4 Portable Health Gadgets for Your First Aid Kit

4 Portable Health Gadgets for Your First Aid Kit

Accidents and unintentional injuries can occur even in the most unexpected situations. In fact, the number of emergency visits for these incidents reaches 24.5 million per year, which can end up resulting in an expense you may not be prepared for.

Fortunately, there are many ways you can treat an injury right at home using a simple first aid kit. Traditional kits typically contain materials to treat minor cuts, bruises, burns, and sprains, but there are other common conditions that require monitoring and assessment to be addressed by first aid. Health gadgets have made it possible to create first aid kits that are more capable of saving lives. And here are four examples of these specific gadgets:

Blood Pressure Monitor

Blood pressure measures the pressure of circulating blood against the walls of your veins and arteries. It essentially gives an idea of how hard the heart pumps to deliver blood to various parts of the body or how congested your blood vessels are with cholesterol. When reading someone’s blood pressure, you should have an idea of what level of hypotension or hypertension requires emergency treatment. Levels that fall below 90 over 60 may indicate dehydration, blood loss, or heart problems, while blood pressure that goes above 180 over 110 will require immediate medical attention. These devices will also detect unusual heartbeats.

Having a portable blood pressure monitor in your first aid kit will allow you to take the best course of action, whether that’s taking someone straight to the emergency room or knowing what information to supply paramedics with.

Glucose Monitors

Diabetes is not the only disorder that can be affected by blood sugar. Monitoring is essential to detect abnormal levels of sugar in the blood that can mean the difference between life and death for people with conditions such as diabetes or certain cardiovascular diseases.

Technology has made it easier to detect blood sugar levels with glucometers, which offer a better alternative to hypodermic needles that draw blood. These use lancets and testing strips that devices can read, so they can be placed in a first aid kit for easy testing on the go.

Infrared Thermometers

A high temperature indicates several problems that require treatment, which is why thermometers are so valuable in a first aid kit. This is especially true today because a high body temperature could be a sign of contracting Coronavirus.

There are several types of these devices, but infrared thermometers are much faster — they only take two seconds to produce a result. These types of thermometers implement touch sensors, which make them more reliable, accurate, and durable. They can withstand more environmental wear, too, perfect for emergency kits. Infrared thermometers are ideal for situations that require fast results, typically when first aid is also needed, making them an essential part of your kit.

AED Defibrillators

Defibrillators may seem like an excessive health gadget to have in your kit, but you never know if a life-threatening incident may occur. The original versions only used to be available in hospitals some years ago, however smaller and more portable versions have now been developed so you can take them with you wherever you go.

Automated external defibrillators (AEDs) come with step-by-step voice commands and CPR guidance to help you revive somebody. It can help someone who has gone into cardiac arrest far more effectively than CPR can as it shocks the heart back into its rhythm. While it is much more expensive than the rest of your portable health gadgets, it is well worth the cost.

First aid kits are just one of the life-saving items you should have, whether it’s in your car or your home. By investing in these portable health gadgets, you can always be ready to save someone’s life.

Post written by Amanda King