May weekend with no surprises

Safe and pleasant journeySometimes you go for a dream weekend of hundreds of kilometers. When you get there, you are so tired that you don’t feel like doing anything. You recover a few days instead of enjoying your dream trip. Is it worth it? Maybe take a closer trip instead. Surely there will be something worth seeing in your neighborhood, maybe a nature reserve, forests? Join the local PTTK branch and you will surely find out what to visit in the vicinity. However, if you prefer road trips, make them fun. There are ways to keep even the longest journey from being tiring. Travel companions – diabetes, hypertension, varicose veins, motion sickness When you are old, this and that can tease you. But even if you have diabetes, have varicose veins or are on regular medications, such as high blood pressure, you don’t have to give up driving. Just remember a few rules, and even traveling with such a difficult companion will not be a problem. photo: Shutterstock

• What should every diabetic remember? If you have diabetes and need to take insulin, you may have concerns about driving. If you become hypoglycemic, you risk falling asleep at the wheel. Take to heart the commandments of a diabetic on the go, and then diabetes will be your companion calm, almost imperceptible. * First of all: the equipment Do not leave the house without the so-called a diabetic essentials. These include an insulin pen, bracelet or ID card with information about the disease, blood glucose meter, and test strips. * Second: sugar control Before you get in the car, check your blood glucose, take insulin and have breakfast. This entire procedure takes some time, so consider using an insulin analogue with your healthcare professional as it takes effect immediately after the injection. * Third: lifebuoy Take sandwiches and candy bars with you on the road. Sweet juice, candy and even cola can come in handy. Thanks to them, you will avoid hypoglycaemia when for some reason you do not eat a meal in a timely manner. * Fourth: emergency exit Take a break every two hours for a small meal. Observe the times of taking insulin (set an alarm on the cell phone). If, after all, you suddenly feel unwell, move to a safe place. Eat a sandwich or two sugar cubes. Rest, measure your blood sugar (after approx. 20 minutes). Don’t get behind the wheel sooner or your brain won’t be fully functional. photo: Shutterstock

• Take care of your legs – relax and pamper them If you sit still for a long time, with your legs bent down, blood flow through the veins is impeded. It cannot flow freely to the heart, so it returns to the legs and stays in the vessels. Then the blood pressure rises. The veins and valves may be damaged and, as a result, the formation of varicose veins. How to take care of your legs while traveling? * Drink plenty of mineral water. You can also pour fruit tea or diluted juice into the thermos flask. Don’t worry about going to the toilet frequently if you drink a lot. Very good! This is an opportunity to take a break from your journey, not sit still. Give up coffee – it has a diuretic effect and thickens the blood. * Straighten your legs as often as you can. Do not cross them as this puts extra pressure on the veins. Move your toes, make circles with your feet. * Tighten your calf muscles and massage them from ankles to knees when parked. You can use a special gel, e.g. with rutin or horse chestnut or comfrey extract. * Take care of the appropriate travel attire: light, spacious clothing; do not wear socks or knee socks with cuffs. Instead, choose special anti-varicose tights or knee-high socks (you can buy them at a pharmacy). photo: Shutterstock

In motion sickness (aka kinetosis), the body becomes disoriented as a result of discrepancies that appear between the information perceived by the eyes and ears. The labyrinth disorders result in vomiting, nausea, and in severe cases, headache. If you experience this condition while traveling, remember to irrigate regularly, especially in hot weather. Read more in I’m sick again.

• Too high pressure You cannot go on a journey without the right drugs. You should also exercise extreme caution while driving. What to remember? * Do not take new, previously unfamiliar drugs before your trip. However, if you have to – read the leaflet carefully. It may turn out to contain the sentence: “You must not drive while using the preparation.” Then there is no help – you can not get behind the wheel. * Check the medications you take on a daily basis. Before a trip, it is worth consulting a doctor, determining which drugs are safe and in what dosage. * Some antihypertensive medications (older generation, such as Brinerdin, Normatens and Propranolol) may cause weakness or fatigue. Incorrectly used (e.g. too high or too low a dose) can significantly reduce your blood pressure, make you feel sleepy or dizzy. * Certain diuretics for high blood pressure, such as Hydrochlorothiazide, can cause nausea, headache, dizziness, photosensitivity, yellow vision and other visual disturbances. For this reason, it is better not to take them while driving, especially on a long journey. * Potassium sparing drugs such as Tialoride may reduce electrolytes and thus cause drowsiness, anxiety, confusion and muscle cramps. * After taking Diuramide, the following may occur: tinnitus, transient myopia, photosensitivity, drowsiness and confusion. photo: Shutterstock

In Poland, ticks are quite common, they are found in the mountains and at the seaside, as well as in city centers, parks and gardens, they like a humid and hot climate. They measure up to 5 mm. A tick bite is painless, but it can transmit diseases that are dangerous for humans: tick-borne encephalitis and Lyme disease (Lyme disease). When removing the tick, remember not to grease it with butter, not to pour alcohol or oil, and to pull the entire parasite together with your head. For this purpose, let’s use a special tweezer or seek professional help. The bite site should be well decontaminated. See more in Beware of ticks! photo of BE&W

In the nature Finally there is! Dream, longed for picnic. Away from the hustle and bustle of the city, among greenery and flowering meadows. You want to rest, enjoy the sun and the more and more blooming nature, the May rain. To go for walks. You don’t even want to think that not very pleasant surprises await you in this wonderful time in the bosom of nature. • Sneezing like a cannon Even if you’ve never had an allergy before, you may find yourself suffering from hay fever this year, an overreaction of your immune system to pollen in the air. How to distinguish it from an infection? * Appears suddenly, most often after a walk in a meadow or in a park. With a cold, the symptoms increase gradually. * It passes when it is raining and cooling down, when less pollen is in the air. A runny nose resulting from a viral infection wears off slowly. * Hay fever is characterized by sneezing bouts (several or several times each) and heavy, watery discharge. With a cold, the discharge is watery at first, but then thickens. * Hay fever differs from colds also in that allergic ailments are often accompanied by conjunctivitis. Pollinosis most often attacks us in spring, because at this time of the year there are the most allergenic substances, i.e. pollen, around us. Symptoms of hay fever will be alleviated by over-the-counter antihistamines (antiallergic drugs), xylometazoline nasal sprays (shrink the mucosa, inhibiting rhinitis) and sea water – they flush the pollen from the mucous membranes. Modern antihistamines are taken only once a day. If symptoms persist after 7 days, contact your doctor who may recommend stronger measures (e.g. steroids). photo: Shutterstock

When the sun is shining, it’s hard not to be tempted to expose your body to its rays. It is good if a slight tan is left on the skin after taking such a sunbath. It is even worse if itching, rash, blisters and lumps appear after a few hours or even days. The skin may be swollen and peel. This is called multiforme light rashes, also known as sun allergy. They usually happen in spring and early summer, when the skin is not yet used to the sun. It may take the form of a phototoxic reaction (it consists in the fact that a substance – e.g. drugs, cosmetics, herbs, vegetables – increases the skin’s sensitivity to the sun) or photoallergic (its formation is affected by the immune system, allergy symptoms appear only after the next contact with the sun). If you notice numerous itchy, small spots or severe redness on your skin after a walk, it means that you may have so-called allergy to the sun. What to do then? You need to protect yourself from the sun and refrain from sunbathing. Do not underestimate these ailments and, after returning from the picnic, be sure to go to the doctor. Only a dermatologist can tell if the changes in the skin are definitely caused by photoallergy. He will recommend appropriate treatment and medications. This is very important because an undiagnosed disease can cause further attacks, usually getting stronger. To reduce the risk of light rash, take action before you go to the May weekend: * slowly adjust your skin to the sun, starting in early spring. Always use preparations that protect against UV rays (suitable for the complexion), with mineral filters (chemical filters can cause allergy). Lubricate not only exposed parts, but the entire body. Clothes do not protect against UV rays, * if you leave the house on sunny days, do not use perfumed deodorants, lotions, toilet water, perfumes. Choose products intended for babies or allergy sufferers, * always read the leaflets attached to medicines and cosmetics. Pay attention to whether they contain ingredients that can cause photoallergic or phototoxic reactions. photo: Shutterstock

Cystitis is most often caused by bacterial infections. It manifests itself as a painful and frequent urge to urinate, accompanied by passing a small amount of urine. The symptoms may be accompanied by fever. The diagnosis of inflammation is based on the diagnosis of the symptoms described and the detection of inflammatory changes in the urine with significant bacteriuria. It is very important to effectively eliminate inflammation, preventing it from becoming chronic. Photo Shutterstock

Home doctor in May Injury, too intense sunbathing, slight poisoning? It’s not a problem! Ailments will disappear thanks to tried and tested home remedies. • Wounds and minor cuts First of all, the most important thing is to carefully clean the skin around the wound (but not the wound itself – the debris will be removed from it along with the blood). Use bottled water or oxygenated water (e.g. in gel). Do not use alcohol or cover the wound with cotton wool. If you want to protect the wound site from injuries and dirt, it is better to use a handy spray dressing. You can also use the healing power of plants. Rinse the plantain leaf thoroughly, crush it and put it on the wounded area. The flesh of aloe works in the same way. The leaf must be cut lengthwise and applied to the wound. Natural dressing can be fixed with a bandage. • Poisoning They are accompanied by ailments such as vomiting, headaches and fever. Inhibiting diarrhea and vomiting in poisoning is not beneficial (poisoning may be caused by salmonella, staphylococcus or other bacteria). Ailments are aimed at removing harmful microbes from the body. Try to drink as much as possible, preferably mineral water with a teaspoon of salt or orange juice mixed with apple juice and lightly salted. Drink fluids slowly with a teaspoon so as not to provoke vomiting. When the ailments diminish, you can prepare a drink of blueberries drenched in boiling water or a carrot soup. Dice two large carrots or grate them on a large-mesh grater. Pour a little water over it and stew, covered. Add a teaspoon of butter, salt and then blend. You can also add a teaspoon of rice gruel or semolina if the soup is too thin. • Burns It can burn both the heat from the fire, grill and sun rays. A first-degree burn is manifested by severe reddening of the skin, pain, burning. Relief will be brought primarily by cooling the skin with cool water for at least 15 minutes. You can also apply a compress of chilled yogurt or curdled milk to the burned area. These products contain calcium to help reduce inflammation caused by burns. A compress made of grated and chilled raw potatoes works in a similar way. photo: Shutterstock