Thanksgiving is typically a holiday of overabundance, but that doesn’t mean you have to waste food. Here are some tips from your friends at Don’t Waste Food SC to make sure you don’t throw away any of your feast this year.
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Although Christmas is a wonderful time of the year it is also a time when people generate tons of waste. While reducing, reusing, and recycling should be practiced year-round, it is even more important during the holidays when our waste is plenteous.
We at DHEC urge you to put these 12 recycling and waste reduction tips to use this holiday season:
1. Keep a waste-free kitchen: Before going shopping, look around to determine what you already have on hand and make a list of things you need before heading to the store. Compost or donate your unwanted food and recycle your cooking oil. Find other helpful tips at www.scdhec.gov/dont-waste-food-sc.
2. Have hard-to-recycle items? Consider only buying materials packaged in what can be recycled in your area. Find where and what you can recycle at www.scdhec.gov/HomeAndEnvironment/Recycling.
3. Give waste-less gifts like your time to clean someone’s house, piano or guitar lessons, gym memberships or certificates for pampering.
4. Most wrapping paper cannot be recycled, BUT you can reuse something to wrap with instead, such as paper bags, newspaper, maps or use reusable grocery bags, scarves or flower pots. Also reuse greeting cards to make gift tags.
5. Stop the unwanted mail! Check out ecocycle.org/junkmail for six easy steps. Make sure to recycle mail with your paper as well.
6. Prevent food waste this holiday by providing reusable containers or asking your guests to bring their own for leftovers.
7. Use LED lights, which last 10 times longer and use 80 percent less energy. Recycle your old strings of lights. Find more information on hard-to-recycle items at www.scdhec.gov/recycling-waste-reduction/recycling-hard-manage-items.
8. Go with an eco-deco theme by decorating with natural materials like greenery, gourds, fresh fruit and pine cones — all which can be composted after the holidays.
9. Set up a collection corner at your party by providing an area where guests can bring unwanted items to swap or donate.
10. Always let your guests know what can be recycled and composted. Clearly mark your bins and let guests know where they’re located.
11. Provide a green dining experience by using dishes and silverware instead of disposables.
12. Grind those greens. If you decorated a real tree and are ready for it to go, remember to find out where your county will be accepting them for grinding.
Visit the DHEC website for more tips and information on recycling and waste reduction.
Toys are supposed to bring joy and delight during the gift-giving season, and DHEC wants to make sure little ones stay safe.
According to the Consumer Product Safety Commission, about 252,000 children were treated in U.S. emergency rooms for toy-related injuries in 2017. Here are 12 tips to make sure your family stays safe this holiday.
Make sure to follow the age recommendations for toys and games.
Always pay close attention to the age recommendations on toys and choose one according to a child’s age, interest, and skill level.
Take notice of warning and safety labels.
Be aware of other safety labels such as “Flame retardant/flame resistant” or “Washable/Hygienic materials” on dolls and other stuffed toys.
Plastic wrappings can be deadly for small children – discard them immediately.
Discard the plastic wrappings from toys immediately; they become deadly playthings to small children.
When choosing toys, keep in mind that kids under 1 like to see, touch, hear and taste.
For children 1 and under, choose toys that are colorful, lightweight, have various textures and are made of non-toxic materials. Children, this age learn through sight, touch, sound and taste and often put things into their mouths to explore them.
Small parts like removable eyes are choking hazards.
Don’t give young children any toys with small parts such as removable eyes, noses, etc., they are choking hazards.
Stay away from toys with sharp points, edges, and wires that stab, cut or shock.
Inspect all toys for sharp points or edges made from such materials as metal or glass. These toys should not be given to children under 8.
Never hang toys with strings, cords, or ribbons of any kind in cribs or playpens.
Toys with strings, cords or ribbons of any kind should not be hung in cribs or playpens. Young children can become entangled, which can cause injury or death.
Teach older children to keep toys with removable small parts or sharp points away from younger siblings.
Teach older children to keep their toys that may have removable small parts, sharp points or toys powered by electricity out of reach of younger siblings.
Worn or broken toys can cause injuries.
Keep toys and play equipment in good condition, discard any toys that are broken to prevent injuries.
Check toys regularly for safety and durability.
Regularly conduct a toy maintenance check for safety and durability.
Provide safe, hazard-free play environments both indoors and outdoors.
Supervision is essential both indoors and outdoors.
Toys can be a tripping hazard!
Teach children to put toys away when they are finished playing with them to prevent accidental falls.
To learn more about preventing your child from other injuries you can visit our website at http://www.scdhec.gov/Health/ChildTeenHealth/EarlyChildhood/PreventInjuries/.
A collection of health and environmental posts from other governmental blogs.
Holiday Leftovers? We’ve Got You Covered!
All good things must come to an end, including the holidays. But leftovers from your holiday celebrations can help stretch out y our holiday cheer. — From the EPA Blog
Be Prepared to Stay Safe and Healthy in Winter
Winter storms and cold temperatures can be hazardous. Stay safe and healthy by planning ahead. Prepare your home and cars. Prepare for power outages and outdoor activity. Check on older adults. — From the CDC’s Your Health – Your Environment Blog
NCEH/ATSDR – Top 10 “Your Health, Your Environment” Blog Posts of 2017
As another year draws to a close, perhaps you’ve realized that you didn’t get a chance to read all of the “Your Health, Your Environment” blog posts. To help you get caught up, here are the ten most popular posts of 2017. — From the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) Your Health – Your Environment blog
Both Government and Private Company Food Labels Have Tradeoffs
For more than a century, American families have used government-regulated food labels, such as “USDA prime beef,” to help them decide what food products to buy. Today, consumers also look to food labels for information about how their food was grown and how healthy it is. — From the U.S. Department of Agriculture blog
When the holidays aren’t so happy
Gifts and celebrations, parties and lights, what’s not to like? Right?
But for some, the holiday season does not always feel festive and bright.
Here are five factors that can make maintaining the holiday spirit a struggle. — From Flourish, Palmetto Health’s blog
A collection of health and environmental posts from other governmental blogs.
Don’t Get Roasted by Foodborne Illnesses this Winter
The holidays are all about sharing, having fun and, of course…food!!! I bet you will agree that a good holiday get-together always includes delicious traditional dishes or special recipes.
If you are hosting a holiday party this winter, you have probably already started thinking about treating your guests to a delectable menu. There are endless recipes and traditional holiday dishes that will reappear or make a debut at your dinner table; however, foodborne illnesses should not be part of the feast. While food is something to look forward to this season, foodborne illnesses is not. — From the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) blog
Norovirus Illness is Messy – Clean Up Right Away
When norovirus strikes in your own home, you can be prepared by having the supplies you need to immediately clean up after a loved one vomits or has diarrhea.
Norovirus is a tiny germ that spreads quickly and easily. It causes vomiting and diarrhea that come on suddenly. A very small amount of norovirus can make you sick. The number of virus particles that fit on the head of a pin is enough to infect over 1,000 people. — From the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) Public Health Matters blog
Protecting the Earth’s ‘Thin Skin’
Though remarkably thin, soil makes up a layer of the Earth’s crust that’s vital to human survival. The soil is a living, breathing thing that, like the body’s skin, requires care and attention lest we lose its many benefits. — From the USDA blog
Farmers Keeping Nutrients on the Field, Out of Streams
Clean water is a priority for all of us. When farmers manage nutrients, they are also helping to minimize the runoff of nutrients into local streams and rivers.
Farmers rely on two major nutrients in fertilizer — nitrogen and phosphorus — to help crops grow. When excess fertilizer leaves the field and enters local waterways in surface water runoff, those nutrients cause algae in the water to bloom much faster than it would under normal conditions. The algae eventually breaks down, and the bacteria involved in decomposition deplete oxygen in the water to unhealthily low levels. Ultimately, fish and other aquatic organisms often die as a result of this oxygen depletion. This process is called eutrophication. — From the USDA blog
Live Healthy S.C. 