What should be in your first aid kit to be ready for anything?

Dressings and consumables

That's all may be required for cuts, calluses, burns and other similar injuries:

• patches of different sizes;
• bandage;
• small, medium and large sterile gauze pads;
• tourniquet to stop bleeding;
• antiseptic for washing wounds;
• sterile saline;
• antiseptic for washing eyes;
• aniline dyes (brilliant green, methylene blue, fukortsin);
• alcohol wipes;
• hand sanitizer;
• elastic bandage in case of sprains or bruises;
• cotton wool;
• sterile needles;
• syringes of different volumes;
• latex gloves;
• antibiotic ointment;
• healing ointment;
• ointment with heparin from bruises;
• pantothenic acid preparations in a spray from burns;
• anti-burn wipes;
• cooling packs (or gel pads for cooling, but these need to be stored in the freezer);
• antiseptic dressings;
• liquid patch.

It is not necessary to collect the entire list, see according to your needs.

Painkillers

For pain relief, you will need some over-the-counter non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs and antispasmodics.

Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs

NSAIDs accept with joint, headache, toothache, menstrual and other types of pain, they will also help bring down the temperature. Usually these are drugs based on paracetamol or ibuprofen. They can be in the form of tablets or capsules, and if you have children, you will also need medicine in the form of a syrup. In addition, NSAIDs come in the form of creams and ointments, they are used for sprains, bruises and other injuries.

But acetylsalicylic acid is not the best option for painkillers, if only because children, people with allergies and problems with clotting cannot drink it. But keeping it in the first aid kit is still worth it, because it can save the life of an adult.

If you suddenly have severe unexplained chest pain, which may be heart attackneed to call an ambulance and chew acetylsalicylic acid tablet. It will help the blood supply to the heart and reduce the risk of death.

Antispasmodics

Antispasmodics relax smooth muscles in the internal organs, so they help with colic and spasms. For example, with pain in the stomach, intestines, or an increase in the tone of the uterus. This group includes drugs based on drotaverine.

Cold remedies

In addition to the antipyretic NSAIDs listed above, it is desirable to have other drugs for colds. They won't help recover faster, but may improve slightly.

Nasal wash solution

These are usually sterile saline solutions that wash away pathogens and slime. They may be in the form of a spray or drops for newborns.

Vasoconstrictor from the common cold

Decongestants in nasal sprays and drops, such as those based on oxymetazoline, relieve congestion and improve the condition. Remember that they cannot be used for more than 5 days. It may develop further addictive and without them, the nose will not breathe at all.

Throat Lozenges

Sucking on cough drops can soothe a scratchy throat. In principle, it is not necessary to use pharmacy products; ordinary sucking sweets with menthol are also suitable.

cough syrups

These can be sputum-thinning drugs or drugs that suppress the cough reflex. They also do not cure, but they can alleviate the condition.

If you want to give a child under 6 years of age cough syrup or other remedy for a cold, check with your pediatrician first. Even if the drug is over-the-counter.

Allergy medicines

To facilitate allergy, you need to interrupt contact with the allergen. But you can also accept medicines that will accelerate the disappearance of unpleasant manifestations.

Antihistamines

Over-the-counter antihistamines can relieve allergy symptoms. There are drugs that cause drowsiness, for example, based on chloropyramine or clemastine, and those that do not, based on cetirizine, desloratadine, levocetirizine and other substances. Be sure to consider this if you drive a car or work in a position that carries a high risk of injury.

For children, you can use antihistamine drops.

artificial tear

If your eyes often itch with allergies or seem too dry after taking antihistamines, then you can drip them with artificial tears. It is absolutely harmless and helps to relieve unpleasant symptoms.

Antipruritics

It can be a chatterbox based on zinc or calamine. You will also need an antihistamine gel and a soothing cream, such as calendula or aloe.

Steroid ointment

For example, based on mometasone, betamethasone and the like. They can help with a mild rash or irritation. You can also use combined ointments, which also have antibacterial and antifungal components.

Try not to apply them to the face and genital area without consulting a doctor, and do not prescribe them yourself to children.

Emergency medicines for anaphylactic shock

They are especially important for those people who have already had similar seizures. Suitable epinephrine or automatic epinephrine injectors. Please note that the latter are not registered in Russia, so you won't be able to buy them here. Any emergency funds should be prescribed by a doctor, he will also teach them how to use them.

Remedies for problems with the gastrointestinal tract

Often gastrointestinal problems require consultation with a doctor, but again, you can help yourself a little before getting medical help.

Enterosorbent

Sorbents are needed in order to bind toxins in the intestines and remove them from the body. Therefore, they help with poisoning and intestinal infections. The most famous sorbent in the CIS is activated carbon. But now there are more modern drugs on the market, for example, based on silicon.

Heartburn Remedy

Even healthy people can develop heartburn. In this case, it is better to have in the first-aid kit means that bind acid and protect the stomach and esophagus from damage. But if you are forced to drink them regularly, then most likely it is time for you to gastroenterologist.

Rehydration solution

With vomiting and diarrhea, there is a risk of dehydration, so fluids must be replenished. Since the body loses more than just water, just drinking is not enough. In case of poisoning or infection, you need to have a powder for preparing a solution of electrolytes - these are ions that are in our body. They will maintain the water-salt balance.

mild laxative

A laxative can be in the form of suppositories or microclysters. Usually they are not absorbed, so they can be used from the first days of life.

Diarrhea medicine

In general, it is better not to use drugs for diarrhea. Diarrhea is the body's way of getting rid of something harmful to it, such as toxins and pathogens. infections. So obviously it's better for them to come out with feces than to get into the blood. But if you want to add loperamide drugs in an emergency, then at least do not take them without consulting a doctor.

Medicines for chronic diseases

If you have chronic diseases and you constantly or periodically take some medicines, then they should also be in your first aid kit. For hypertensive patients, these will be anti-crisis drugs, for people with angina pectoris, drugs that improve blood flow in the heart, and for cancer patients, antiemetics and prescription painkillers. In this case, you will agree on a set of medicines with your doctor.

Auxiliaries

These items are better put in the first aid kit, so as not to search if necessary throughout the house:

• thermometer;
• tonometer;
• pulse oximeter;
• scissors;
• tweezers;
• spatula or spoon;
• flashlight;
• film with a valve for artificial respiration;
• note paper;
• a pen and a felt-tip pen to sign the time of the tourniquet or write down something important;
• emergency phone numbers, especially if the first-aid kit can be used by schoolchildren;
• first aid memos, where you need to write down the procedure in an emergency - in a panic, knowledge disappears somewhere, so you should not rely on memory.

Do not forget to regularly check the expiration dates of medicines and the charge of batteries in devices. Store medicines in a cool, dry place away from children.