What does summer say to you? For many people, summer means sunlight, warm temperatures, pool visits, and of course, picnics. “Nothing’s better than a picnic,” as actress Zooey Deschanel aptly summarizes.
While picnics might be a lot of fun for both families and friends, there is something you should consider: they can be dangerous too. For some people, memories of a picnic include an urgent care facility. While most picnics will get you by risk-free, food poisoning lurks, and about 12 million Americans experience illness as the result of eating bad food each summer. Urgent care centers often end up treating these bad but not life-threatening issues every June, July and August.
How can you keep your picnic safe for everyone? Here are three important tips.
1. Don’t Get Sick at this Picnic!
The last thing you want to do is cause everyone to contract salmonella thanks to your chicken-egg-salad sandwich. How can you keep your picnic food safe?
- Always rinse produce — when apples go straight from the grocery store to your mouth, they could contain bacteria such as e.coli on the surface thanks to cross-contamination. Clean rind fruit like oranges too.
- Keep a cooler with bags of sealed ice for any food that can spoil, and keep all food in separate containers. Make sure perishable food stays out of the danger zone of 40 F and 140 F — in this temperature zone, bacteria proliferate rapidly.
- Foods like seafood, ground beef, dairy products and chicken are especially susceptible to going bad. If possible, eat these foods first. Don’t pick on them throughout the day — if they aren’t eaten within an hour of serving, throw them out.
If you suspect someone at your picnic has contracted salmonella, campylobacter or listeria, it’s important to visit an urgent care facility.
2. Dangers in the Grass
Kids love to run around with the grass under their toes, but at a picnic site, this isn’t a good idea. More likely than not, there is broken glass or rusty nails on the premises presenting a hazardous danger. An urgent care for kids can treat the cuts these cause, but it’s best to avoid the stitches and tetanus shot if you can help it.
3. Going Fishing? Don’t End Up at the Urgent Care Nearby
There are many activities you might partake in after your picnic, and one popular activity is fishing. Be careful — one urgent care in North Carolina has a whole display devoted to fish hooks they’ve pulled out of fisherman. Cast with care this summer, and it’s a good idea to carry a portable first aid kit!
Would you visit an urgent care facility if something happened during your picnic? Let us know in the comments. More like this blog.
