Outdoor Survival Tips to stay healty

Following some simple rules can save your life. In an emergency survival situation the very first priority is clean drinking water. One can impractically, but survive for weeks without food, but 3 days in a warm climate is just about the human body’s limit without water. When collecting water in your environment always assume the water is NOT drinkable until either, boiled, filtered, or chemically treated. Here’s a small list of just some of the water borne diseases and pathogens you can contract by drinking untreated water. The best course of action is to always choose caution and avoiding health concerns. Avoid contracting the disease in the first place. Water Borne Disease.

Adenovirus Infection (Adenoviridae virus) Vary depending on which part of the body is infected Drinking contaminated water Amebiasis (Entamoeba histolytica parasite) Diarrhea, stomach pain, and stomach cramping Fecal matter of an infected person (usually ingested from a pool or an infected water supply) Incubation 2 to 4 weeks
Campylobacteriosis (Campylobacter jejuni bacteria) Diarrhea, stomach pain, and stomach cramping Chicken, unpasteurized milk, water Incubation 2 to 10 days
Cryptosporidiosis (Cryptosporidiumparasite) Stomach cramps, dehydration, nausea, vomiting, fever, weight loss Fecal matter of an infected person (can survive for days in chlorinated pools) Incubation 2 to 10 days
Cholera (Vibrio choleraebacteria) Watery diarrhea, vomiting, and leg cramps Contaminated drinking water, rivers and coastal waters</li> <li>Incubation 2 hours to 5 days
E. Coli 0157:H7 (Escherichia colibacteria) Diarrhea (may be bloody), abdominal pain, nausea, vomiting, fever, HUS Undercooked ground beef, imported cheeses, unpasteurized milk or juice, cider, alfalfa sprouts Incubation 1 to 8 days
Giardiasis (Giardia lambliaparasite) Diarrhea, excess gas, stomach or abdominal cramps, and upset stomach or nausea Swallowing recreational water contaminated with Giardia Incubation 1 to 2 weeks
Hepatitis A (Hepatitis A virus) Fever, fatigue, stomach pain, nausea, dark urine, jaundice Ready-to-eat foods, fruit and juice, milk products, shellfish, salads, vegetables, sandwiches, water Incubation 28 days
Legionellosis (Legionella pneumophilabacteria) Fever, chills, pneumonia, anorexia, muscle aches, diarrhea and vomiting Contaminated water Incubation 2-10 days
Salmonellosis (Salmonellabacteria) Abdominal pain, headache, fever, nausea, diarrhea, chills, cramps Poultry, eggs, meat, meat products, milk, smoked fish, protein foods, juice</li> <li>Incubation 1-3 days
Vibrio Infection (Vibrio parahaemolyticus,Vibrio vulnificusbacteria) Nausea, vomiting, headache (a quarter of patients experience dysentery-like symptoms) Raw shellfish, oysters Incubation 1 to 7+ days
Viral Gastroenteritis (Calicivirus virus) Diarrhea, vomiting, nausea, cramps, headache, muscle aches, tiredness, slight fever Water, ready-to-eat foods (salad, sandwiches, bread) shellfish Incubation 24 to 48 hours

If you don’t want any of these diseases it’s best that you plan for emergencies by having a way to either sterilized or filter your water sources. Boiling water, using a filtering system that removes particles down to .2 microns, or chemically treating water with 3-4 drops of bleach per gallon of water will provide protection. Obviously none of these processes will allow you to drink salt water. The only way to process and sterilize salt water is to distill it. This process through boiling and condensing will both kill any pathogens and remove minerals.

Ok we’ve got water now. What else can make you sick?

Well the answer is more annoying and dangerous than any lion, tiger, or bear. They outnumber us billions to one and they are relentless….Insects From the annoying buzzing of mosquitoes to the sting of the creepy scorpion. Through out history, insects have been responsible for the collapse of entire societies. Protections from insects can include a number of solutions.

Long sleeve clothing
Long pants
Hats and Head Nets
Netting covering opening in shelters
Chemical Sprays (Deet, Paricardin, Eucalyptus, Gamma Cyhalothrin Sprays)
Fire

If you are bitten or stung by any insect. To reduce the possibility of allergic reaction one should either take an antihistamine such as Benadryl or some other brand. If you know you have a severe reaction to stings such as bees or wasps an epipen is definitely something you’re going to want to pack in you bug out equipment.

Fleas: Yersinia pestis can transmit plague. Yes, the same plague as from the dark ages.

Lice: body lice can carry and transmit several bacterial diseases. These include epidemic typhus, louse-borne relapsing fever, and trench fever.

Mosquitos: Viral Diseases:

Malaria
Dengue
Chikungunya
Zika
West Nile virus
Eastern equine encephalitis
St. Louis encephalitis
Bacterial Diseases: Tularemia.
Parasitic Diseases: Lymphatic filariasis (elephantiasis).
Other Diseases: Heartworm (in animals) and Yellow fever.

Ticks

Alpha-gal syndrome (AGS)
Lyme disease
Anaplasmosis
Ehrlichiosis
Babesiosis
Powassan (POW)
Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever
Tularemia
Ticks can be infected with bacteria, viruses, or parasites.
Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever
Southern tick-associated rash illness
tick-borne relapsing fever

Scorpion:

Stings result in numbness
Tingling
Blurry vision
Twitching muscles
For children
Hyperactivity
Erratic eye movement

Spider Bites:

Stinging
Redness
Severe pain
Necrosis of tissue is common among some species and poisonous spiders.
Some spiders such as the Brown Recluse and Black Widow are poisonous and can result in severe illness and/or death.
Anti-Venom treatments in some cases may be the only way to survive.

Bee and Wasp Stings

Sharp pain
Burning at the sting site
Redness
Swelling
Itching
Those with severe allergic reactions need medical attention immediately or self-administered epipen treatment (strong antihistamine)

Ants

Sharp pain
Burning at the sting site
Redness
Swelling
Itching
Severe allergic reactions are possible that need medical attention immediately or strong antihistamine treatments

Wild Animals, especially the Human kind can harm you and your family It’s an unfortunate reality that in emergency and survival situations we are sometimes forcibly placed in predicaments that we would have never imagined. Animals have innate instinct to survive by hunting for food. If you are prepared for an emergency and have food, animals will try to take it from you. They will eat your unprotected food.

Bears:

They will eat your food
Black bears are typically afraid of humans and noise
Brown and Grizzly Bears are not typically afraid of anything and will kill you.
Do not climb a tree to get away, they are excellent climbers.
Pepper Spray or Firearm can/will deter them.
Be loud and make yourself appear as big as possible.
Do not run away. They will consider you prey.
Bears are good to eat.

Mountain Lions:

They will lay in wait for hours.
Make a lot of noise.
Firearm can/will deter them.
Do not run away. They will consider you prey.
Can be eaten for emergency food

Racoons:

They will steal your food.
Usually will not harm you.
Lock down or hang food stores.

Alligators:

Do not camp right on or go in water sources they frequent
Be aware of surrounding If chased.
Run at 45 degree angle from them.
Excellent food source.

Poisonous Snakes:

Wear long pants and boots if you walking through tall grass.
Be aware of your surroundings and crawling around larger rocks and or logs may upset snakes
If bitten stay calm and apply a compression wrap to area.
Do not try to suck out venom. This does absolutely nothing.
Receiving professional medical attention and the proper anti-venom is the best option.
If no medical support is available, there really isn’t anything to do but wait.
Healthy and strong individuals have a much better chance of survival.
Can be eaten

Humans: