Monthly Archives: October 2012

First Aid Safety, General Safety Issues, Health Issues

NINE WAYS TO PREVENT THE SPREAD OF GERMS IN THE HOME (GUEST POST)

 Submitted by Jacqui Barrie of AupairJobs.com

In a house with more than one child, keeping a viral or bacterial illness confined solely to the child originally infected can mean the difference between caring for one sick child and several. The process can also be a quite challenging one, due to the fact that even unwell children tend to be very mobile and aren’t always sure how they should manage their symptoms in such a way that limits contagion. In the interest of containing the spread of illnesses and preventing transmission between siblings and relatives, here are nine tips and tricks that may help you ensure the good health of the rest of the family.

  1. Practice Sanitary Habits All The Time – By the time that your child is exhibiting symptoms of most common illnesses, he’s been contagious for a significant amount of time. Because an incubation period can be long enough to create a false sense of security, it’s a good idea to practice sanitary habits as much as possible, stepping your efforts up during the colder months.
  2. Enforce a Strict Hand Washing Policy – While it may seem painfully obvious, making sure that kids wash their hands regularly and properly is one of the most effective means of reducing the spread of any bacteria or viruses that cause illness. Insisting that your kids wash their hands often and well, especially when a member of the family is ill, can help to keep everyone else healthy.  Keep a bottle ofhand sanitizer near the one who is sick, and remind him to use if often.
  3. Teach Kids to Sneeze or Cough into Their Elbows – Teaching your child to cover his mouth when he sneezes or coughs might be polite thing to do, but it’s ultimately useless if he does so and then forgets to wash his hands. Every surface he touches after a sneeze could end up coated in germs, so it’s best to teach your children to sneeze into the crook of their elbow, where contact with people and surfaces is less likely.
  4. Sanitize Shared Toys – Sanitizing toys that a sick child shares with healthy siblings in a solution of bleach and water can kill any lingering germs that may be lurking on them. It’s wise to get into the habit of regularly sanitizing toys during cold and flu season, even when everyone in the family is healthy, to prevent contagion before it starts.
  5. Wipe Down Common Surfaces – When a sick child lounges on the couch and channel surfs all day, he’s almost certainly transferring germs from his hands to the remote. Wiping down common surfaces and items that you know a sick child has been handling with antibacterial wipes can help to kill germs before healthy children pick them up.
  6. Pay Extra Attention to Bathroom Surfaces – Illnesses with gastrointestinal symptoms may leave your bathroom laden with viruses and harmful bacteria, while cold and flu symptoms can introduce germs to faucet and toilet handles. Make a point of paying extra attention to the surfaces in a bathroom, especially a shared one, when one child is sick and his siblings aren’t showing any signs of illness.
  7. Make Sure Tissues Are Thrown Away – Suffering from a runny nose on top of a host of other symptoms not only generates a pile of tissues, but also might cause even a normally fastidious child to leave those germ-filled tissues lying around. Contact with one of those tissues is a surefire way of transmitting illness, so make sure that your little one has a wastebasket nearby for his discarded tissues.
  8. Keep Kids Apart as Much as Possible – While it simply isn’t feasible to completely quarantine a sick child by exiling him to the solitude of his bedroom for the duration of his illness, it is a good idea to limit the amount of contact that your healthy children have with a sick one to minimize the risk of contagion.
  9. Sleepovers For Siblings That Share a Room – If your sick child shares his bedroom with a healthy sibling, it might be wise to consider putting your healthy child up in the guest room or your own bedroom until he’s feeling better.

While it’s certainly desirable to contain an illness to as few members of the family as possible, doing so may simply be out of your control. Managing to wipe every surface a sick child touches before it comes into contact with a healthy sibling simply isn’t feasible, so it’s wise not to be too hard on yourself if your other children do begin showing symptoms of illness.

First Aid Safety, General Safety Issues

HOW TO PREVENT NECK INJURIES WHEN PLAYING SPORTS (GUEST POST)

Sent to us by Saam Banai. 

 Sporting events are a common source of injuries, and neck injuries are common in sports involving significant impact. In more serious cases, they can lead to paralysis, or death. Preventing neck injuries is important, but it is also more difficult than preventing other types of neck injuries.
The Nature of Neck Injuries

Neck injuries while playing sports can occur in various ways and with different levels of severity. Blows to the head and severe trauma are not the only sources of neck injuries; overexertion and even compression can also cause injury.

Overuse can lead to a strained or sprained muscles or muscle spasms. In these cases, the ligaments and muscles stretch excessively; ligaments will usually stretch and the muscles will tear. Such injuries usually manifest themselves as a feeling of fatigue or dull aching, followed by gradually increasing pain levels as the muscle is used. In the case of a spasm, the muscle involuntarily contracts, causing brief pain.

These injuries are common. Fortunately, these injuries are easy to resolve. When a muscle or ligament is causing problems, the best solution is to avoid aggravating the injury, keep use of that muscle or ligament to a minimum, and take a pain reliever. With time, these injuries normally heal on their own. These injuries rarely cause serious long-term problems.

Excessive force applied to the neck can cause more serious injuries. Impacts can cause nerve damage, respiratory problems, and even broken or fractured vertebrae. Treating a neck injury caused by a specific blow to the neck is a serious matter. Athletes who suffer nerve damage, damaged vertebrae, or damage to the windpipe should consult a local medical professional.  In some cases, where there has been significant damage to the body or financial loss due to the misstep of another, our personal injury attorney in Atlanta Georgia suggests that legal advice be sought.  

Playing Sports

Avoiding neck injuries from overuse is a relatively simple affair. The athlete should not overuse the muscle. Avoiding overuse becomes easier if the athlete warms up beforehand; adding simple neck-stretching exercises to a warm-up routine is a simple and effective way to prevent excessive neck strain.

With the pressures of team sports and competition, athletes will often play through injuries. Athletes who choose to play through minor muscle injuries should ensure that they are getting enough protein, as protein will help muscles recover more quickly from excessive strain.

Avoiding physical injury is more challenging. Protective gear is the obvious choice to prevent physical injury. In some cases, gear used for neck protection can be valuable. A neck brace can prevent the head from violently thrashing back and forth, causing serious neck injuries, and also prevent contact with fragile body parts.

Unfortunately, neck braces restrict the athlete’s ability to look up and down; hence, neck braces are rarely seen outside certain sports, such as automobile racing. If the athlete has the opportunity to wear a neck brace, he or she should do so. To avoid serious long-term damage from impacts to the neck, athletes should avoid repeat injuries and not take unnecessary risks when it comes to excessive neck movement.

Preventing neck injuries while playing sports can be difficult, as most sports make it difficult to protect the neck from physical injury. Athletes should stretch before games and intense practice sessions to prevent the tearing of muscles and ligaments that would otherwise be tense.  Eliminating the possibility of a neck injury is impossible, but athletes can reduce the potential for them to occur. 

Saam Banai is a freelance writer, editor, and sports enthusiast. He contributes this article for Buddoo & Associates P.C., a personal injury attorney in Atlanta Georgia who deals with personal injury cases of all sizes, which are often settled to the clients benefit before trial. Using over a decade of experience, they devote themselves personally to each client, each case and each accident victim with professionalism and care.

 

 

General Safety Issues, Head Protection

HOW HAS SPORTS SCIENCE AND MEDICINE HELPED ATHLETES IN THEIR GAMES? (GUEST POST)

 By Sharon Freeman.

Sporting Injuries can lead to serious bone and muscle damage that in turn may lead to possibly career ending injuries. Certain sports injuries and treatments are more prevalent among certain types of athletes. Tennis players have “tennis elbow”, baseball pitchers have “tommy john” surgery, football players suffer the gamut, but the most often seen injuries are to the knees and heads.

As recently as a couple of years ago, concussions in any sport ended an athlete’s career, but the injury has received considerable research grants and the results have helped doctors better diagnose the injury and work on a plan of recovery.

Elbow injuries once took pitchers off the mound for good and tennis players had to hang up their rackets. As sports science improves athletes’ mechanics and sports medicine develops better surgeries players can return faster than before and still fighting strong.

What are the most common sports injuries?

Tennis Elbow occurs when the outside of the elbow becomes painful and the joint becomes tender. The doctor will test the patient by asking the patient to grip either his hand or an object. He will note the mechanics of the patients arm as they do this and notice if there is painful reaction. He may have x-rays done to look for deep injury. Usually Medication and PT will help but if they don’t surgery is an option.

How does Tommy John surgery help pitchers? The procedure involved the grafting of a tendon that is harvested from either the same arm or the opposite arm to repair the torn or severely damaged medial tendon on the pitchers arm. The procedure has a very long recovery time, but it does appear to work for most pitchers, thus allowing them to continue their careers.

Head injuries are common injuries in football. The helmets help protect the heads for the most part, but head to head ( helmet to helmet) impacts are still very dangerous. The NFL has recently added to their requirements when a player suffers a concussion that they must have a certain recovery time and receive a full medical release before returning to the game.

Knee injuries involve the ACL and MCL tendons that move and protect the knee affect many athletes in any sport. When those tendons are torn, the recovery processes is long and arduous. Treatment includes medication and PT. If neither works for the patient, then surgery is required. The recovery is often painful and often results in the player never returning to the field of play.

Basketball players run constantly in their game, so their hips, knees and ankles tend to suffer a lot of injuries. They also suffer from injuries similar to tennis elbow due to the repetition of dribbling the ball and shooting baskets. They also tend to suffer from fractures to the face in the heat of the game. One of the most common treatments for facial injuries involved a plastic “cast” worn by the athlete while playing to prevent re-injury.

Sports are exciting to watch and even more exciting to play. The athletes play with full awareness that a severe injury is just one play away. Sports science has helped athletes improve the way they use their bodies, which helps prevent many injuries. Sports medicine has improved with new techniques that have improved the lives of athlete and allowed them to play longer more satisfying careers.  Athletes are now able to recover from even the most drastic injuries with incredibly short recovery times.

Fans can enjoy the success of their favorite players as they watch them perform their skills all thanks to athletes’ grace, scientists’ knowledge and doctors’ skills.

Sharon Freeman is an Australian freelance writer who likes writing about health and injury trends and reviewing or critiquing new medical procedures.

Thank you, Sharon, for this interesting article.  Athletes are fortunate to live in an era where more is known and studied about sports injuries.  For those who enjoy following their particular team in the U.S., Texas America Safety Company features hardhats for NCAA, NFL, MLB, NBA, NASCAR, NHL, and other sports thems.  These help companies ensure compliance while at the same time allowing them to show support for their favorite team. pat

 

 

 

 

 

General Safety Issues

DOES YOUR EMERGENCY LIGHTING MEET REGULATIONS? (GUEST POST)

By Jessica Stark

It can be easy to take your office’s emergency lighting for granted. These lights are hidden in dark corners of your building and above emergency exit doors that are rarely used, but in case of an emergency, those dusty lights that you’ve neglected for so long can help guide you and your coworkers to safety. Is your emergency lighting in proper working condition? There are many OSHA rules and regulations regarding emergency lighting to make sure you and your people stay safe. When setting up your office, be sure to adhere to these requirements to avoid potential harm and accidents for your coworkers.

However, OSHA’s requirements can be tricky to navigate due to its technical language. A wide variety of emergency lighting equipment is available, but how can you be sure what types adhere to requirements?

First, be sure that your signs are the proper height. OSHA requires that the word “EXIT” be easily legible with letters no shorter than six inches in height. Requirements vary depending on the location of the sign in relation to the exit, so an arrow directing people to the exit door may sometimes be required.

Whether an emergency exit sign is externally illuminated, internally illuminated, or photo luminescent, it must be continuously lit while the building is occupied so that it may be visible in regular lighting as well as emergency lighting.

An important thing to be sure of when working with an expert to set up or update your building’s emergency lighting is that the equipment is in place to guide people to safety. During power outages, storms, fires or other disasters, panic and self-preservation can overpower a person’s normal instincts and behaviors. Bright, effective lighting and distinctive signs can guide someone in a panic to safety and keep them from bringing harm to themselves or other people. While OSHA and other national regulators do not require that “EXIT” signs be a particular color, be sure to check local laws to see if a particular color is needed.

It is also important to use “NO EXIT” signs when appropriate. According to the NFPA, a “NO EXIT” sign is needed when “any door, passage, or stairway that is neither an exit nor a way of exit access and that is located or arranged so that it is likely to be mistaken for an exit shall be identified by a sign that reads: NO EXIT.”

The many regulations from OSHA and other governing bodies regarding emergency lighting can be tricky to follow, even with a helpful guide. However, these rules are in place to keep your employees, coworkers and guests safe in times of emergency. Whether your emergency lighting is in need of an update or you are working closely with a contractor to select the proper equipment for your newly built office, be sure to pay attention to your EXIT signs and lighting systems. Proper preparation now will prevent potential tragedies later.

 

General Safety Issues, Home Safety Products

WHEN MONITORED HOME SECURITY IS NOT AN OPTION (GUEST POST)

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 Sent to us by Melonie McLaurin.  Another timely article to share with our readers during Crime Prevention Month.

If you live in a highly urban area, or even a moderate-to-densely populated residential suburb, the importance of a reliable, monitored home security system for your home and family cannot be overstated.  Each year, crime statistics can vary from state to state and among cities of varying sizes and populations, but watching the nightly news will confirm that crime is on the rise in neighborhoods, including wealthy suburban areas on the outskirts of the inner cities.  A large part of home ownership involves investing in the protection of your home:  from fires, floods, break-ins, home invasions, and other dangers that could present a problem for you whether you are present or away.

In the early days of home security systems in the United States, simply having an alarm installed could suffice to keep criminals at bay.  Once they heard the alarm, they would flee the area without waiting around to see whether anyone followed up.  Today, criminals are more brazen than ever and the sound of an alarm is not by itself enough to send them away from your home.  In these times, a monitored home security system from a trusted brand like ADT is the best way to go.

Monitored home security is security that connects to a monitoring center staffed by real people who are trained to respond to your home alarms remotely, and take the correct action to insure your home is protected.  This is very different than the alarms that simply ring; these alarms are connected to people who, if after attempting to contact you to find out whether you are safe, will have authorities dispatched to the location immediately if no answer is received.  This means that even if you, for some reason, are unable to respond to their attempt to reach you, they will still send help right away.

If you entrust your home to substandard home security, or worse, no home security at all, you run the risk of inviting crime rather than deterring it. Difficult economic conditions contribute to spikes in crime attempts, especially thefts of valuable items such as laptops, jewelry, and other portable objects that can be quickly traded off for cash or other goods.  Why make it easy for them, when you could have electronic, wireless, monitored home security from ADT helping you deter crime 24 hours a day, ready to respond in the event of unplanned emergencies?  Living in the city doesn’t have to cause you worry with adequate home security installed.  Consider it an investment in your peace of mind.

General Safety Issues

OCTOBER IS CRIME PREVENTION MONTH 2012

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October is Crime Prevention Month and nothing is more important than crime prevention for people of all ages, including college students, young adults, and folks of all ages.  Blog4Safety’s main focus is safety; therefore, we want you to know how important your involvement in crime prevention is.   

Crime Prevention Month has a long and proud history of community projects and events organized by and aimed at all members of the community – kids, teens, seniors, volunteers, business people, and people in the work place.  Crime Prevention Month is dedicated to all the good work that has been done in crime prevention in the previous year and recognizes all those whose work has helped prevent crime before it happens and made our communities safer. But it also looks to the future – intended to motivate people to reach out, to think more, and do more to keep themselves, their neighbors, and their communities safe and stop crime in its tracks. 

College students and young adults, who tend to be open to new ideas and great purposes, are ideal audiences for this message.  To help make people aware of Crime Prevention Month, NCPC has prepared a sample Crime Prevention Month Proclamation that student body presidents, university deans and presidents, crime prevention and law enforcement personnel, civic leaders, and lawmakers can use to have October adopted as Crime Prevention month. Just go to www.celebratesafecommunities.org to get a copy. 

There isn’t a single strategy solution that will work for all types of businesses and places of education, but potential risks of workplace violence should be identified and corrective measures implemented.  Colleges and universities should investigate threatening situations reported by students, regardless of how trivial they may seem.  Students should be encouraged to be observant and cautious as they go about their everyday activities.

 For the fourth consecutive year, the National Crime Prevention Council, with support from the U.S. Department of Justice will mark Crime Prevention Month with Celebrate Safe communities (CSC) to unite people in a spirit of cooperation to keep their communities safe by preventing crime.  CSC is open to holding events throughout the year, spreading the message that crime prevention is everyone’s business each day of the year.  Some events are safety fairs, visits by McGruff, the Crime Dog, tours of fire departments, sheriff’s offices, police stations, and rescue demonstrations. 

Protect America also is helping spread awareness of crime and crime prevention by supporting National Crime Prevention Month.  Throughout October, government agencies and civic organizations will help educate the public while drawing attention to improvements in crime prevention. The ultimate goal of National Crime Prevention Month is to positively effect change at one of three levels: family, neighborhood, and community.

Protect America has long supported National Crime Prevention Month but the company is increasing its efforts to raise crime prevention awareness. While the larger crime rate has dropped nationally, reported instances of burglary have increased over the past year, according to statistics from the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI). Burglary was the only category of crime that increased during 2011, the FBI reports.

October is also National Cyber Security Awareness Month, for the ninth straight year. For its part, the FBI is strengthening its cyber operations to sharpen its focus on the greatest cyber threats to national security: computer intrusions and network attacks. But every American who uses digital technologies at home or in the office can—and must—play a part in cyber security.
 Are You the Weakest Link?   Since last October, the threat has continued to grow even more complex and sophisticated. Just 12 days ago, in fact, FBI Director Robert Mueller said that “cyber security may well become our highest priority in the years to come.”  For its part, the FBI is strengthening its cyber operations to sharpen its focus on the greatest cyber threats to national security: computer intrusions and network attacks. We are enhancing the technological capabilities of all investigative personnel and hiring additional computer scientists to provide expert technical support to critical investigations. We are creating two distinct task forces in each field office: Cyber Task Forces, focused on intrusions and network attacks that will draw on our existing cyber squads; and Child Exploitation Task Forces, focused on crimes against children. We are also increasing the size and scope of the National Cyber Investigative Joint Task Force—the FBI-led multi-agency focal point for coordinating and sharing cyber threat information to stop current and future attacks.

The FBI also runs several other cyber-related programs, including the Innocent Images National Initiative—which combats online child predators—and the Internet Crime Complaint Center—a partnership between the Bureau and the National White Collar Crime Center that serves as a clearinghouse for triaging cyber complaints and provides an easy-to-use online tool for reporting these complaints.

Because of the interconnectedness of online systems, every American who uses digital technologies at home or in the office can—and must—play a part in cyber security. For example, if you open a virus-laden e-mail attachment at work, you could infect your entire company’s computer network. Don’t be the weakest link: get educated on cyber safety.

Follow these basic steps for added security:

  • Set strong passwords, and don’t share them with anyone.
  • Keep a clean machine—your operating system, browser, and other critical software are optimized by installing regular updates.
  • Maintain an open dialogue with your family, friends, and community about Internet safety.
  • Limit the amount of personal information you post online, and use privacy settings to avoid sharing too much information widely.
  • Be cautious about what you receive or read online—if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is. Ignore the emails that say you have won something; or inherited zillions of dollars—after you send them your banking info. Delete that message quickly!

Let’s all do our part to keep our neighborhoods and communities safe.  Protect your valuable possessions, such as televisions, DVR’s and other electronics by marking and taking pictures of them in order to help identify them if stolen.  Another safety tip: hanging a purse on the back of a chair in a restaurant is an open invitation for a pickpocket to help himself/herself.  Find a safe way to secure it while you are enjoying your meal.

Source: Protect America; National Crime Prevention Council; and FBI

Eye Protection, General Safety Issues, Hand Protection, Head Protection

Common Safety Hazards and How to Avoid Them (Guest Post)

Written by Jeanie Barcus

Work environments and public environments are often filled with a wide variety of dangerous hazards. In many cases, these hazards can cause an individual serious bodily harm. However, it’s often possible to avoid these hazards by following the right safety steps. The following guide provides simple tips and tricks on how to avoid public safety hazards.

When working at a job, it’s important to make sure your employees and peers are all aware of the Occupational Safety and Hazard Administration (OSHA) guidelines. OSHA is designed to protect workers from dangerous conditions that are a serious safety hazard.

It’s always important to be aware of your surroundings. If an individual is working around heavy machinery, it’s important to make sure that one pays attention to the location of moving equipment at all times. All it takes is a brief lapse of attention for a serious accident to take place.

In addition, it’s important to make sure that you have access to the proper safety equipment when working in dangerous environments. Employers are required to provide the right safety equipment to employees. This can include chemical-proof clothing, boots, safety helmets, gas masks and a variety of other accessories. 

For example, working in some environments can expose an individual to a variety of dangerous toxins. If an individual works in an industrial setting, he or she may be exposed to trace levels of dangerous toxins like mercury, lead, asbestos and uranium. In these situations, it’s important to make sure that one has the proper safety equipment to ensure a safe working environment.

In addition, it’s essential to make sure that an employee coordinates with his or her peers. Without coordination, it can be difficult to respond to a problem in the correct way. In some cases, responding to a dangerous system in the wrong way can expose other people to a potential hazard. To avoid these types of problems, it’s important to remain in communication with one’s peers at all times. 

Since it can be difficult to avoid all safety hazards in a work environment or other public area, it’s important to be prepared for the consequences of an accident. In some cases, an accident can cause a loss of income for an individual and his or her family. If this happens, it’s important to get legal assistance as soon as possible. By hiring a professional accident attorney, it may be possible for an individual to recoup some of the losses that resulted from an accident.

 

Eye Protection, General Safety Issues, Head Protection, Protective Clothing

HOW TO AVERT WELDING ACCIDENTS (GUEST POST)

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 Sent to us from Alan Murfee, of the United Kingdom.
 
Welding, a high-risk occupation is a skilled occupation that requires proper care and attention. Due to absence of proper preventive measures, the likelihood of welding accidents and illnesses is on an all-time rise. It is hence, extremely important to pay proper attention to your safety. Make sure you do not neglect safety norms and follow the right practices.

Read along to know how to maintain a safe and productive environment, thereby reducing chances of welding accidents and illnesses.

Enhance your knowledge

Most welders skip their welding safety education, and remain ignorant about various welding safety measures. Before you take to the welding profession, enroll in a good trade school that offers welding specialization programs. This shall not only promote safety, but also help catapult your career. If you’re hiring welders, make sure you hire them only after they’ve attended welding safety classes and have proper knowledge about welding safety.

Welding equipment

In case of such a high-risk profession such as welding, possessing the right tools is not only important for professional competence, but also for your own comfort and safety. You must ascertain that your tools have been inspected for defects and are in good condition. Faulty tools shall not only be inconvenient for you, but can also be dangerous. Having some knowledge about repairing and administering these equipment for leaks and defects can always help you to a great extent.

Welding safety accessories

Construction safety gear is a prerequisite to avert most industrial accidents. You must ensure that you wear your safety accessories before welding. Essential safety equipment like welding helmets, gloves and boots can prevent major accidents. There is always a risk of getting injuries due to weld splatters. Welding also involves dealing with intense heat and high radiations, so make sure you wear your safety goggles. Wearing protective helmets can also help reduce possibilities of accidents caused by hazardous smoke, fire flash, unexpected explosion, etc. Your gloves will also protect you from getting burn injuries.

Appropriate Clothing

Welding processes generate intense heat and hot sparkles. It is hence, imperative for you to dress suitably. It is advisable to wear solid, weighty fabrics such as heavy fibers or denim that are not easily inflammable. Make sure you wear clothes that cover your entire body and leave no part exposed.

Avoid wearing open-toed shoes or canvas boots. Wearing safety boots with steel toe-caps are greatly recommended. Wearing appropriate clothing and being well-equipped with essential construction safety products can go a long way in protecting you, and preventing welding accidents.

Taking Preventive measures

An ounce of prevention is definitely worth a pound of cure. It is hence, imperative for you to take the required preventive measures before welding. In a trade dealing with molten metal, circumspection and vigilance is required at every step.

The welding process must always be carried out in well-ventilated areas that are specially designated for welding. Keeping the area clean is important, and make sure no flammable objects lie in close proximity with this area. It always helps to keep a first-aid kit close to you when welding.

Meticulous planning, proper knowledge and the right equipment can reduce likelihood of these welding accidents to a great extent. In case however, there are accidents caused by negligence, make a claim for compensation for the welding accident. 

We appreciate the information from Alan Murfee.  Please also check out the cool welding hoods sold by our parent company, Texas America Safety Company (tasco-safety.com).  Welding is a very serious business, so please be trained and be careful! pb

 

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General Safety Issues

HOW TO STAY SAFE WHILE BLOGGING (GUEST POST)

Written by Debra Johnson

Blogging, or online journaling, became popular in the 1990’s as a way to share your feelings, either privately or publicly, with friends and strangers on the internet. It was the online version of keeping a diary, and was widely popular with pre-teens and teenagers. Recently, however, it has taken a new turn, going from a diary-type setting to a business one. Bloggers are using their blogs to intertwine their personal lives with professional marketing by partnering up with companies to review products and services, and to spread the word about a business in exchange for some sort of compensation.

This profession is a popular one because it allows people to work from home, interact with brands and businesses that they enjoy, and get tons of perks, from free products to comped restaurant meals to free hotel rooms and trips, just to name a few. However it also comes with a huge safety concern. Putting your life on display on the internet means that you are opening the doors for anyone to read about you, including those people who have less than desirable intentions. In order to stay safe while blogging it’s imperative to share bits of your life without compromising your personal security. You can do so by:

1.       Never posting anything relating to where you live or work. While disclosing the city you reside in usually isn’t a big deal, you should never post anything that gives away the neighborhood or apartment complex you live in, streets that are close to your residence, or places that you frequent, such as the gym, library, or where you work. 

2.       Never let your readers know when you’re going out of town. Even if you’ve been careful to avoid posting information that could allow people to infer where you live, if you’re going out of town and leaving your house unattended you should refrain from disclosing this information until after you’re back home.

3.       Avoid using last names. When you refer to both yourself and other people on your blog you should never include last names. This makes it far too easy for people to search for you or your friends or family, so you should avoid doing so at all costs. 

4.       Be mindful of any photographs you use. While it may not bother you to have photos of yourself online, other people may not be so keen to be included on your blog. Check with anyone and everyone in a photograph before including it, as you don’t want anyone to feel uncomfortable from something you’ve posted.

5.       Anonymously register your domain name. When you buy a personal domain your contact information immediately becomes available for others to search. To avoid this you should register your domain name anonymously.

Even if your job is to share your life online, you should still be very wary of any personal information that you post, because you never really know who’s on the other end reading. There’s a fine line between sharing just enough information and sharing too much, and to maintain your personal safety you have to constantly make sure that you’re not crossing that line.

About the Author: 

This guest post is contributed by Debra Johnson, blogger and editor of Liveinnanny.com. She welcomes your comments at her email Id: – jdebra84 @ gmail.com.