Snake Bite- What To Do Or Not To Do

Treatment: First Aid

If you’ve been bitten by a snake, get medical help right away. To help someone with a snakebite:

• Take off all jewelry and tight clothing to avoid problems with swelling.
• Keep the area of the bite below the heart to keep venom from spreading.
• Keep the person as still as possible to keep venom from spreading.
• Cover the bite loosely with a clean, dry bandage.
• Help the person stay calm to prevent shock.

What Not to Do

• Don’t try to pick up or kill the snake. Even dead snakes have been known to bite.
• Don’t tightly wrap the bite area. Use only a loose bandage.
• Don’t cut across the area of the bite or try to suck the venom out.
• Don’t drink alcohol or anything with caffeine. They make your body take in the venom faster.
• Don’t use any ointments, chemicals, heat, cold, or ice.
• Don’t take aspirin -- it can make bleeding worse.

Treatment: Antivenom

This is the only way to treat venomous snakebites. It’s best to get antivenom within 4 hours of the bite, but it can still help if you get it within 24 hours. You get it through an IV -- the medicine goes into a vein through a needle. It drips in slowly to make sure you don’t have a reaction. 

Which Are Most Dangerous?

Rattlesnakes are the kind most likely to bite you in the North America., and almost all the deaths reported are from them. There are a lot of rattlesnakes, and they have a strong venom. The eastern diamondback rattlesnake's venom is the most toxic. Copperheads cause the second most bites and have a weak venom. Cottonmouths are next as far as number of bites, and they have a medium-strong venom. Coral snake bites are rare, but their venom is deadly.

Pit Vipers

Rattlesnakes, copperheads, and cottonmouths are in this family. They have:

• A pit between the eye and nose on each side of the head
• Long, hollow fangs that fold back into their mouths
• Narrow, oval-shaped pupils in their eyes, like cats
• Triangle-shaped heads

• Bite Symptoms

  These depend on your age and body size, as well as the type of snake, where you got bit, how many bites there were, and how much venom went in. Signs of pit viper bites include:
  
• Fang puncture marks -- typically two very clear marks, maybe along with scratches or marks from smaller teeth
• Bruising
• Serious pain
• Oozing from the bite mark
• Swelling within 5 minutes
• Throwing up
• Weakness

• Pit Viper Venom

  This isn’t deadly right away unless it happens to go directly into a vein. But it will start to break down tissue and blood vessels, and that can lead to fluid buildup, bleeding inside your body, and serious problems like kidney failure. 
  
  Rattlesnakes

  There are many different kinds of these across the mountains, prairies, deserts, and beaches of the U.S. They’re also found in Mexico and a few pockets of Canada. They can have different  colors and markings, which can include ovals, diamonds, or rings. Their most obvious feature is the rattle sound they make by shaking their tail -- a warning to other creatures to stay away.
  
  Cottonmouths
  Also called water moccasins, these snakes live in and around ponds, marshes, rivers, and other waterways in the southeastern U.S. They’re dark in color, from dark tan to almost totally black, and they have dark bands that may be hard to see. Their mouths have a white, cottony lining, which is how they got their name.

• Coral Snake Bite Symptoms

  These bites may not leave much of a mark or cause any swelling, and you may not feel any pain. You might not have any symptoms for many hours. When they do show up, they can include:
  
• Anxiety
• Blurred or double vision
• General feeling of sickness
• A lot more saliva than usual
• Nausea, throwing up, and stomach pain
• Sleepiness
• Slurred speech
• Sweating 
• Coral Snake Venom Venom from coral snakes attacks tissue in your nervous system. Your muscles may get weak, and eventually you may not be able to move them. It can also paralyze the muscles that control your heart and lungs. If it’s not treated in time, one of these bites can be deadly.
  
  Why Snakes Bite
  Usually, they only attack when it’s dinnertime or when they need to defend themselves. They’re typically more interested in getting away from people than attacking them. The danger is when the snake is startled or threatened. Venomous snakes can control how much venom they give you. Sometimes, they bite but don’t put out any venom at all.
  

• How to Prevent Snakebites

  You can do things to try to avoid them:
  
• Wear shoes outside.
• Don’t camp near swamps, streams, or other places snakes live.
• Don’t stick your hands into places you can’t see, like in between rocks.
• If you see a snake, slowly back away.
• Keep the grass around your house cut low.
• Never try to catch or pick up a snake.
• Keep piles of wood, rocks, or other debris away from your house -- snakes, and the animals they eat, can hide there.    
  

  THIS IS ONLY FOR INFORMATION, ALWAYS CONSULT YOU PHYSICIAN BEFORE HAVING ANY PARTICULAR FOOD/ MEDICATION/EXERCISE/OTHER REMEDIES.                                                                                                                                                                                             PS- THOSE INTERESTED IN RECIPES ARE FREE TO  VIEW MY BLOG-                                                                                           https://gseasyrecipes.blogspot.com/  
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Why do Zebras have stripes? Scientists claim to have the answer

Biologists believe they have unravelled the evolutionary mystery of how the zebra got its stripes claiming the markings protect them from biting flies.

Wearing striped clothing could help protect holidaymakers from mosquito bites, scientists have found after solving the mystery of why zebras are black and white.

It is a question which has plagued biologists for centuries but now a team from the University of California, Davis, believe zebras’ unusual monochrome markings evolved in order to repel biting insects, such as horseflies and tsetse flies, which tend to avoid striped surfaces.

And the findings could help humans cut their risk of being bitten by donning stripy T-shirts, although scientists cautioned that the type of striped surface and material used may alter its effectiveness.

“A T-shirt may help somewhat but it might not be the whole story. Certainly if you are going to buy a T-shirt make sure the stripes are thin,” Tim Caro, lead author and UC Davis professor of wildlife biology said.

“Don’t buy a striped jumper too quickly. Black and white striped surfaces reflect different sorts of visible light but they also reflect different sorts of polarised light which we can’t see but flies can.

“The extent of polarised light reflected also depends on the nature of the surface – think of gloss and matte paint – and hairs probably reflect polarised light in different ways.

“So it may be that the different hairs of the zebra’s pelt are important in preventing flies from landing on them.”

Varying explanations for zebra stripes, which have been proposed since Alfred Russel Wallace and Charles Darwin debated the problem 120 years ago, have included a form of camouflage, assisting escape from predators by visually confusing them, heat management or some kind of social function.

The study, published in the journal Nature Communications, mapped the geographic spread of seven different species of zebras, horses and asses and their subspecies and recorded the thickness, location and intensity of their stripes on several parts of the body.

It compared the animals’ geographic reach with other variables such as woodland habitats, the range of predators, temperatures and the numbers of ectoparasites such as tsetse flies.

After examining where the striped animals and variables overlapped the scientists ruled out all but one of the existing explanations, that of avoiding blood sucking flies.

"I was amazed by our results," said Prof Caro.

"Again and again, there was greater striping on areas of the body in those parts of the world where there was more annoyance from biting flies."

While the distribution of tsetse flies in Africa is well known, the researchers did not have maps of tabanids which include horseflies and deer flies so they mapped locations of the best breeding conditions for these insects.

They found that zebra striping was highly associated with several consecutive months of ideal conditions for tabanid reproduction.

Unlike other African hooved mammals living in the same areas as zebras, zebra hair is shorter than the mouthpart length of biting flies making them particularly susceptible to these insects, the team found.

"No one knew why zebras have such striking colouration," Prof Caro said.

"But solving evolutionary conundrums increases our knowledge of the natural world and may spark greater commitment to conserving it."

According to Prof Caro it is not yet known why biting flies avoid striped surfaces.

He said: “Some ideas include lateral inhibition but these are not researched as yet.”

ps- this is only for information, always consult you physician before having any particular food/ medication/exercise/other remedies.

ps- those interested in recipes are free to view my blog-

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for crochet designs

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26 'OTHER' uses of White Tooth Paste !!!

26 Things You Can Do With Toothpaste Although the primary use of toothpaste is to clean and improve the aesthetic appearance and health of teeth, there are also 26 other things that you can use it for. Every household has one and every household uses it at least twice a day. And because of the common availability of toothpaste, you can try everything below. Remember, use only white paste. 1.Removes stain from cloth   To take out all kinds of stain like ink or lipstick. Squeeze some on the spot, scrub and rinse.   2.Even out scratches on CD / DVD   If the screen freezes, take out the disc, put some toothpaste on it, scrub and clean it off.   3.Cleans diamond ring   Just squeeze a little on a used toothbrush, wet the ring, scrub gently, rinse and your diamond ring should be look sparkling new.   4.Cleans silver   Toothpaste can be used to polish any kind of silver. It really does bring out the shine in silverwares.   5.Placate burns   Right after you get burnt, put it on. It helps to relieve the sting.   6.Removes crayon from painted walls   Rub the marks with the toothpaste and a damp rag. Wipe with water to get rid of residue.   7.Remove carpet stains   Squeeze some onto the carpet, scrub, rinse and let it dry.   8.Relieves insect bites   Spread a little over either of these and you’ll feel soothed and no itches. Mosquito, flea and ant bites work especially well.   9.Keep girl babies’ bows in their hair   If they don’t have much hair this is particularly useful. It doesn’t pull it out, it just washes out.   10.Clean your nails   Teeth and nails are made of the same material. To clean your nails, squeeze some on top of a toothbrush, wet your nails and brush them thoroughly. You’ll be amazed by the sparkle.   11.Clean shoes   Scrubbing toothpaste with a wet toothbrush over the boots, working shoes and rubber part of sneakers will work. It can also be used to remove scuffs.   12.Put up posters   You can use toothpaste to put up posters without damaging the wall. However, avoid using it for collector posters. It can damage the ink over time.   13.Use it to temporarily seal holes   Can be used as a spackle to fill nail holes. This sounds evil, but you can use it right before you move out of your rented apartment.   14.Clean around the bathroom   Use it to clean shower doors and rings around the bath tub. It has an abrasive so that is why it works good.   15.Clean your vehicle’s headlight lenses   Put some toothpaste in a bowl with some water. Use a buffer pad and clean off fog caused by dirt and bugs hitting them.   16.Clean model cars Hobbyists who collect and build model cars, robots and action figures can certainly use toothpaste to make them nice and shiny. 17.Remove scratches on your watch crystal   Dab some on the watch and scrub it with tissue. 18.Treat acne   Be very careful when using this. Use it at most once a week. Just dab a small amount on a pimple before bed, wake up and it will dry up. 19.Prevent fog in your swimming goggles   Just wipe it on, clean it off. Works well for me. 20.Clean piano keytops   A dab of toothpaste, a soft cloth and some rubbing will usually clean piano keytops and turn them white again.   21.Deodorize smelly hands Wash your hands with a dab of toothpaste and it will remove smells like onions and other unpleasant odors.   22.Remove scratches on glassware   Polish with a squeeze of toothpaste. Your glassware should be shining in no time.   23.Remove beach tar   Getting that black beach tar on your feet can put a small crimp in your vacation, but it is easy enough to remove. Just rub it with some non-gel toothpaste and rinse. 24.Deodorize baby bottles   Works for sour smelling baby bottles. Scrub with toothpaste and a bottle brush and the bottles should end up smelling clean and fresh.   25.Cleans clothes iron   The mild abrasive in non-gel toothpast is just the ticket for scrubbing the gunk off the bottom plate of your clothes iron. Apply the toothpaste to the cool iron, scrub with a cloth, then rinse clean.   26.Remove water marks from furniture   To get rid of those telltale watermark rings left by sweating beverages, gently rub some non-gel toothpaste on the wood with a soft cloth.           --

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Burns & bites- Burn jelly plant

 Burns & bites- burn jelly plant ( Bulbine frutescens) which is also a succulent & produces many more leaves which are easier to use.

How to grow-  plant in a container using soil based potting compost mixed with an equal amount of sharp horticultural grit or perlite.

Recipe- to treat burns, simply cut off a bit of leaf & rub the glutinous gel straight on to the skin, reapplying if the burn becomes uncomfortable. The wound then heals without blistering. This gel can also be used to cool the itching caused by insect bites & allergies.