikaye Reader's Digest India dergisinin September 2023 sayısından alınmıştır.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Giriş Yap
Why Water Workouts Work
Swimming and other aquatic exercises have special benefits
Surf's Up... Again
A Hawaiian helps victims of a devastating fire in the most Hawaiian way possible
HUMOUR in UNIFORM
I got sloppy with my shaving one morning and nicked my skin.
NEXT STOP: WHO KNOWS?
We wanted to do a once-in-a-lifetime trek in northern Laos. Just getting there became the adventure
Leave the WILD Things Be
Wild animals have been made to serve a variety of human needs, including recreational ones. It’s up to everyday folk to decry the use of animals for entertainment
GOTCHA!
We asked for it: What’s the best prank you ever pulled?
Doing Dad's Bucket List
Laura Carney's father died suddenly, with unfinished business. So she started checking off the items for him
Buried beneath a Mountain
The amazing 17-day-long, multi-agency effort to rescue 41 workers trapped inside the Silkyara-Barkot tunnel
IS EVERYONE ON OZEMPIC?
Everything you need to know about the new diabetes drugs shaping the weight-loss revolution
DO MORE WITH YOUR TECH
You're undoubtedly missing out on cool features that can help make life easier, safer and even more fun