Introduction
Diwali is a festival of lights, sweets and a grand feast. But if one is not healthy, the festival can be a drawback. The crackers can cause sound pollution and give off a lot of smoke. The sweets can be bad for diabetics. The festival is around the corner and everybody is an a festive mood. But a few health precautions need to be taken. A small mistake can ruin the entire festival. The smoke given off by the crackers and the excessive sweets can make people sick. The crackers can make it difficult for those with asthma, heart diseases, blood pressure and diabetes to celebrate the festival. Therefore this Diwali plan your celebration ahead so that you celebrate a safe and healthy Diwali.
Do not ignore health problems
People tend to eat too much and high calorie foods during Diwali. This can cause indigestion, acidity and make you feel tired. Avoid eating too much sweets and oily foods this Diwali. You can enjoy Diwali with nutritious foods too. It needs small changes in the food. People eat too many sweets during Diwali and this causes high cholesterol and high blood sugar in those with diabetics. Many people eat a variety of different sweets during the festival and come up with problems like loose motions, diarrhea, dyspexia, bad stomach etc. The solution is to eat sweets, but not too much! Try to eat dry fruits in place of sweets. Dry fruits give you vitamins and are a much healthier option in place of fruits. It is seen that diabetics find Diwali an excuse to eat a lot of sweets. This causes their blood sugar levels to shoot up. This can cause serious problems to the eyes, kidneys and other problems. The person can also enter an diabetic coma. Let us face it-Diwali is not an excuse for diabetics to eat a lot of sweets. They should avoid eating sweets during the festive season too. Give only sugar free sweets to diabetics.
Eye problems during Diwali
Bursting of crackers during the Diwali festival gives rise to pollution and smoke. This is bad for the eyes. The eyes tend to be watery and painful for some people. Therefore special attention should be given to the eyes . After bursting crackers, wash your eyes immediately. If the eyes get injured due to crackers, contact an eye specialist immediately. Pay attention to the ears also as loud noise from the crackers can also damage the ears also. Bones may get affected too. If the crackers make too much sound, close your ears with your hands.
Precautions for pregnant women
The harmful carbon monoxide gas released from crackers can enter the wombs of pregnant women through breathing and affect the baby. This can cause defects in the yet to be born baby also. Pregnant women should stay away from crackers that cause a lot of smoke and noise. It can pose a health problem for them and their baby. The loud noise given off from crackers can cause hearing problems in the baby.
Precautions for Asthma patients
Asthma patients can find the Diwali ferstival a bane. The smoke from crackers increase the pollution levels considerably. The cold North Indian climate during the festival along with the smoke from crackers can cause an attack in asthma patients. Therefore asthma patients need to take the following precautions-
- Avoid going out too much on Diwali day. Better to stay indoors.This is because the smoke and pollution given off by crackers on Diwali day can make the outside air non breathable.
- If the smoke from crackers enters indoors close the windows and curtains. You may find it helpful to close your nose and mouth with a hanky.
- If confronted with an asthma attack, use your inhaler immediately. If this does not help, visit your doctor immediately.
Precautions for children
As far as possible make sure that small children stay away from crackers. Dress them up in cotton clothes. It is almost impossible to make them stay away from crackers completely, but keep a watchful eye on them. Small children are prone to respiratory allergies and pneumonia during Diwali. Make your children stay indoors as far as possible.
Some additional precautions
- Never wear silk and nylon clothes during Diwali.
- Never burn crackers in crowded areas.
- Never burn crackers in your hands.
- Maintain a distance while lighting rockets, bombs etc.
- Keep a bucket of water close by. Pour water immediately if something catches fire.
- Stay near children when they light crackers.