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Savings / Safety Tips for November 2017 from All Safety Products, Inc.

Respirators Save Lives, But Some People Can't Wear Them!

Some jobs require a half- or full-face respirator to mediate against dust, vapors or deadly fumes. Manufacturing settings can often expose workers to inhaled metals, mostly in foundries, or chemicals, even in settings that seem benign.

One of the most famous is 'popcorn lung' (brochiolitis obliterans), seen in plant workers who are exposed to vaporized flavoring chemicals. Construction workers often have to beware of asbestos used as insulation around pipes and floor tiles, especially when demolishing old buildings, according to WebMD.

Spray painters in auto body shops, firefighters, and even farmers (repeatedly exposed to mold-contaminated grain or hay) all must wear respirators to avoid lung problems. Still, not everyone can wear a half- or full-face respirator while working, according to PKSafety.

One common situation is facial hair that can prohibit a tight seal. Big beards or even heavy sideburns can sometimes prevent proper fit since they can interfere with valve function. Even heavy stubble can sometimes do this. Although some bearded men can pass fit tests, men who work around lethal gases or viral and infectious risks might not want to take such a chance.

Contact lenses are usually not a problem with respiratory equipment, but glasses can get in the way, preventing proper sealing. Some medical conditions can worsen by wearing a face mask. The most common condition is asthma. Stamina and anaerobic capacity are required for wearing a respirator.

Weaker breathers may have difficulty pulling air through the filters and cartridges required by respirators. This can be true for people with heart conditions, too. In the worst case scenario here, weak breathers may suddenly pull off the mask to breathe, while still in an environment that requires protection.

Before taking on an operation that requires protective equipment, workers should have a baseline medical exam to see if they can endure the increased heart rate. Increased heat is something not often taken into consideration but can be a serious problem for some.

People with skin conditions such as eczema can have flare-ups from heat generated within the mask. Finally, heat, increased heart rate and a face mask can all combine to induce a feeling of suffocation or claustrophobia which can result in panic attacks.

Healthy Tip For November: The link between sitting and poor health

We drive to work, sit at a desk, drive home and watch television -- that's all sitting time and it's bad for health. According to the American Heart Association, Americans spent about 38 hours per week sitting in 2009 compared to only 26 hours in 1965.

This rise in sedentary behavior, along with a decrease in the amount of time spent performing a moderate-to-vigorous activity, has been linked to several health issues including increased risk of cardiovascular disease, diabetes, obesity, and back pain.

According to Time Magazine, the body needs energy to power individual cells, break down and digest food, and create "activity energy" which can be divided into active exercise and Non-Exercise Activity Thermogenesis (NEAT). The last type, NEAT, includes all of the energy used for required movements throughout the day like walking or even typing at a desk. Sitting for extended periods of time lowers the amount of NEAT energy needed throughout the day which starts to turn off processes that burn calories and turn on the ones that build fat. Inactivity, especially around meals, leads to muscles that aren't soaking up glucose from the food and become more insulin resistant. This resistance causes the body to release more and more insulin which can lead to diabetes over time.

As if problems with weight gain and heart disease weren't enough, the Washington Post also points out that sitting can lead to a whole host of other issues in the body related to pain and overall fitness because of the position of the body. The hips, for instance, remain unextended for long periods of time and can become tight with a limited range of motion along with weakened glutes. This decreased range is a primary reason why the elderly are prone to falling. Similarly, the position can cause poor circulation in many areas of the body such as legs, spinal discs, and the brain.


Stuffing -- by any other name -- still rocks Thanksgiving!

In the north, it's called stuffing. In the south, it's called dressing. In the east, sometimes it's called filling. The word you use means less than the recipe you make and no other dish in the Thanksgiving meal has more family allegiance than stuffing.

The main ingredients are mostly the same: Some kind of bread, onions, celery, broth and spices. But, families often pass down their stuffing recipes for generations. In San Francisco, you might find a sourdough bread base. In Alabama, cornbread. In Louisiana, don't ignore the andouille sausage. On the east coast, it's oysters that rock the dish. And mostly, we find a mix of all those ingredients everywhere.

Here is a typical recipe for oyster dressing or stuffing. The key is finding just the right amount of oysters for your taste.

Traditional oyster stuffing

Ingredients:

8 cups bread crumbs or small pieces of dry bread
1 cup celery
1/2 cup chopped onion
1/2 cup butter or margarine
1 teaspoon sage
1 cup chicken broth
2 eggs
1/2 pint fresh or canned oysters
Salt and pepper to taste

Instructions:

In a saucepan, cook celery and onion in butter or margarine until tender but not brown.
Remove from heat.
Stir in sage and several dashes of salt and pepper.
Place bread crumbs in a bowl and add the onion and celery mixture.
Whisk the eggs into the chicken broth and drizzle the liquid over the bread crumbs.
Drain liquid from the oysters.
Use scissors to snip oysters into smaller bits then thoroughly stir the oysters into the bread mixture. The dressing can be stuffed into the cavity of the chicken or turkey or placed around it in a large baking pan or roaster.
Cook until the bird is done and the top of the dressing in the pan is brown and crisp.
If the bird needs to be cooked longer, periodically baste the dressing with chicken broth or water to keep it from becoming too dry.

About All Safety Products
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