Bug out meds

[festus]

I have recently been giving a lot of thought to bug out medication/supplies.
Please feel free to add your two cents worth.

1. Asprin-prevents blood clots, pain reliever, heart attack stop gap measure
2. Motrin-pain reliever, anti-inflamitory
3. Benadryl-allergy reliever, potentially life saving if dealing with insect sting allergies, food allergies etc.
4. Tums-antacid
5. Iodine-wound antiseptic
6. Neosporin-antibacterial wound salve
7. Alcohal wipes-sterilize skin and small medical tools
8. Good quality multivitamin-prevents beriberi, mal-nurishment, promotes healing
9. Baking soda-takes the sting out of insect encounters

 

[DrDavidM]

Your list is pretty complete
You might want to consider
1. Some sort of eye lubricant drops or eye wash.
2. Depending on the climate some salt tablets (getting very difficult to find). This is questionable. I doubt I would fool with it.
3. Some Imodium (loperamide) for stomach cramping or diarrhea. This is depending on your source of water, etc.
4. Dramamine will sometimes relieve nausea.
5. Not a med, but some butterfly bandages. They will hold a wound closed and take very little room.
6. Tylenol if you are bleeding you probably want to avoid aspirin or Motrin due to their anticoagulant effects.

If you are taking baking soda it can also be used as an effective antacid. Or you could get something like Pepcid or Zantac and it would take up less room than the Tums

You basically have what you need. Aspirin, ibuprofen, Benadryl, and some alcohol would be my primary concerns.

 

[boris]

hello,men!!

I think all these ideas are great. I wouldlike to suggest that you look at the blackwater link in helpful links in this section. it is a suggestion for a police officer's first aid kit. also, tere is a link to a organization called doctors for disaster preparedness or similiar, and they have a GREAT article and list for a kit that they say will i a good kit for a disaster shelter or 10-13 people. in spite of the fact that peoplelik myself,HK4U, and festus have preachd emergency prep for years, people won'tbe. and whilei may not be able to feed or defend them completely, i do not want to be so.... inhuman as to no be in a position to help someone else, if i can. my biggest worry is prescription meds. my wife takes thyroid rx and my oldest son, because of his autism takes a hig powered psych medicine. but as aways we do what we can the best we can and ask, expect and hope that The Lord comes through when it comes. whateer "it" may be.....

 

[boris]

dr.dave..

i have both hospital grade isopropyl alcohol and hydrogen peroxide in my kit. thoughts?

 

[DrDavidM]

Alcohol is great. It can be used to kill almost any virus or bacteria. I am not a big fan of peroxide. I was taught in pharmacy school all it did was bubble. It could bubble trash out of a wound, but that was about all. It killed no bacteria or viruses. I personally would limit it to the alcohol. However, it could never hurt anything to have the peroxide, I just don't see a big use for it.

Peroxide can also bleach your clothes. You don't want to look bad in a bug out situation.
​

 

[mudslgr]

Alot of survival sites fail to mention the usefuleness of vinegar. Do some research on it. Also, tee tree oil.

 

[whiptrackercracker]

What about nuclear fallout

I know with the terrorist style attacks we tend to shy away from cold war thinking but I thought Potassium Iodine was another thing to add to your list. Something I do not quite have in mine, but it embards your thyroids and keeps them from absorbing nuclear particulate left over from either a nuclear strike or dirty bomb. It protects that which is most vunerable to breathing in nuclear dust over a short period. Otherwise looks fairly complete. I also have Sodium Chloride/Potassium Chloride/Calcium Carbonate tablets in my pack..Or electrolyte tablets for short. Good in case of dhydration in the short term

 

[boris]

i thought

you could use peroxide as a water purification device. i use it as a mouthwash. i mix listerene 50/50 with peroxide... works well.

 

[boris]

mudslinger

good idea on vinegar i use it around the house to clean

 

[HK4U]

I think it would be a good idea to add a clotting agent like quick-clot.

 

[Brainchild]

When I was a young 'un,my Dady told me about using sugar to get a serious wound to clot and stop bleeding.
I've seen it work.

 

[2075RAMI4ME]

Super Glue! Works great for cuts...even fairly big ones if they don't gap open too wide. The stuff we use in the ER is essentially fancy Super Glue.

 

[mom of 3 angels]

What about expiration dates on the meds? At what point do they need to be rotated out? I have some old stuff in mine, and most of the pill types are consolidated in one container so I don't even know what expiration dates were on them. Any suggestions/ideas/information?

 

[festus]

expiration dates

You will need to dosome homework. Temperature and humidity are the two biggest factors in meds breaking down. If in doubt throw it out. Don't poison yourself.

 

[DrDavidM]

What about expiration dates on the meds? At what point do they need to be rotated out? I have some old stuff in mine, and most of the pill types are consolidated in one container so I don't even know what expiration dates were on them. Any suggestions/ideas/information?

How long have you had them. Most meds last about 2 years. I know it's difficult, but it's never a good idea put meds in something that does not have at least the name, expiration date, and lot number. Also preferably something with directions for appropriate use. If you have only tablets at this time there is no way to track the expiration dates. Most meds won't actually hurt anything if they have expired, they just may not work. On the other hand, some will make you quite sick if they have expired. I would discard them and start over. Perhaps use little packs of travel meds, or find something that will seal and put a piece of paper with the important info on the outside of the pack.

 

[mom of 3 angels]

Thanks for the helpful info guys. I'll be reworking the meds . . . I try to check the packs every 6 months or so and rotate out clothes for the kids, etc, but hadn't thought much about the meds. They'll go on the check/rotate list for when I'm going through the packs from now on. Thanks again!