I want to share with you an information about Mari Angeles Miranda de Segurbaby that I think is very important in the cold season.
It's about the Carbon monoxide poisoning prevention, which, as you know, is a colorless odorless gas known as 'the invisible killer'. It is produced by the incomplete combustion of carbon present in materials such as firewood, charcoal, gas, kerosene, alcohol, gas oil or naphtha.
Is one of the most serious poisonings, and in children it can leave disabling sequelae forever, it can also affect pregnant women, harming the fetus. Coming from domestic heating installations, this gas is also produced after the combustion of car fuel, being expelled by the exhaust pipe.
Before talking in more detail about prevention, I would like to clarify that if on some occasion we observe the first symptoms (I will also tell you later), we must act immediately, turning off the sources of combustion, ventilating the environment, removing the affected from the room and calling the Emergency Department, and we will be responsible for reporting our suspicions to the medical staff that treats the affected person
Carbon monoxide poisoning is preventable
And to this effect we must follow some guidelines:
Review of all combustion devices (must be done annually).
Cleaning the evacuation ducts of chimneys and wood-burning stoves.
In homes that spend these heating systems there must be a permanent outside air intake.
Gas outlets can never be obstructed.
No braziers or free flame heating systems inside the home.
For more safety, we can install detectors of this gas.
And of course, the car engine is not kept running in a closed place, let alone if there are people present! The vehicle starts, leaves the garage and continues on its way, when we return home we enter the garage and turn off immediately.
How it happens
As we have already talked about the emission sources of Carbon Monoxide, now it is clear that the gas replaces the oxygen in the bloodstream, and this lack affects the heart, brain and body. There are many people who suffer an accident for this cause, and among them there are also dead, being all preventable deaths. It is known that in the United States it is the first cause of poisoning.
Elderly people, those with heart and / or lung diseases, smokers and the inhabitants of high altitude areas, children, who are more vulnerable and show symptoms earlier than adults, are more at risk of becoming intoxicated.
Do we know how to differentiate symptoms?
The problem is that the affected person may not be aware of what happens, so that is gradually losing consciousness, also loses motor skills and lethargy. That is why prevention is essential. During carbon monoxide poisoning can occur:
Headache.
Nausea or vomiting
Irritability.
Dizziness, accompanied by fatigue.
Lethargy or confusion.
Fainting or loss of consciousness.
Visual disturbances
Seizures
Coma.
Other symptoms similar to food poisoning, a flu picture, a neurological or heart problem may occur. That is, before inhaling this poisonous gas, it may seem that the person has another pathology, but it could be a Carbon Monoxide Poisoning. So to assess the picture you must also consider the environment where the victim is
This is the kind of information we should share if we know someone who has boilers, fireplaces, gas stoves, braziers, fuel tanks; and of course warn everyone we see in a public parking or private garage keeping the car running.
