Category: Health and Fitness

Letter Re: West Nile Virus

Hi Hugh, I recently heard from two people (one who stayed in Florida, the other in Texas) that restaurants were hanging zip-loc bags with water in them around their outside dining areas. Apparently, that repels mosquitoes and flies. Although no one could provide an explanation as to why it worked, I have a theory that may explain it. When sunlight passes through water droplets in the air (when it’s raining) the light bends as it passes through the surface of the water droplet. The different wavelengths of light bend at different angles. A second bending occurs when the light exits …


Thoughts on Pre-Event Healthcare Preparations – Part 3 , by B.E.

Vaccinations [Editor’s note: This article takes a pro-vaccination stance. It is SurvivalBlog’s position that every parent has the right to raise their children as they see fit and that mandatory vaccination programs are an overreach of governmental authority. Aside from the discussion of whether the vaccinations cause reactions of one sort or another, there is an ethical issue on what materials are used in the production of vaccines. SurvivalBlog will never advocate using vaccines that are manufactured with aborted fetal tissue and/or toxic ingredients.] Now back to my initial story about having to get a vaccine due to a lack …


Letter Re: West Nile Virus

Hugh, In August of 1999, my father, then just 67, fell ill at 0240 while my family was staying with he and my mother on a vacation. I took him to the local hospital; his pain was debilitating, localized just above the pelvic region. After initial medical triage, he was transferred to the larger city hospital, where his condition worsened. He fought fever of unknown origin, underwent exploratory surgery, became confused and comatose, and after a total of 30 days from start to finish, he passed away. As the hospital bore some degree of suspected negligence (they incorrectly inserted his …


Thoughts on Pre-Event Healthcare Preparations – Part 2 , by B.E.

Waste Elimination When confronting sanitation issues, the basics are still the most important. Practicing good personal hygiene, such as bathing regularly and washing hands before handling food, eating, and after using the toilet, will prevent the spread of pathogens. However, sanitation can be over done. All these antimicrobial soaps and hand sanitizers are probably contributing to the emergence of MRSA (Methicillin Resistant Staph Aureus) and other resistant bacteria that are so prevalent in the news now days. I don’t think the importance of waste elimination can be overemphasized, despite it not being a very palatable subject (no pun intended). In …


Thoughts on Pre-Event Healthcare Preparations – Part 1 , by B.E.

…”An ounce of prevention is worth….” I am fairly new to this blog but have found it immensely interesting and useful, and it prompted me to write down some thoughts I have been having for years. As a physician, I am particularly interested in how healthcare and basic needs will survive in a post-apocalyptic world. If this article is redundant for long-time users of the site, I apologize. On June 5, 1976, at around 12:00 p.m., a catastrophic failure of an earth-built dam in southeastern Idaho occurred, resulting in the release of 250,000 acre-feet of water on an unsuspecting Snake …


Are You Fit to Survive, by S.D.

Disclaimer: This article is presented as an example only. The author is not a licensed medical practitioner and is unable to diagnose any medical condition or give recommendations on treatment of any medical condition. There is inherent risk involved with any physical training, and if you undertake anything mentioned in this article it is at your own risk. Neither the author nor SurvivalBlog.com are responsible for any injury that occurs while exercising under the guidance of this article. Please consult with a physician before beginning any exercise program. About the author: I’ve spent the largest part of a decade in …


Do What You Are Good At, But Work At What You Aren’t, by R.D.

Fear and prudence I’ve never thought of myself as being particularly knowledgeable on specific things regarding preparedness. I wasn’t in the military, so I don’t feel qualified to give “tactical firearms advice”, but I like to shoot and train as much as possible. I’m not an EMT, but I’ve put together several first aid kits that our family feels comfortable using. I’m not a farmer, but we have learned basic gardening over the last seven years in our small urban garden. I’m not a professional mechanic, but I prefer to maintain our cars and equipment largely by myself. I’m not …


Paleo Food Storage With Ideas for Celiac/Gluten Intolerances and Dairy-Free Diets – Part 1, by Utah Suburban Prepping Gal

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When I first became serious about prepping, I looked to the guidelines found on the LDS (Mormon) website. This means grains, beans, sugars, and dairy, so I spent the next few years stocking up on these four. A few years later I discovered the Paleo diet, which resulted in great health benefits for me, such as increased mental focus, elevated mood, fat loss, and clearer skin. However, I faced a dilemma. Everything in the basic food storage I had accumulated was now off-limits. Basically, the Paleo diet consists of meat, vegetables, nuts, fruit, and “good” oils, like lard, tallow, butter, …


Letter Re: Historians Perspective At Natural Diets Link

Mr. Hugh, There are significant facts to be gleaned from the post: A Plea For Culinary Modernism. This post should be read by all. This should be read slowly to glean the correct viewpoints. For example: Those who are not “prepared” will be thrust back to the 1200’s and gathering roots and berries, which will kill them due to their lack of knowledge. We have been enjoying fresh chick weed salads from random patches of weeds from our fence rows this spring. It tastes 10 times as good as lettuce from the store. Some think that if not prepared, they …


Letter Re: How to Get Your Doctor to Help You in the Age of Obamacare

Hugh, I work for a large drug manufacturer and have spent 22 years as an analytical chemist testing and evaluating the stability of active pharmaceutical ingredients. Medicines, except liquids, should be stored in the freezer. Liquids should be stored in the refrigerator or as cool as possible. Store the non-liquid medicine in its bottle in a plastic bag with desiccant inside. The worst enemies of drug products and active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs) are temperature and humidity. The higher the temperature and humidity the faster your medicine will deteriorate. The longest drug stability times are associated with freezer conditions and low …


How to Get Your Doctor to Help You in the Age of Obamacare, by Cynthia J. Koelker, MD

Since I first wrote an article for SB on “How to Get Your Doctor to Help You Stockpile Medication” the situation has definitely deteriorated. With Uncle Sam peeping over your doctor’s shoulder, the challenge of medical prepping has greatly intensified. Whereas the general principles in that article remain true, your physician’s freedom to assist you is increasingly restricted. In the past five years we’ve seen solo practitioners closing their offices to join group practices, community hospitals being gobbled up by larger conglomerates, independent pharmacies run out of business by the big box stores, and electronic health records being mandated by …


Accommodations for the Dietary Requirements of Infants, by L.C.

Infants have specific nutritive needs that at the present moment may be met in two ways: breast milk and formula. In a collapse or post-collapse scenario, the supply of formula may dry up and no longer be an option. There are several strategies to cope with this as well as breastfeeding supplies that can easily be acquired now. I’m the mother of five kids under the age of six with the youngest being six weeks old, so for the past six years I’ve been pregnant, nursing, or both. I breastfed my first four exclusively, until we started solids between 6-7 …


Wisely Preparing for a Healthy and Secure Future, by J.O.

Growing up, I never put too much thought into “the future”– that long distant and magical place always just beyond the horizon. Born and raised in Queens, New York, I was immersed in the leftist mindset of self-entitlement and self-superiority. Never once did I consider how unremarkable and fragile my existence truly was. I was smart, strong, good in a fight, and clever enough to not get caught when I was up to no good…at least until I wasn’t. Enter a good soul with a badge, who spoke on my behalf, and a kind man with a gavel. The long …


Caring for Babies in a Post-Collapse World, by F.C.

“How dreadful it will be in those days for pregnant women and nursing mothers! Pray that your flight will not take place in winter or on the Sabbath. For then there will be great distress, unequaled from the beginning of the world until now—and never to be equaled again.” (Matthew 24:19-21) The shrill scream of a sick infant pierces the night. It’s your sister’s newborn boy, only six weeks old. Your sister, husband, and other two young children showed up at your country bug out location three days ago; they were exhausted, starving, and desperate. In the years leading up …


Letter Re: Mushrooms

Hey Hugh. I would like to add some personal information to the interesting article on mushrooms. A few years ago my wife was diagnosed with asthma. We quickly learned that the standard medical treatment was not going to work for her. Our friend at a natural foods store suggested she try a commercially available product called “Breathe”. The capsules contain a combination of mushrooms that apparently help to better or more completely utilize the available oxygen. What sold me was that high altitude climbers use these mushrooms when training for their climb in the thin air. My wife began to …