Have a Healthy Halloween

• Monitor costume accessories. Make sure swords, knives and other accessories are short, soft and flexible.
• Avoid trick-or-treating alone. A trusted adult should accompany smaller children, and older children should travel in groups.
• Remain visible. Trick-or-treating is an evening activity, and it can last until after dark. Fasten reflective tape to costumes and bags to increase visibility for drivers, and use flashlights to see and be seen.
• Be cautious with glow sticks. Glow-in-the-dark sticks and accessories should only be used under adult supervision and should never be cut or broken open.
• Examine treats. Parents should inspect all treats for tampering and/or choking hazards before allowing children to enjoy them.
• Limit treats. Limit the amount of candy and treats your children eat. Too much candy at one time can cause an upset stomach.
• Test and remove makeup. If makeup is going to be used as part of a costume, always test the makeup on a small area of skin first to ensure it does not cause irritation. Remove makeup at bedtime to prevent skin or eye irritation.
• Avoid decorative contact lenses. Decorative contact lenses can cause serious eye injuries.
• Obey traffic rules. Look both ways before crossing the street, and use crosswalks when available. Walk on the sidewalks, when possible; if there aren’t any sidewalks, walk along the far edge of the road facing traffic.
• Ensure costumes and accessories fit properly. Masks, costumes and shoes should fit properly to avoid blocked vision, trips and falls.
• Eat only factory-wrapped treats. Avoid homemade treats made by strangers.
• Carefully choose which homes you visit. Only visit well-lit houses, and enter homes only if accompanied by a trusted adult.
• Ensure costumes are flame-resistant. As a precaution, avoid walking near lit candles or luminaries while in costume.
• Carry a cell phone in case of emergency.Following these simple safety tips will help keep your children safe—without any unplanned scares. St. David’s Round Rock Medical Center wishes everyone a fun and safe Halloween.
• Parents should also supervise children while carving pumpkins. Be sure children use pumpkin carving kits—or knives specifically designed for carving—to avoid injury. Younger children can even use paint, markers or other decorations that do not have sharp edges.
• Have a one destination area, a home with all the kids dressed up having a halloween party meet instead of walking around house to house; or what I heard is a group of people all meet in a parking lot with the kids dressed up with their parents having a halloween meet getting there candy for safety.

CDC recommends the following this Halloween:

Moderate Risk Activities:

“Even though it’s not an official holiday, Halloween is much beloved by children and adults alike. What could be more fun than trick-or-treating, apple bobbing, or costume parties?

To make sure treats are safe for children, follow these simple steps:

• Snacking: Children shouldn’t snack on treats from their goody bags while they’re out trick-or-treating. Give them a light meal or snack before they head out – don’t send them out on an empty stomach. Urge them to wait until they get home and let you inspect their loot before they eat any of it.
• Safe treats: Tell children not to accept – and especially not to eat – anything that isn’t commercially wrapped. Inspect commercially wrapped treats for signs of tampering, such as an unusual appearance or discoloration, tiny pinholes, or tears in wrappers. Throw away anything that looks suspicious.
• Food Allergies: If your child has a food allergy, check the label to ensure the allergen isn’t present. Do not allow the child to eat any home-baked goods he or she may have received.”

U.S. Food and Drug Administration (https://www.fda.gov/food/buy-store-serve-safe-food/halloween-food-safety-tips-parents)

“To help ensure adults and children have a safe holiday, follow these Halloween safety tips:

● Be sure to choose a costume that won’t cause safety hazards; all costumes, wigs and accessories should be fire-resistant
● If children are allowed out after dark, fasten reflective tape to their costumes and bags, or give them glow sticks
● Opt for nontoxic Halloween makeup over masks, which can obscure vision; always test makeup in a small area first to see if any irritation develops
● Remove all makeup before children go to bed to prevent skin and eye irritation”

National Safety Council – NSC (https://www.nsc.org/community-safety/safety-topics/seasonal-safety/autumn-safety/halloween?srsltid=AfmBOoqTlCaJeYjJhU5m32xSXESW8ZnWaGqY1eq8Tee_elCyKDAzgJzR)

“The statistics on Cirrohosis by the CDC:

Number of adults age 18 and older with diagnosed liver disease: 4.5 million

Percent of adults age 18 and older with diagnosed liver disease: 1.8%

Number of deaths: 54,803

Deaths per 100,000 population: 16.4

Cause of death rank: 10”

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention – CDC (https://www.google.com/search?client=firefox-b-1-d&q=statistics+of+cirrhosis)

    HEALTHY LIVER               LIVER DISEASED

The liver is an organ about the size of a football that sits just under your rib cage on the right side of your abdomen. The liver is essential for digesting food and ridding your body of toxic substances.

Liver disease can be inherited (genetic) or caused by a variety of factors that damage the liver, such as viruses and alcohol use. Obesity is also associated with liver damage.

Over time, damage to the liver results in scarring (cirrhosis), which can lead to liver failure, a life-threatening condition.

What is cirrhosis of the liver?

Cirrhosis is a complication of many liver diseases characterized by abnormal structure and function of the liver. The diseases that lead to cirrhosis do so because they injure and kill liver cells, after which the inflammation and repair that is associated with the dying liver cells causes scar tissue to form. The liver cells that do not die multiply in an attempt to replace the cells that have died. This results in clusters of newly-formed liver cells (regenerative nodules) within the scar tissue.

What are the causes of cirrhosis?

There are many causes of cirrhosis including chemicals (such as alcohol, fat, and certain medications), viruses, toxic metals (such as iron and copper that accumulate in the liver as a result of genetic diseases), and autoimmune liver disease in which the body’s immune system attacks the liver.

The liver is an important organ in the body. It performs many critical functions, two of which are producing substances required by the body, for example, clotting proteins that are necessary in order for blood to clot, and removing toxic substances that can be harmful to the body, for example, drugs. The liver also has an important role in regulating the supply of glucose (sugar) and lipids (fat) that the body uses as fuel. In order to perform these critical functions, the liver cells must be working normally, and they must have a close proximity to the blood because the substances that are added or removed by the liver are transported to and from the liver by the blood.

The relationship of the liver to the blood is unique. Unlike most organs in the body, only a small amount of blood is supplied to the liver by arteries. Most of the liver’s supply of blood comes from the intestinal veins as the blood returns to the heart. The main vein that returns blood from the intestines is called the portal vein. As the portal vein passes through the liver, it breaks up into increasingly smaller and smaller veins. The tiniest veins (called sinusoids because of their unique structure) are in close contact with the liver cells. In fact, the liver cells line up along the length of the sinusoids. This close relationship between the liver cells and blood from the portal vein allows the liver cells to remove and add substances to the blood. Once the blood has passed through the sinusoids, it is collected in increasingly larger and larger veins that ultimately form a single vein, the hepatic vein, which returns the blood to the heart.

In cirrhosis, the relationship between blood and liver cells is destroyed. Even though the liver cells that survive or are newly-formed may be able to produce and remove substances from the blood, they do not have the normal, intimate relationship with the blood, and this interferes with the liver cells’ ability to add or remove substances from the blood. In addition, the scarring within the cirrhotic liver obstructs the flow of blood through the liver and to the liver cells. As a result of the obstruction to the flow of blood through the liver, blood “backs-up” in the portal vein, and the pressure in the portal vein increases, a condition called portal hypertension. Because of the obstruction to flow and high pressures in the portal vein, blood in the portal vein seeks other veins in which to return to the heart, veins with lower pressures that bypass the liver. Unfortunately, the liver is unable to add or remove substances from blood that bypasses it. It is a combination of reduced numbers of liver cells, loss of the normal contact between blood passing through the liver and the liver cells, and blood bypassing the liver that leads to many of the manifestations of cirrhosis.

A second reason for the problems caused by cirrhosis is the disturbed relationship between the liver cells and the channels through which bile flows. Bile is a fluid produced by liver cells that has two important functions: to aid in digestion and to remove and eliminate toxic substances from the body. The bile that is produced by liver cells is secreted into very tiny channels that run between the liver cells that line the sinusoids, called canaliculi. The canaliculi empty into small ducts which then join together to form larger and larger ducts. Ultimately, all of the ducts combine into one duct that enters the small intestine. In this way, bile gets to the intestine where it can help with the digestion of food. At the same time, toxic substances contained in the bile enter the intestine and then are eliminated in the stool. In cirrhosis, the canaliculi are abnormal and the relationship between liver cells and canaliculi is destroyed, just like the relationship between the liver cells and blood in the sinusoids. As a result, the liver is not able to eliminate toxic substances normally, and they can accumulate in the body. To a minor extent, digestion in the intestine also is reduced.

“Liver cancer is cancer that begins in the cells of your liver. Your liver is a football-sized organ that sits in the upper right portion of your abdomen, beneath your diaphragm and above your stomach.

Several types of cancer can form in the liver. The most common type of liver cancer is hepato-cellular carcinoma, which begins in the main type of liver cell (hepatocyte).

Cancer that spreads to the liver is more common than cancer that begins in the liver cells. Cancer that begins in another area of the body — such as the colon, lung or breast — and then spreads to the liver is called metastatic cancer rather than liver cancer. This type of cancer is named after the organ in which it began — such as metastatic colon cancer to describe cancer that begins in the colon and spreads to the liver.”

MAYO Clinic (https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/liver-cancer/symptoms-causes/syc-20353659#:~:text=Several%20types%20of%20cancer%20can,hepatoblastoma%2C%20are%20much%20less%20common.)

“Your liver is a powerhouse, performing over 500 life-sustaining functions. This 3-pound organ and is located in the upper-right part of your abdomen.  Can you live without a liver? No. The liver is so crucial to existence that while you can live with only part of a liver, you can’t live without any liver at all. Without a liver:

“October is Healthy Lung  Awareness.  Tips to keeping a healthy lung are the following:

1-Cigarette smoking is the major cause of lung cancer and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), which includes chronic bronchitis and emphysema. Cigarette smoke can narrow the air passages and make breathing more difficult. It causes chronic inflammation, or swelling in the lung, which can lead to chronic bronchitis. Over time cigarette smoke destroys lung tissue and may trigger changes that grow into cancer.

2-Whether you are young or old, slender or large, able-bodied or living with a chronic illness or disability, being physically active can help keep your lungs healthy.

3-Secondhand smoke, chemicals in the home and workplace, mold and radon all can cause or worsen lung disease.”

American Lung Association (https://www.lung.org/lung-health-diseases/wellness/protecting-your-lungs)

“Spina bifida is a type of birth defect affecting the development of the baby’s spine. It occurs when a developing baby’s spine does not develop or close properly, leaving a section of the spinal cord and nerves exposed.

In the first month of pregnancy, a special set of cells form the neural tube. The top of the neural tube forms the baby’s brain and skull, while the rest of the neural tube becomes the baby’s spinal cord and other structures surrounding the spinal cord. Normally, the neural tube completely closes 28 days after conception. In people with spina bifida, though, parts of the neural tube stay open. An open neural tube leaves the brain or spinal cord exposed and at risk for damage, potentially causing physical and intellectual disabilities.”

Radiology Affiliates Imaging-RAI  (https://4rai.com/2022/09/15/october-is-spina-bifida-awareness-month/)

“If longevity runs in your family, you have a better chance of living longer. But genetics is only part of the equation: the lifestyle choices you make play a big role in living longer, staying healthy, and being able to continue doing the things you love.

Longevity simply refers to long life. In the U.S., life expectancy has increased dramatically since 1900, when the average lifespan was 47 years. Today, people born in 2022 can expect to live 77.5 years.

Experts estimate that about 25% of the variation in human life span is determined by genetics. But the rest can be attributed in large part to how we take care of our bodies.

There are simple things you can do to be your healthiest, most active, most productive self while living longer. The keys to perhaps living to age 100 or more are a healthy diet, regular physical activity, and good lifestyle choices.”

Harvard Health Publishing (https://www.health.harvard.edu/staying-healthy/longevity-lifestyle-strategies-for-living-a-healthy-long-life)