Well, it’s finally here….Summer. The kids are out of school, the yard needs mowed, and the temperatures are starting to heat up.
It’s time to get ready for all those trips; Trips to the pool, the zoo, camping, the park, company picnics….and so on, and so forth.
You can make these better by preparing now. Put together a summer survival kit with commonly needed items. You can keep a kit in the car and have a portable one that will fit in most beach bags or moderately sized purses. Being ready ahead of time will save grief and aggravation down the road (figuratively and literally).
Keeping hands clean is one of the most important steps we can take to avoid getting sick and spreading germs to others. It is best to wash your hands with soap and clean running water for 20 seconds. However, if soap and clean water are not available, use an alcohol-based product to clean your hands. Alcohol-based hand rubs significantly reduce the number of germs on skin and are fast acting.[1]
When using an alcohol-based hand sanitizer:
- Apply product to the palm of one hand
- Rub hands together
- Rub the product over all surfaces of hands and fingers until hands are dry.
Wet Wipes:
Wet wipes or moist toilettes are small moistened paper towels that can be used to cleanse the hands, refresh the face, or commonly to clean up the diaper area when you are changing a baby. The first types of wet wipes came in small individual packages, and usually were moistened with scented water. The rubbing action of wet wipes did help to get the hands or face a little clean, but many people used them more to refresh than to cleanse.
Use a sunscreen with a Sun Protection Factor (SPF) of 15 or higher. The sun’s UV rays can damage your skin in as little as 15 minutes. Put sunscreen on before you go outside, even on slightly cloudy or cool days. Don’t forget to put a thick layer of sunblock on all parts of exposed skin. Get help for hard-to-reach places like your back. Sunscreen wears off. Put it on again if you stay out in the sun for more than 2 hours, and after you swim or do things that make you sweat.
A common misconception is that the lips on a person’s face do not need protection from the sun. This is untrue, and people definitely need protection for their lips against the sun. Lips can become sunburned and excessive exposure to the sun’s rays has been linked to lip cancer. The best way to provide protection against the sun for our lips to apply a lip balm or lip gloss that contains sunscreen.
The primary purpose of lip balm is to provide an occlusive layer on the lip surface to seal moisture in lips and protect them from external exposure. Dry air, cold temperatures and wind all have a drying effect on skin by drawing moisture away from the body. Lips are particularly vulnerable because the skin is so thin, and thus they are often the first to present signs of dryness. Occlusive materials like waxes and petroleum jelly prevent moisture loss and maintain lip comfort while flavorants, colorants, sunscreens and various medicaments can provide additional, specific benefits.
OraLabs Lip Balm is tested and proven to help in the prevention of dry, chapped and wind burned lips. Order from available in stock items or create your own custom formula (All Naturals & SPF options available).
Eye Drops:
Whether you are a contact wearer or not, keeping eye drops in your kit will cover a number of incidents that are common to summer adventures. Itchy, dry eyes can sneak up on us when we spend a lot of time in the great outdoors. A quick micro-burst can kick up dust, dirt and allergens. The bottles are typically small and compact and won’t take up too much extra room. Eye drops are one of things you’d rather have when you really need them, so plan ahead.
Allergy Medicine:
Any good antihistamine should cover a broad spectrum of common allergy emergencies that pop up. It’s not a bad idea to keep Hall’s cough drops in your kit as well, these provide a nice quick relief while waiting for the allergy medicine to take effect.
Stay prepared, stay protected this Summer. Now get out there and have fun!