Health Tips for December 17

Health Tip: Where to Keep a Fire Extinguisher

Smoke detectors aren't the only way to prevent a fire-related disaster at home. You should also have at least one fire extinguisher available, the U.S. National Safety Council says.

An all-purpose extinguisher (one that combats both grease and electrical fires) should always be kept in the kitchen. You should also keep one in the garage, near your furnace, and anywhere else where something combustible could start a fire.

Fire extinguishers, however, won't help if no one in the home knows how to use them. Every able-bodied person in the home should be familiar with how to use fire extinguishers, and where they are kept.

Health Tip: Using a Carbon Monoxide Detector

If you have a carbon monoxide detector in your home, you also need to be prepared with an action plan in case the alarm sounds.

The National Safety Council offers these suggestions if there may be a carbon monoxide leak in your home:

• Quickly confirm that the alarm is coming from a carbon monoxide detector -- not a smoke detector.
• Make sure that everyone in the house is feeling OK, without any symptoms. These may include fatigue, headache, weakness, confusion, disorientation, nausea or dizziness.
• Anyone experiencing symptoms should be immediately taken out of the house to get medical attention.
• If everyone is OK, open up the windows in your home and turn off any boiler, furnace, chimney or appliance that could release carbon monoxide.
• Have a technician inspect all potential sources of carbon monoxide -- including appliances and chimneys that burn fuel -- to make sure they are working properly.