This week is National Picnic Week - will you be sharing a picnic this weekend?
This weekend Lara and I will be picnicking, of sorts. We are spending the day at a scout activity centre where we need to pack our own lunch to enjoy as a picnic - hopefully the weather will stay dry and offer us a bit of sun. If you are planning a family picnic over the summer and don't want any nasty surprises, make sure you pack a few first aid essentials as well as the other goodies in your picnic basket so that you can respond in the event of hayfever, insect bites, cuts and scrapes.
For cuts and scrapes, pack a tube of Germolene antiseptic cream. I'll definitely be taking our tube on our scout activity day, and when we go camping later this month. When your small people are running amok in the woods, the likelihood of a few grazed knees or insect bites is very high but I wouldn't want to hold Lara and Holly back so as long as we have this we're ready to respond - it acts as a local anaesthetic too so it relieves the pain of a scratch or a sting.
I've blogged several times recently about hayfever as Holly and I are both suffering. To make sure that hayfever doesn't ruin your family picnic, pack a nasal spray or barrier cream to try and prevent the symptoms. A set of eye drops might also be useful if you suffer from itchy eyes.
On our summer holidays we usually take picnics with us nearly every day and will eat wherever our travels take us. Sometimes this means sitting by a river, on a rock or just smack bang in the middle of a field, cowpats and everything. I always take a little bottle of antibacterial hand gel such as Cuticura Sensitive so that we can keep our hands protected from bacteria before we start eating.
When we're going on a picnic we normally also pack some baby wipes but other first aid essentials may include:-
- an antihistamine cream such as Anthisan to relieve insect bites and stings
- plasters for bumps and grazes
- sun protection cream
- an aloe vera gel for relief from sun burn
- ready-mixed hydration drink such as Oralyte to help restore body fluids and salts lost on a hot day
If you're planning a picnic for National Picnic Week, remember to pack a small first aid kit to keep with you in the car, or your picnic basket.
