What would you do if at 12 midnight, your little child drinks some household poison like shampoo or sniper thinking its juice? Or you have just gone to toilet for the fourteenth time due to stomach upset and you are feeling like you are about to pass out.

Of course, you will go to the hospital but how sure are you that you or any member of your family will be able make it to the hospital. Before you are able to go to Hospital, do you know that your actions (or inactions) might even determine if you make it to the hospital alive, or if the hospital will be able to save you?

Are you prepared for any eventuality or emergency at the home front? Life-threatening situations could arise in your home as such, requiring that you have something to use to respond to such emergency at home, just in case they arise.

The following are must-have Items at home:

Activated Charcoal-

This has been tagged one of the best poison-absorbing substance known to man (Forget Palm oil). It is sold in pharmacies everywhere and you don’t need a prescription to buy it. This is one substance you could possibly regret not having at home during emergency situation like poisoning. To demonstrate how effective, it is, a professor once swallowed some poison intentionally, along with activated charcoal. The poison was in quantities that could do a lot of damage, but he was not harmed. He swallowed it to demonstrate to his colleagues how effective Activated charcoal is in absorbing poison. The professor’s name is Professor Touery. Hence, it is vital that you always have this substance at home to enable you respond accordingly when the need arise.

ORT Sachets

You don’t want to be caught unawares without this in your home (no pun intended). If someone is inflicted with diarrhea (i.e. stooling frequently, gastro anomaly, etc.) and the person doesn’t hydrate his/herself and maintain electrolyte balance, the person might die. When you hear someone died from diarrhea, it usually isn’t the diarrhea that killed the person but the uncontrolled loss of water and electrolytes in the system. It becomes more dangerous If the person is a child as this one of the known cause of mortality in children because of their largely developing and exposed system. One would have suggested sugar and salt solution as alternative but it can be cumbersome doing the mixing and getting the ratio wrong as such, to get it right and quick result, just go for the cheap and ready-mixed pack available at every pharmacy in all corners of your neighborhood. All that is required is to default the ORT in a litre of water and you are good to go.

Low dose Aspirin (75 mg)

Warning- NEVER EVER GIVE ASPIRIN TO A CHILD BELOW 16 YEARS OF AGE- EVER. I will discuss the dangers in another post.

Now that we have that out of the way, this wonder-drug does erm… wonders. It is different from the aspirin widely used for pain, hence the “low-dose” caveat. It can be used to prevent a blood-clot; it might save your granny if you notice she’s having signs of a stroke probably caused by a blood clot. Daily use of this is said to prevent some cancers and in fact, by some, you should be taking this daily. Please talk to your doctor to know if frequent use of this drug is for you.

Aloe-Vera plant

This thorny plant has so many beneficial uses but the one I am recommending it for is for burns and scalds. If for example you spill hot water on your hands, you can quickly go and cut its leaves, apply the gel sparingly all over the affected area and leave it. What it seemingly does is that when the burns heal, it leaves as little scar as possible and if it is just a minor scald, you might not notice anything when it heals.

Baking Powder

Baking powder is made of sodium bicarbonate a bit different from baking powder. It has so many uses but I will mention just the 2 that pertain to this article. 1. For ulcer. 2. For scorpion stings and bug bites.

Because of the way it interacts with acids by neutralizing it, baking soda is very good for stomach ulcers. Just drink a glass of water with 1-2 teaspoons to relieve symptoms.
To use for scorpion stings, put a paste of baking powder and water over the stung area, be it wasp, bee or scorpion stings. While most scorpion stings are not deadly, some, like the Deathstalker can be fatal. So, try and kill the scorpion and take it with you to hospital for the doctor to see.

Salt has over 14,000 uses
Below are some of the practical application of salt for emergency among a long list of others:

• Alleviate pain from bug bites or stings
• Used for preserving foods, especially meats
• Used in washing food items to remove germs
• Salt melts ice

Contact List for Doctors, Poison Control, Parents, etc

Handy information is always part of safety measure, and one good contact list that’s easily available to you, guests, babysitters, family members is crucial. Maintain a list of essential service provider that you might need in the event of medical emergency as this could save lives and provide need health during emergency situation. Don’t just put your outside emergency contacts on it, however, also include your own personal information including your health insurance information in case you can’t or aren’t there to provide it.

Fire Extinguisher

This is the most important equipment you need to fit any kind of domestic fire at home including kitchen fire. As such, it is important that have the right fire extinguisher at home to be able to respond effectively to domestic fire when they arise.