Preparing For Disaster. Diabetic Preparedness Key To Survival

People with diabetes face particular challenges, especially those using insulin. More than 20 million people in America have diabetes, and many others suffer with other chronic health conditions. During this year's hurricane and tornado season, Eli Lilly and Company, one of the world's leading manufacturers of insulin, suggests that individuals with diabetes or any other chronic illness should follow the guidelines below, no matter where you live: Medicine and supplies should be stored in a defined location to be easily gathered if you must quickly evacuate home or work. Keep cool packs in your freezer to keep medicine cool. Compile an easy-to-reach kit including: Medical supplies: syringes, cotton balls, tissues, swabs, blood glucose testing strips, blood glucose meter, lancing device and lancets, urine ketone testing strips, items for your therapy and blood sugar monitoring An empty hard plastic bottle to dispose of syringes and lancets Cooler for insulin Pen and notebook Glasses Copies of prescriptions, insurance cards, medical information and contact list, including caregiver's and physicians' names and phone numbers Physician's orders for your child's care on file at school and in your disaster kit Glucagon emergency kit and fast-acting carbohydrate (glucose tablets, orange juice) Nonperishable food such as granola bars and water First-aid kit, flashlight, whistle, matches, candles, radio with batteries, work gloves Supplies for at least a week Something containing sugar in case you develop low blood sugar. "No one can fully anticipate a natural disaster, but with preparation, people with diabetes can manage their disease," said Dr. Sherry Martin, medical advisor, Eli Lilly and Company. "Taking the time to prepare could make a huge difference in an emergency." If disaster strikes, remember to: Maintain meal plan, keep hydrated. Monitor blood sugar and record numbers. Wear shoes and examine feet often. If a foot wound develops, seek medical attention immediately. If relocated, call your doctors as soon as possible to maintain the continuity of your medical care. Parents of children with diabetes should identify which school staff members will assist children in an emergency. If you are displaced, identify yourself immediately as a person with diabetes so authorities can provide medical care.

The Possible Doomsday Consequences of Antibiotic Resistance

For a period of time in recent history, antibiotics were heralded as being the most effective possible treatment for infectious diseases. Most of those illnesses were caused by bacterial agents, so the use of medications that killed off harmful bacteria was a sensible, practical solution. However, there is no clear indication that anyone within the medical or scientific communities saw the rapid evolution of antibiotic resistance coming. Even if someone did, history certainly doesn't reflect it all that well. Regardless of the slip-up of the past, it is now understood that the typical antibiotic has a limited lifespan now, being rendered nearly useless as soon as the bacterial agent they target has developed resistance to their effects. This was the case with tuberculosis, which was once thought to have been wiped out in the developed world, and is the case with many other bacterial infections.

The problem of dealing with antibiotic resistance is a complex one. Some bacterial agents have developed their resistance only to certain agents – though those agents are the ones that are prescribed as treatment. Other microbes, on the other hand, have developed effective antibiotic resistance to all antimicrobial agents currently available on the market. This situation, some public health officials worry, is bound to cause major problems. A number of experts are pointing out the gradual increase in the number of resistant cases of tuberculosis to be an indication of the possible damage this problem can cause. With tuberculosis being resistant to all the current drugs used against it, treatment for patients with the resistant strain is becoming more and more difficult, and the disease is becoming more and more fatal.

One single illness that has antibiotic resistance does not a major public health problem make. Most authorities in the medical field would not be worried if there wasn't evidence that other bacterial infections are starting to prove as resilient as the common cold. The common cold has long been a problem for medicine, such that being able to develop a cure for it has long been considered impossible. The bacteria at the root of the cold adapts with a rapid pace, becoming resistant to the effects of medication used to treat it the year before. While hardly something that is life-threatening, there is a very strong possibility that other, more dangerous bacterial agents might emerge with the same level of adaptability. Another possible scenario involves multiple bacterial agents developing resistance and reemerging into the public arena. Their infectious nature and antibiotic resistance, plus the relative degree of congestion in the average urban area, nearly guarantees a rapid spread of infection.

If this sounds like a bad plot for a doomsday scenario in a science fiction novel, that's because said scenarios may not really be that far off the mark. Bacterial adaptation against countermeasures being used against them is at a much faster rate than how fast researchers can develop new antibiotic medication. For example, a hospital in Switzerland found that, within a period of three years, the strains of Escherichia coli that they encountered developed resistance to all five known types of antibacterial agents for it. They have also noted that this sudden increase in resistance was linked to the increased use of said antimicrobial agents, which has caused some to believe that the very success and widespread use of antibiotics is the root cause of the problem. The more bacteria are exposed to the medication, the higher the chances that a mutated strain will emerge that is resistant to the effects.

Doomsday Preppers Complete Survival Manual Description NEW PAPERBACK Doomsday Preppers Complete Survival Manual: Expert Tips for Surviving Calamity, Catastrophe, and the End of the World Paperback – October 30, 2012 This custom companion to the blockbuster National Geographic Channel series Doomsday Preppers is filled with how-to illustrations, "Prepper Profiles" of people in the show, and survival tips from preppers themselves. Handy and comprehensive, the manual offers valuable life-saving information to help prepare for the most devastating calamities. Episodes of this highly original show, which debuted in February 2012, explore the lives of otherwise ordinary Americans who are preparing for the end of the world as we know it. Preppers go to extraordinary lengths to plan for any of life's uncertainties, from constructing a home out of shipping containers and stockpiling 50,000 lbs. of food to practicing evacuation drills and hand-to-hand combat. This book is an essential component.

Survival Gear, Water, & Food. Brought to you by prepare wise

Water Storage

When putting together your survival water supply, save precious storage space with these fantastic, stackable water containers and forget the hassle of the bulky 55-gallon drums. Prepper water storage kits include 5-gallon multi-laminate bags, each with a pouring spout for ease of use. Survival prepper water containers come in heavy-duty, stackable boxes and include Aquamira water treatment drops and a filling hose compatible with any faucet. Your Aquarmira-treated water supply is potable for five years. 

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Round out your emergency food supply with survival kits for any situation. Choose from small survival gear kits for auto and office to first aid kits and complete family 72 hour survival kits and bug out bags. 

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