The National Weather Service predicting up to eight inches of snow today and tonight.  Our local municipal officials in Oak Park, River Forest & Forest Park are urging residents, merchants and visitors to plan accordingly.  When – let’s be proactive here and assume the worst – the Snow Emergency Parking Rules go into effect, cars may be towed.

Also, please be considerate of your neighbors by shoveling their sidewalks, if you’re able to do so.  You might receive some home-made goodies, or at least a smile from them.  What a wonderful way to show that you’re not such a bad neighbor.

Finally, we’ve said it before and we’ll say in again… if you experience an emergency, please dial 9-1-1;  and be sure that you’re not overexerting yourself moving the snow.  Many a heart attack comes from “just one shovel more!”

• Please pay close attention to the cold temperature and how tired you become. Don’t work to the point of exhaustion. Take breaks indoors to warm up.
• Stay hydrated – and that doesn’t mean beer or hard liquor!  You sweat more than you think while shoveling snow. Be sure to drink plenty of fluids before and after shoveling to replenish fluids lost in the process.
• Bend legs slightly at the knee, letting thigh muscles do most of the pushing and lifting work. Better yet, push the snow, do not pick it up!
• Your clothing should be well-fitting and worn in layers, and you should shed clothing as the body becomes warm. Remember, overheating puts strain on the heart. Wearing a scarf over the nose and mouth helps reduce breathing cold air, which also makes the heart work harder.

And remember… Snow shoveling is not the exercise to use to start getting in shape!  Use common sense and reach out to your neighbors both to assist and for assistance!

We get e-mail from friends that – occasionally we pass on.  Please consult your Physician all issues with your health.

The life  we save may be our own or that of a loved one.  Please read on………..

Mayo Clinic  – Aspirin

Dr. Virend  Somers, is a Cardiologist from the Mayo Clinic,  who is lead author of the report in the July 29,  2008 issue of the Journal of the American  College of Cardiology.

Most heart  attacks occur in the day, generally between 6  A.M. and noon, Somers said. Having one during  the night, when the heart should be most at  rest, means that something unusual happened.  Somers and his colleagues have been working for  a decade to show that sleep apnea is to blame.

1. If you take an aspirin or a baby  aspirin once a day, take it at night. The  reason: Aspirin has a 24-hour “half-life”;  therefore, if most heart attacks happen in the  wee hours of the morning, the Aspirin would be  strongest in your system.
2. FYI,  Aspirin lasts a really long time in your  medicine chest for years, (when it gets old, it  smells like vinegar). Please read on.

Something that we can do to help  ourselves – nice to know. Bayer is making  crystal aspirin to dissolve instantly on the  tongue. They work much faster than the  tablets.

Why keep Aspirin by your bedside? It’s about Heart Attacks – There are other symptoms of a heart  attack, besides the pain on the left arm. One  must also be aware of an intense pain on the  chin, as well as nausea and lots of sweating;  however, these symptoms may also occur less  frequently. Note: There may be NO pain in the  chest during a heart attack.

The  majority of people (about 60%) who had a heart  attack during their sleep, did not wake up.  However, if it occurs, the chest pain may wake  you up from your deep sleep.

If that  happens, immediately dissolve two aspirins in your mouth and swallow them with a bit of water.

Afterwards:
- Call 911.
- Phone a  friend, neighbor or a family member who lives very close  by.
- Tell them “Heart Attack!”
- Then tell them that you  have taken 2 Aspirins.
- Take a seat on a  chair or sofa near the front door, and wait for  their arrival and … DO NOT  LIE DOWN!