Brits urged to be vigilant over 10 biggest health risks over Christmas
Christmas is more associated with turkey roasts, mulled wine, and countless reruns of Love Actually than it is a trip to the hospital – but to keep it that way, it is important to heed a few reminders.
It comes as we recently reported important tips for drivers to be mindful of as they plan journeys around the party season. It's important to look after our health while also staying safe. Catching a virus, over-drinking, and anxiety are just a few of the risks that come with Christmas festivities. From making sure ladders are stable to honouring your emotional needs, here are some of our tips for staying safe and happy this festive season.
1. Decorating Injuries
The task of putting up Christmas decorations may not sound very hazardous but research by the National Accident Helpline (NHA) tells a different story.
More than 1 in 50 (2.1%) have fallen out of the loft while getting decorations down. And according to the Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents (RoSPA), about 1,000 people are injured by their Christmas tree every year, usually when they are trying to fix decorations to the higher branches.
Make sure you stabilise your ladder on a flat surface and wear sturdy shoes rather than slippers. It might also be worth laying off the eggnog until after the decorating is done.
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2. Electric Shocks
Christmas often means digging out decorations from the back of the cupboard that have seen better days. Worse-for-wear light sets twisted up in storage can become brittle over 11 months of hibernation and the wires may end up exposed.
Faulty lights can give you a nasty shock – literally – so check your lights and other electrically powered decorations for signs of frayed cables or damaged fittings before you connect them to a power supply. If in doubt, dispose.
3. Colds and Contagious Illnesses
Cold weather alone can't make you ill, but it can increase your chances of getting ill.
Huddling with others indoors may be comforting but as we learned the hard way during the COVID-19 pandemic, close contact without proper ventilation is a recipe for viruses spreading more easily. Plus, some studies have suggested that your immune system is weakened by the cold, meaning it is harder to fight off illness.
Wash your hands thoroughly with soap and water at regular intervals and consider taking a daily Vitamin D supplement.
4. Overeating
Yes, over-indulgence is practically a given at Christmas, with almost half of Brits saying they expect to drink more than the recommended daily units of alcohol.
But it is still important to have a balanced diet, which means plenty of fruit and vegetables alongside that box of chocolate. If you're drinking a lot more than usual, remember the 1-for-1 rule of one glass of water for every alcoholic drink drunk.
5. Binge Drinking
It's fine to let your hair down - the holidays are a time to celebrate, particularly when there isn't work in the morning. But make sure you enjoy alcohol responsibly.
Don't drive after you've had a few too many, or even just a few – research found that more than one in three people believe they are less intoxicated than they actually are.
6. Food Poisoning
Eating too much of any food can wreck havoc on your digestive system, but food that has been left out overnight without being refrigerated (think yesterday's turkey) or not cooked properly (think suspicious-looking salmon) can cause its own set of problems.
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To avoid stomach-churning food poisoning ruining your festive fun, make sure to follow the Health and Safety Executive's food safety guidelines.
7. Deep Cuts
Christmas festivities often call for a lot of preparation - whether that be chopping food for dinner, cutting wrapping paper for gifts, or collecting broken glass from an unfortunate ornament smash. Lacerations (deep cuts or tears in the skin) and surface cuts are a particularly common injury, and there is no way to avoid them entirely.
But as with other risks, your best bet is to slow down - and not mess around with sharp objects after you've had a few glasses of wine.
8. Smoke Inhalation and Burns
From trees and candles to fireplaces and overdone turkey crowns, Christmas is one flammable holiday. Remember to keep an eye on open flames at all times and not leave them unattended.
And again, be extra careful handling candles when you're drunk.
9. Choking
We're all excited to tuck into Grandma's homemade Christmas pudding, but gobbling anything down too quickly is a recipe for a choking episode.
Plus, if there are children or pets around, remember that small toys - the kind loaded into stockings - can easily be mistaken for food. It's best to keep them out a curious child/animal's reach.
10. Anxiety
Meeting relatives you haven't seen since last year can trigger anxiety for some. And in the run-up to Christmas, the pressure of making everything perfect can get too much.
Remember that you don't need to do everything, or even anything – and that despite all the hype, it really is just one day in the calendar.
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