Stay Safe This Holiday Season
As the holiday season approaches, taking the proper precautions during the holiday season can reduce your risk of accidents and illness. Here are some simple tips everyone can do to stay healthy and prevent the risk of the flu and the common cold during this season.

• Wash your hands thoroughly with soap and warm water before and following food preparation, before eating and after using restrooms or changing diapers;
• Be careful what you touch. Hands transmit germs;
• Cover your nose and mouth with hands or tissues when coughing or sneezing;
• Get plenty of rest and eat properly; and
• When practical, minimize time in crowded areas, such as shopping centers.

Toy Safety
When considering gift for children, keep toy safety in mind. Here are some guidelines to consider when gift giving this holiday season:

• Be careful with toys that have small removable parts, sharp points or edges. Gift givers always should read labels to ensure age appropriateness and safety.
• Bicycles, skates, scooters, sleds, skis and skateboards are popular gift items. When buying this type of gift, it’s important to be sure to include helmets and other protective gear like elbow, knee and wrist pads. Helmets and safety gear are necessities, not accessories.
• Adults should carefully inspect recreational equipment and play areas before allowing children to use new toys or equipment for the first time. Adults should provide proper instruction before kids enjoy their new toys and recreational equipment and supervise children during their use.
• Watch out for chipping paint -- some older toys, such as a second hand gift, may contain lead paint. Lead test kits are available at local hardware stores or contact the Department of Health Lead Hotline at 1-800-440-LEAD or visit for more information.
• Never accept used cribs, portable folding cribs, and car seats without checking to see whether they have been recalled. Also, used car seats may have hidden damage from a crash that makes them unsafe. For more information on crib and portable crib safety and recalls, visit the Consumer Product Safety Commission www.cpsc.gov or call: 1-800-638-2772. For recall information on a wider array of products, go to: www.recalls.gov.

Food Safety
Other illnesses, such as food poisoning, can be avoided by following these food-safety tips:

• Wash your hands before and after handling food;
• Cook foods thoroughly to safe temperatures; and
• Promptly refrigerate and store all leftovers. Don’t let food sit at room temperature for more than two hours.

Gun Safety In Hunting Season

Hunting season is a popular family tradition in Pennsylvania

• Make sure kids do not have access to firearms.
• On the average, 8 kids under the age of twenty are killed accidentally with a firearm every year in Pennsylvania.
• Most children who kill or injury themselves or other children by accident do so while they are playing with a gun they found in their home or the home of a friend.
• Always keep guns unloaded. 
• Store all firearms out of children’s reach and in a locked cabinet, drawer or gun safe.
• Lock ammunition in a separate place from the gun.
• Always assume a gun is loaded and check the chamber whenever removing it from the gun safe.

Department of Health’s “Children and Guns” brochure
which is available free by calling 1-800-203-8405.