What should be in the home medicine cabinet
Taking care of your health is not only about regular visits to the doctor, but also about a properly organized first—aid kit. It must meet the requirements of safety and effectiveness, and not turn into a warehouse of unnecessary medicines. Read the Izvestia article about how to properly approach its formation, what funds really should be at hand, and how to store them correctly.
Home first aid kit — what is it and why is it needed
A first aid kit is a first aid and health monitoring tool. It should be staffed taking into account the recommendations of doctors and the real needs of each specific family, including all its members: adults, children, the elderly or people with chronic diseases.
The carefully thought-out composition allows you to stabilize critical conditions and gives you time before contacting a doctor. In the first—aid kit, you must have wound treatment products, painkillers, antipyretics, rehydration drugs, antispasmodics and antihistamines, and, if necessary, medications prescribed by your doctor.
But in order for the first-aid kit to be useful, it is important to pay attention to its proper organization. The container with medicines should not be accessible to children or animals, and the storage conditions must comply with the manufacturer's recommendations.
What medications should be in your home medicine cabinet?
The contents of a home first aid kit should provide first aid in the most common situations, from minor household injuries to exacerbation of chronic conditions. The first-aid kit is based on several functional groups, each of which is responsible for a specific type of care.
The first and most necessary are medications to reduce fever and relieve pain. They help to cope with fever, headache, toothache and muscle pain, relieve inflammation.
The second is antispasmodics, which relieve sudden spasms of the smooth muscles of internal organs, including the intestines, gallbladder or urinary tract.
The third group is antiallergic drugs. They may be needed for acute reactions to foods, insect bites, contact with allergens, or seasonal hay fever.
The fourth is drugs to eliminate the symptoms of digestive disorders. These include anti-diarrhea agents, sorbents for detoxification, and solutions for restoring the water-salt balance during dehydration.
The fifth group includes medications for colds and symptoms of respiratory infections. It includes remedies for the relief of runny nose, sore throat and sore throat, as well as auxiliary drugs for coughing.
The sixth is sedatives. They are useful in case of sudden anxiety, insomnia, agitation or a stressful situation.
Finally, a separate category includes drugs intended for people with chronic diseases. These are medications that must be taken regularly or used in an emergency. Such drugs are always selected individually by the attending physician and should be updated based on the current state of health.
Wound treatment and dressing products in the home medicine cabinet
A minimum set of antiseptics and dressings is required in a home medicine cabinet for self-help with household injuries.
Hydrogen peroxide, antiseptic solutions for the treatment of skin and mucous membranes, remedies for stopping blood and healing burns help to cope with the primary treatment. There should also be sterile bandages, cotton wool, patches of various sizes and elastic bandages on hand.
Medical devices: what is useful to have on hand
A modern first-aid kit includes not only medicines, but also basic medical devices that allow you to independently monitor your health. The simplest and most familiar is a thermometer. It is necessary for the diagnosis of diseases accompanied by fever, such as colds, flu, inflammatory and infectious processes. It is also used to monitor the condition after vaccinations, operations, or if hypothermia is suspected. The thermometer helps at home to react in a timely manner to a deterioration in well-being, take antipyretics or consult a doctor.
There are different types of thermometers: mercury (accurate, but require care when using and disposing), electronic (fast, safe, with a digital display), infrared (measure the temperature on the forehead or in the ear, suitable for children, especially in situations where contact is difficult).
Another useful device is a blood pressure monitor. It is used for home pressure monitoring in patients with chronic hypertension or hypotension, in the postoperative period, as well as in cases of poor health associated with headache, dizziness, nausea or weakness. Regular blood pressure monitoring is especially important for the elderly, patients with diseases of the heart, blood vessels, kidneys or the endocrine system.
The tonometer allows you to determine with what force the blood presses against the walls of the arteries at the moment of heart contraction (systolic pressure) and during the relaxation phase of the heart (diastolic pressure). Readings are displayed in millimeters of mercury, for example, 120/80 mmHg.
There are two main types of tonometers — mechanical (they require skills and a stethoscope) and electronic (automatic or semi-automatic, convenient in everyday life). Modern models can additionally save measurements, signal pulse failures, and send data to the doctor via mobile applications.
A nebulizer is a compact device for inhalation therapy. It turns the liquid medicine into a fine aerosol that easily penetrates the respiratory tract. This device is especially useful for bronchitis, asthma, acute respiratory viral infections and recovery from pneumonia.
Modern nebulizers work silently and are suitable for use in children and the elderly.
A portable electrocardiograph is one of the most technologically advanced devices in a home medicine cabinet. Its main function is to monitor the heart rate and detect abnormalities in the heart, including arrhythmias, ischemic changes, tachycardia and other disorders. Portable ECG is especially useful for people with chronic cardiovascular diseases, those who have suffered a heart attack, experience periodic chest pain or sudden bouts of weakness.
How to properly organize storage
The first-aid kit must be kept in a clean, dry place, protected from sunlight and high temperatures. It is most convenient to use a plastic container with a tightly closed lid.
It is important that medicines are placed in the original packaging with the instructions preserved — this will help not only to control the expiration date, but also to avoid errors in dosage.
Products that require storage at low temperatures, such as suppositories or protein-based preparations, should be kept in a separate box in the refrigerator. It is also important to keep safety in mind — the first-aid kit should be inaccessible to children and pets.
An audit of the first-aid kit should be carried out at least once every six months. This is the optimal interval to check the expiration dates of all drugs and immediately remove expired products, ensure the integrity of the packages and the availability of all necessary instructions.,
The audit will help to replenish stocks of basic medicines, dressings and first aid supplies in time. And also take into account changes in the composition of the family or the state of health of the household, for example, the appearance of a child, pregnancy, chronic diseases in elderly relatives.
In addition, an unscheduled check should be arranged after moving, repairs, prolonged absence from home, as well as before a vacation or cold season, so as not to face a shortage of the necessary medications in an emergency situation.
Earlier, Izvestia was told what to put in a first-aid kit for a vacation at sea.
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