By Samuetta Hill Drew
Watching people’s habits has been very interesting over the years as it relates to their health and safety. These two topics are ones you would believe people would pay very close attention to since their sheer existence is directly linked to both. Unfortunately, this is not the case. People seemingly go through life as if they are invincible and neither of these topics will ever adversely impact them personally. Their voices will concede that health and safety are very important, but their actions or lack thereof reflect their general attitude. Many Americans continue to purchase and eat fatty foods and rarely, if ever, exercise. They also rarely practice and/or discuss safety measures with their family relative to situational safety. Since this is the beginning of a new year, I think it’s important for all of us to readjust and strengthen our practices and attitudes about both topics. During the month of January, I will offer some suggestions about how you can begin implementing some needed changes this New Year as it relates to safety. For this week though, I feel it’s important to review some New Year celebration safety measures.
• Practice safety measures when using fireworks especially around children. Where fireworks are fun and exciting they can also cause physical damage to hands, eyes, as well as other parts of the body. They also, unfortunately, have the potential to cause fires, if not used properly.
• Make sure you do not drink and drive if your celebration involves alcohol during the New Year season. This is common especially around the various 4-F gatherings (food, fun, family, and friends). Therefore, have a designated driver before the actual event. We want people of legal age to have fun, but drink responsibly.
• When unsure of an event location, do not text and drive. If you need to contact your host for direction clarity or use your telephone or car navigation system, please pull over in a safe, well-lit location and text your message to your host or enter your destination information.
• Make sure you follow the manufacturer’s instructions for using a deep fryer, if applicable, in the preparation of food items such as fried turkey, fish, chicken,etc. They also have the potential to cause a fire, if not used properly.
To all my readers, I want to wish you an awesome New Year and let’s work together in 2015 to Keep an Eye on Safety!
