By Sabina Idayatova
The advent of the lovely summer season with plenty of holidays, besides being encouraging for people, is sometimes accompanied by unpleasant incidents.
Walking a lot under the sun could be both harmful and dangerous. Sunstrokes, weakness, the emergence of spots on the skin could be a serious concern for people in summer. Moreover, the hot summer season is a time when some animals including snakes, scorpions, and insects become more active.
So, to what extent is the degree of the said danger in Azerbaijan, a place with rich fauna and flora?
Doctors at the Baku ambulance and emergency care facility have helped a person with a diagnosis of sunstroke and another suffered a snake bite, deputy chief doctor at the Baku emergency medical aid station, Ogtay Shahmaliyev, said on July 15.
According to Shahmaliyev, six more people have been provided with medical assistance due to insect bites.
Shahmaliyev noted further that since the end of April, 29 people have applied to the Baku City Emergency and Urgent Medical Aid Station over various insect bites.
Similar incidents were reported in some beaches in the Azerbaijani capital. Recently local residents witnessed poisoned snakes in Shuvelyan beaches.
Meanwhile, Director of the Center of Biological Diversity Tavakkul Iskandarov advises to use commercial services to clean the areas from snakes. "There is no entity in the country rendering free services to the population to clean up areas from snakes," he said.
"Our entity is providing paid services to citizens. We conclude an agreement with a particular person to clean up the territory from snakes. The pay for this work is set depending on the span of the territory," Iskandarov added.
Nevertheless, people can themselves provide first aid to those injured by bites of bees, scorpions, flies, snakes, etc., before the affected person receives medical aid.
The following methods can be applied.
In order to relieve the pain after a scorpion bite, it is useful several times to insert a cloth into salty or acetic water. Otherwise, the injured part of the body is put in a container with milk, and the yellowish color of the milk shows that the poison has been cleaned out.
In order to prevent infiltration of poison into the blood, the bitten part of the body should be immediately tied tightly. Then the poison is squeezed out after cutting the bitten part of the body with a scalpel. Milk or sour milk can also be used in this case.
The mixed syrup of an apple and barberry is the best cure for averting insect poisoning. It is prepared by taking an equal amount of barberry or apple juice, adding lemon juice and sugar, which makes up one-fourth of the syrup. The syrup is cooked on warm fire and has to be dense.
Lemon juice is also a useful cure in case of poisoning.
If a prickle remains on the skin after a sting of a bee or another insect, firstly the prickle is removed and a poultice is prepared from an egg white and thyme and further put on the hurt part of the body. Sometimes, rubbing in sorrel is sufficient.
Also, walnut leaves helps against bee stings.
Onion is the best cure for preventing considerable itching after the bite of a mosquito or another insect. A poultice of a wild mountain onion is used in case of bites by snakes or insects. Vinegar is also added to the said poultice.
A mix of saffron and starch could also be rubbed to the bitten part. A poultice of parsley as well as boiled cabbage prevents swelling.
Moreover, a poultice of crude oil prevents bee and scorpion poisoning.
