84-Lancaster Farming, Saturday, May 25, 1991 TAKING Safe Summer For Our Child- ren Youth 5 to 14 years of age have the highest rate of farm work injury of all age groups. The 5- to 14-ycar-old age group is almost two-thirds more likely to suffer a work accident than the 45 to 64 year-old group. These statistics remind us of the hazards of farming for our child ren. Most of these injuries are related to tractor use, but our child ren are also exposed to other hazards. Our school-age children have been supervised in a classroom set ting for the last nine months. Soon they will be home with us. That may mean that because of field work or a spouse's employment, they may not be supervised as carefully during the summer as they were during the rest of the year. For tractor safety, clearly the best routine we can begin is to set a rule for "No extra riders". Other safety issues may also require new routines. Across the stale, school-age children arc being expected to take care of themselves for several hours during the day. For those children, your taking the time to help them learn about safety is important. For instance, have you dis cussed what your children should do when a stranger comes to the door. During the summer months, utility company workers, sales representatives, and delivery trucks may slop by your farm. You may be out in the field or on an errand in town. You may not be immediately available to handle a situation. Here arc some simple direc tions. They may seem overly cau tious, but they will make your home and children more protected. These are good skills that they can use wherever they go! 1. Always answer the nhone or door. You do not want people to think that there is no one at home. The stranger could be a burglar. When answering, ask who it is and what they need. Do not unlock or open the door. Visitors and service persons can come back later if it is important. 2. Keep the conversation short. The more you talk, the more they know about you. Simply state that your parents cannot come to the door at the moment. "May I take your name and a phone number? I will have them call you." Do not say you are alone. 3. Set times when an adult will be back in the house, so the two of you can keep tabs on each other. Let each other know where you plan to be, doing what, for how long. 4. Review what your children should do in case they become injured. Children need to learn basic first-aid. Show them where band-aids, hydrogen peroxide, and antiseptic creams are. Talk to them about treating a bum. Also discuss what to do for big ger emergencies —a fire, a serious injury. Do you have a 911 system in your area? Use it. 5. Set rules about using appliances, cooking, swimming, watching TV, and playing rough games. Remember, a child may be inde pendent enough to care for his or her own needs but may not be responsible enough to look after a younger brother or sister. In order to avoid a child becom ing bored and wanting to investi gate things that may be dangerous (or wanting to "help" you with a farming operation that would be risky), give her jobs to do and build Use Grill Without Getting Sick often in May and October, while poultry to at least 180degrees?,or the number of individual cases until the juices run clear, tends to peak in midsummer —at •If using a microwave oven, the height of the barbecue season, rotate the meat manually if there ij The malady being described is no automatic rotation device. This campylobacteriosis, probably the will help to insure uniform heat most common cause of summer- ing. Use the temperature probe if time foodbome illness and the you have one. For outdoor cook major year-round cause of diarrhea ing, try to use a grill with a cover. according to Dr. Mark A. Kan- • Thoroughly clean hands, tor, food and nutrition specialist utensils, and surfaces that touch for the Cooperative Extension Ser- raw meats. Don’t place cooked vice University of Maryland meat back on an unwashed plate. System. Do not eat uncooked food, such as Contaminated food is the usual 00,0 d greens, that may be contami cause, since direct person-to- na.ol with juices from raw meats, person transmission is very rare, Never reuse marinade. Kantor said. • Refrigerate or freeze cooked As with all bacteria-caused meat and poultry within two hours foodbome illness, Campylobacter- after serving—within one hour on iosis is entirely preventable when a hot day when temperatures are proper cooking and handling pro- above 90 degrees F. Keep your cedures are followed. refrigerator at 40 degrees F or Kantor recommends these steps: below. Remember that refrigera • Thoroughly cook all meat, tion or freezing does not kill bac poultry, and fish. Use a meat ther- teria. Only thorough cooking does mometer if possible. Make sure that, that interior temperatures of meat * Never taste-test uncooked reach at least 160 degrees F. Heat meats. COLLEGE PARK, Md. When homeowners warm up the grill for outdoor cooking this summer, they could be sub jecting themselves and their fami lies to a mild case of preventable foodbome illness if they don’t observe commonsense food safety precautions. The symptoms probably will include headache, abdominal pain, and diarrhea. These symptoms can occur anytime within two to 10 days after eating undercooked chicken or other meat, including fish. Large outbreaks occur most a list of fun things to do when her daily tasks are completed. Children are special. They are also vulnerable. Take some lime before the summer arrives to pre pare them for the times when they may be alone. The whole family will feel more comfortable know ing they are safer. Rebecca Wolf is a Home Eco nomist with Penn State Coopera tive Extension in Lehigh County. 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