Healthy and Safe Diwali Awareness Tips

Let's celebrate this diwali as a "Green Diwali" by not creating any harm to the environment and to any humans. Do not burn crackers and make this Diwali a healthy, safe and prosperous one.

1. Healthy and Safe
DiwaliAwareness Tips
By
PoojaKulkarni
Wellness Consultant
Just for Hearts

2. Festival of Celebration
óDiwalithe festival of lights brings fun
and togetherness.
óFor children fireworks new clothes and
sweets make this festival the most
eagerly awaited of the year.
óFinally Diwaliis a family festival. It
including kids, seniors or even your
Pets.
óBut ensure that the Festival of Lights

3. Safety Tips for all…..
óAll accidents due to fireworks occur as a result of
carelessness, negligence and ignorance.
óBut these can certainly be avoided by observing some
very simple precautions. All of us enjoy the pleasure of
light and sound but when disaster strikes the injured has
to bear the cross.
óIf you're going to set off fireworks at home this year,
please take a few minutes to read through the
guidelines.

4. Safety tips for Kids
“Never allow your kids to play with fireworks unattended”
óSupervise children while they light fireworks. Make them light
fireworks outside the house
óKeep flower pots and chakras on even flat ground while lighting them
óHave them light up rockets only on open ground.
óEnsure proper distance from the fireworks away at a distance while
they are lighting them. Have them hold sparklers away from the body
óMake sure they are wearing closed footwear and closefitting clothes
of thick material instead of loose or flowing garments while lighting
fireworks
óKeep a water bucket and burn ointment or aloe veragel handy
óCheck the area before igniting fireworks to ensure that no
inflammable materials are near
óEnsure they light only one firework at a time
óDiscard used fireworks in a bucket of water

5. Tips forOthers
óStore your fireworks safely:
óIn a closed box, somewhere cool and dry, out of
reach of children and animals and away from all
sources of heat, until the time they're needed.
óLocked away is best. Don't keep the box under

6. Pets hate bangs and flashes
óPets get very frightened on fireworks night, so
keep all your pets indoor and close all the
curtains to make things calmer.
ó
Remember it's not just your own fireworks that
cause distress, so you may have to have your pets
indoors on several nights when other displays are
taking place.

7. Watch what you wear
óLoose clothing can very
easily catch fire, and should
not be worn near any fire or
fireworks.
óLong dangly scarves can be
risky too.
óIf anyone's clothing does
catch fire, follow the rule:
Stop -Don't run.
óDrop to the ground. Roll to
put out the flames.

8. One at a time please
óDon't allow anyone else -
especially children -to do so
while your display is going on.
óLet the fireworks off one at a
time (not lots at once) and don't
rush.
óLight the tip of each firework at
arm's length, using fireworks
lighter or fuse wick. Stand well
back immediately.

9. Different fireworks mean different
hazards
óRead the instructions on each one
carefully (by flashlight, never an
open flame) and follow them
properly.
óRockets, for instance, should be
launched from a rocket launcher,
not from a bottle.
óSparklers need careful handling -
light them one at a time at arm's
length.
óDon't give one to any child under 5
years of age; and put each spent one
into a bucket of water as soon as
it's gone out.

10. No fooling
óPutting fireworks in your
pocket is stupid and
dangerous.
óThrowing fireworks at people
is stupid and dangerous and
illegal; it's a criminal offense to
do so.
óDrinking alcohol presents an
added danger when there are
fireworks and bonfires around.
So don't drink during your
fireworks display.

11. Have you thought over it?
óUnfortunately, in recent times Diwali
has lost its original connotation, and
now the celebration is mostly about
burning firecrackers.
óPeople of India spend thousands of
rupees over the same without
realizing that this is affecting the
environment as well as the health of
individuals.
“Deepavali, where Deep means earthen
lamps and Avalimeans a string”
No Fireworks

12. Do you know it affects
environment?
óFire-
crackers have Highly toxic heavy metals like
cadmium, lead, copper, manganese, zinc, sodium,
magnesium and potassium, Sulphatesand phosphates,
nitrites and nitrates.
óThe smoke that emanates from crackers pollutes the air
as well as the environment
óThe smoke contains tiny metallic particles and produces
smog making air unfit to breathe
óThe Carbon Dioxide emitted while burning firecrackers
is a major cause for global warming.
óDiwalialso sees a great amount of non-biodegradable
dry waste in the form of papers, plastics and firework
covers causing soil pollution.

13. Noise Pollution
óNoise is unwanted sound and measured in decibels
(dB).
óFirecrackers produce sounds which are much higher in
decibels tolerable for the human ear.
óDuring Diwalithe decibel levels go up to 125 dB which
is equivalent to the noise produced by a military jet at
the time of take off.
óThe noise level allowed by the Government is only 55
dB during daytime and 45dB during night

14. Health effects…
óThe suspended particles in the air
because of burning firecrackers
cause allergic conditions to skin, eye,
throat and nose.
óDiseases like Bronchitis and Asthma
get aggravated due to the suspended
particles
óChildren from the age of 6 to 16 are
more susceptible to breathing
problems because of the smoke.
óThe heavy metals used in the
firecrackers affects the lungs of
people causing permanent damage.

15. óThe SulphurDioxide emanated
by the crackers also affects plant
life and their productivity.
óNoise pollution results in
hearing loss, high blood
pressure, heart attack and sleep
disorder.
óUnsafe practices also result in
many burn injuries which could
have been avoided.
óLast but not the least, the effect
of firecrackers on birds and
animals is cataclysmic. Animals
like dogs and cats have a more
sensitive sense of hearing than
humans.

16. óLet us re-establish the essence of Diwaliby
being sensitive to the environment.
óDiwalican be celebrated with earthen lamps,
sweets and togetherness.
óIt is time to go green this Diwali. Pollution-
crackers are also available, though very
expensive.
ó
This year let us burn these crackers in small
quantities just for the spirit of Diwali.

17. THANK YOU