What works best for a minor burn? What should you do for a sprained ankle? Test your first aid knowledge with our Everwell Challenge.
VIDEO TRANSCRIPT
Scrapes, scratches and spills are part of life for all of us. But do you know the best way to deal with them? Take our Everwell Challenge, and see if you make the cut when it comes to minor injuries.
Okay, first question:
1. Which treatment is best for treat minor burns?
A. Ice
B. Butter
C. Cold water
D. All of the above
2. Our next question has nothing to do with butter, but it does involve rice. No, not that kind. R-i-c-e is what’s recommended for a sprained ankle. What do the letters stand for?
3. After proper cleaning, what’s best for a minor cut or scrape?
A. Cover it firmly with a bandage? Or
B. Leave it open to the air?
4. Moving from cuts to nosebleeds. What’s the right way to stop one?
A. Lean your head back
B. Stuff the nostril with tissue or sterile cotton balls
C. Lean slightly forward
D. Lie down
5. When should you get a tetanus shot?
Answers:
For the correct answers, we turned to first aid expert Michelle Jantz.
1. C, cold water is the one and only right answer. Ice may cause the body to lose heat and may damage delicate tissue, and butter may interfere with the healing process.
Jantz recommends running cold water over the burn until the pain eases, and then wrapping it with a sterile dressing.
I just can’t see anybody putting butter on anything to make it better!
2. Rice stands for rest, immobilize, cold and elevate. Rest the injured area. Don’t move it or straighten it. Immobilize. Stabilize the injured area with a splint, but do so only if you have to move the victim or if it does not cause more pain. Cold. Fill a plastic bag with ice and place it on the injured area for 20 minutes. And elevate. Elevate the injured area only if it doesn’t cause more pain.
If the ankle doesn’t feel better in two or three days, see a doctor. You might have torn a ligament or you could have an infection.
3. That’s a trick question. Both answers are correct, but just at different times. First you want to bandage the cut or the scrape to protect it from germs, but after a scab has formed, take the bandage off, as exposing it to air will help it heal faster.
Before a scab forms, make sure you change the dressing daily, or whenever it gets wet or dirty.
4. This answer may surprise people. The correct answer is C. Lean slightly forward and pinch your nose. Apply ice to the bridge of your nose, and if after 10 minutes, the bleeding doesn’t stop, use your index finger on your upper lip and apply pressure just below the nostrils, and also seek medical attention.
5. People over 18 should get a tetanus shot every 10 years and may need a booster shot if they get a deep or a dirty wound and it’s been five years since they got that shot. In that case, they should get the shot within 48 hours of the injury.
For children, tetanus shots may be combined with other vaccines, so parents need to check with their pediatricians.