Brain Link. You only have one brain. No replacement is available―and even if it were available you would no longer be the you that you know. That means it is prevention all the way, which begins in your brain. According to the Alzheimer’s Association, brain injuries from even a mild concussion can increase your risk of brain decline and dementia. You only have one body, as well. While some body-organ replacements exist, they can be less efficient, may be unavailable, or are not a compatible match. Safety is important for both the brain and body. According to the National Safety Council, of the top ten preventable injuries, the top three—poisoning, car crashes, and falls—account for over 86% of all preventable deaths. Carelessness, inattention, distractions, a failure to think ahead, and taking chances all contribute to largely avoidable accidents.
Safety is something that happens between your ears—not somethingyou hold in your hands. ―Jeff Cooper
When many people think of safety, they think primarily of falling, vehicle crashes, fires, gun safety, and sports accidents. Safety involves a much broader concept. There is safety related to your brain, body, mind, immune system, health, longevity, disasters, diseases, and many more. Safety involves thinking ahead about prevention and taking steps to reduce the risk for injury whenever possible. It requires dumping the erroneous belief that “It won’t happen to me.”
Three main causes of many adverse events are said to be, “I didn’t see. I didn’t think. I didn’t know.” In addition, “I didn’t listen, I didn’t pay attention in the moment, I got distracted, I didn’t wear a mask, I didn’t dress for the weather, I drank too much, I took the dare,” and so on contribute to many adverse events. So does having the information but disregarding it; going ahead and making a choice to do a behavior that increases your risk for having a disastrous outcome. Not everything can be prevented but estimates are that more than you might think are either preventable or avoidable. That begins in your brain, however.
The real enemy of safety is not non-compliance but non-thinking. —Rob Long
The first time you do something, your brain lays out the outline of new neuron software in case you want to do it again. Since it is always easier to do something a second time, that speaks to the benefits of practice. The sad news is that the brain can end up developing some pretty unsafe habits because you chose to try something once. Choose carefully what you decide to do once. Safety involves proactive thinking, evaluation of pros and cons, and mindfulness that makes informed choices toward prevention or avoidance. Think ahead. In other words, safety is a mindset.
You only have one brain. Replacements do not exist. It is prevention all the way. You only have one body. Some replacements are available for body parts. They do not always perform as well as the originals, however. You only have one mind. Damage to your mind sometimes cannot be repaired. To transport the brain and mind safely and efficiently, the body needs to be healthy and in good physical condition. If the body becomes incapacitated, this will impact the brain and mind negatively. If the brain or mind becomes incapacitated, this can negatively impact everything. Safety includes paying attention to researched strategies related to brain, body, and mind.
Presumption is the opposite of Prevention. —Bhavik Sarkhedi
Your brain can only do what it thinks it can do. If you believe in safety, you likely will take reasonable and responsible safety measures. There is a happy medium. No need to develop an anxiety disorder or become agoraphobic. At the same time be wise about prevention and seek help as needed.
Being reckless or fearless may provide an adrenalin rush. That is as far from evaluating the potential risk of something as the sky is above the earth. Thinking ahead and determining what safety precautions make sense, discovering the cost of those safety precautions, and then deciding whether or not you want to proceed, shows wisdom. Just because a less well-informed daredevil may be willing to risk life, limb, and longevity does not mean you choose to do so.
Safety is not a gadget but a state of mind. ―Eleanor Everest Freer
View the Educational Video #6. If possible, stand and walk in place for at least a portion of the video to increase blood blow to your brain.
The A-B-C of it will save you if you follow it: Always Be Careful. ―Colorado School of Mines
The words “monkey see, monkey do,” comes to mind. It can apply to humans, as well as primates, since humans are part of the diverse order of mammals. Watching someone do a behavior that you want to learn can speed up learning. Watching someone engage in a behavior that is not desirable or beneficial, can register in your brain as if what is being done is happening to you. Choices on Planet Earth are almost endless, especially when you factor in electronics and 24/7 virtual access. Be careful about taking a dare or succumbing to engage in an activity that is high risk simply because you are being strongly encouraged or even bullied to do so.
Safety involves what you put into your brain and mind. Every thought you think is believed to actually change the neuronal connections in your brain. Everything begins in the brain, which includes the mind that was created by the brain during gestation. The brain and the heart are said to have an unmediated channel between them, neuronal pathways that are always open, free flowing, and ungoverned by monitors. There is a plethora of evidence that what one chooses to put into the brain and mind can trigger all manner of thoughts, emotions, and behaviors and impact the heart as well.
Safety involves what you are putting into your brain, mind, heart, body, and spirit. It will impact all aspects of health and longevity. It will impact your relationships with each other, with nature, and with the world. It can come back to help or haunt you.
1) What type of TV programs and movies do you watch?
2) What social media sites do you visit?
3) What type of books do you read?
4) What type of places do you visit?
5) What type of individuals do you hang out with?
6) What type of video games do you play?
7) Are you addicted to social media or pornography?
8) Are you addicted to drugs or alcohol?
9) Are you addicted to a person and in a dangerous relationship?
10) Do you do what you know to be true, kind, positive, honorable, necessary, and beneficial in your relationships?
11) Do you behave differently when you are alone, or when no one else is looking, or when you think no one else will ever know?
By beholding we becomes changed is the law of our being. —Stephen Nelson Haskell
Environmental disasters are typically unpreventable and sometimes are also unavoidable. They may include:
1) Hurricanes, Tornados, Earthquakes, Tsunamis, and Geysers
2) Extreme temperatures of hot or cold, power outages
3) Avalanches and volcanic eruptions
4) Poor air quality from pollution
5) Fires that are natural or man-made
6) Violent protests
7) Rain storms, floods, and droughts
8) Epidemics and pandemics
Even when disasters occur, the effects may be minimized by thinking ahead and following recommendations for increased safety. If a disaster does occur, approaching it with a positive, problem-solving attitude will likely be most effective.
When something bad happens, you have three choices. You can let it define you, let it defeat you, or you can learn from it and let it strengthen you. —Old Proverb
If everything went well, you would have arrived on Planet Earth with a built-in safety- protection program known as the Immune System. It takes six months or so to ramp up and really kick in, which is the reason some recommend breast-feeding because the colostrum contains antibodies from the mother’s immune system. Colostrum is the first breast milk released by the mammary glands following birth. It is high in antibodies and antioxidants and is nutrient-dense to build the newborn’s immune system.
The Immune System includes both the body’s immune system and the brain’s immune system, known as the glymphatic system—the existence of which was only discovered in 2016. Prior to that it was thought that the brain had no immune system. The discovery was the impetus for revising a great many textbooks and anatomical atlases.
Estimates are that 85% of all illnesses are within reach of the immune system for healing. Estimates also say that perhaps more than half of those illnesses potentially could have been prevented. A balanced Longevity Lifestyle is one of the best ways to support your immune system.
The immune system is like a well-trained army, ready to defend the brain and body against any invading enemy. —Peter Parham
Know your brain, body, and mind and how they function when you are healthy, feel good, and have lots of energy. That can help you recognize quickly when something changes and get medical help in a timely manner. In general, if you get sick and then get well, your immune system heals you. It also is designed to protect you from harmful pathological organisms and other substances that can do you in. Your level of health and length of lifespan are related to how well your immune system works. It takes a long time for the immune system to fail and even longer to repair itself—if it is even possible to do so. Sometimes it can bounce back; sometimes it cannot. This is yet another example of how prevention beats cure.
The most powerful force to maintaining a good immune system is the power of positive thinking and not allowing yourself to be unnecessarily drained emotionally by worries and fears. —Frederick Lenz
The Immune System (IS) has multiple functions and responsibilities:
1) To recognize what is supposed to belong to and be part of you and what isn’t. One of the problems with organ replacements is that the IS knows that the replacement is not part of you and may work diligently to reject the replacement.
2) To destroy foreign invaders and create antibodies to fight against an estimated 10 million different organisms. It any ever show up again, the immune system already has an edge in trying to fight them off.
3) To destroy abnormal cells including mutations that can form tumors and cancers. Immune cells have the capacity to actually blow up abnormal cells and treat them as waste products.
4) To keep things tidy and clean by getting rid of waste products. Discarding waste is critically important to health.
Diseases can rarely be eliminated through early diagnosis or good treatment, but prevention can eliminate disease. —Denis Parsons Burkitt
Epidemics, pandemics, illnesses, and diseases all can cause some type of injury, temporary or permanent. Some diseases are classed as communicable, some are classed as noncommunicable, and some are worse than others. Examples follow related to communicable and non-communicable diseases.
1) The 1918 influenza epidemic flu infected an estimated 500 million people globally—33% of the world’s population at the time—and killed 50-100 million.
2) The Spanish flu resulted in the death of about 50 million people.
3) Smallpox may have been the biggest killer in world history to date. It caused an estimated 400 million cumulative deaths over 3,000 years, 300 million in the 20th century alone.
4) WHO estimates that influenza epidemics annually result in up to five million cases of severe illness and a quarter to a half-million deaths worldwide.
5) The AIDS pandemic and the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic are more recent examples.
Illnesses caused by pathogenic organisms regularly create local epidemics and sometimes pandemics. Influenza or respiratory flu (different from stomach flu) is one example. It is caused by a virus that infects the respiratory tract (lungs) and is quite common. The virus—carried through the air—spreads easily through coughing, sneezing, singing, and talking. Typical symptoms include fever, sore throat, runny nose, chills, fatigue, and sometimes aching, and may last for a few days or for weeks. Influenza viruses are known for their ability to mutate, i.e., change their DNA just enough so last year’s vaccine is unhelpful in preventing this year’s variant.
Noncommunicable diseases (NCDs) are actually said to be the leading cause of death worldwide, killing about 15 million individuals annually. Obesity falls into this category. In the US, CDC estimates that 40% of the general population are obese. More than 2 in 5 individuals are obese. Obesity is linked with more than 50 diseases. In the majority of cases, obesity is believed to be preventable.
Diseases can rarely be eliminated through early diagnosis or good treatment, but prevention can eliminate disease. —Denis Parsons Burkitt
Listen to Chapter #8 of Just the Facts audiobook. If possible, walk around the room while you listen. At least walk in place.
Brain injury comes in many forms. The two most prevalent brain injuries—stroke and trauma—affect more than 2.2 million Americans, and these numbers are expected to grow. —Allyson Schwartz
A stroke or cerebral vascular accident (CVA) can occur when blood flow is cut off to an area of the brain, as seen on a brain scan. Deprived of vital oxygen and glucose, the cells die. If not caught early, permanent brain damage can occur, sometimes leading to death. If you are at higher risk for stroke, all the more reason to become dedicated to a preventive lifestyle. For example:
1) Those over the age of 55 have a higher risk.
2) African Americans are at a higher risk.
3) Males have a higher risk than females, although women are more likely to die from a stroke.
4) Hormone therapies that include estrogen increase risk.
5) If you have diabetes, control it carefully. Get help from your physician.
Ischemic strokes account for about 80% of all strokes. They can be caused by a blood clot that blocks the brain’s blood vessels or by fatty deposits and cholesterol (plaque) that have a similar effect.
Hemorrhagic strokes occur when a blood vessel in the brain breaks or ruptures allowing blood to damage brain cells. Common causes of hemorrhagic stroke are high blood pressure that contributes to more than 12.7 million strokes worldwide, and brain aneurysms, a weakness in a blood-vessel wall.
Every 40 seconds, someone in the United States experiences an ischemic or hemorrhagic a stroke. It is a medical emergency. Obtaining treatment as soon as possible is critical to reducing possible long-term complications and disabilities. While not all strokes can be prevented, following are examples of how you may be able to lower your risk significantly:
1) High blood pressure is the #1 cause of strokes, contributing to more than half of them and raising your risk by 4-6 times. Reduce sodium (salt) and avoid trans fats and other processed foods that can raise blood pressure.
2) Smoking can double the risk of strokes as nicotine raises the blood pressure. In addition, the smoke’s carbon monoxide can lower the amount of oxygen that actually makes it to the brain. Even breathing second-hand smoke increases a stroke risk.
3) Lack of physical exercise can lead to obesity, high cholesterol, diabetes, and high blood pressure—a recipe for stroke.
4) Eat healthfully and manage your weight. Avoid fast foods and processed foods. Eat fresh fruits and veggies every day. Choose lean proteins and high-fiber foods. Stay away from trans fats and saturated fats, which can clog arteries.
5) Get help for symptoms of sleep apnea which can increase a stroke risk by raising the blood pressure and reducing the among of oxygen that reaches the brain.
6) Learn as much as possible about your generational health because prevention strategies can sometimes be implemented. Identify your personal safety risks and find ways to avoid what you can and better manage what you cannot.
7) According to the World Health Organization about 15 million people suffer strokes worldwide each year. Of these, one third die and another one third are permanently disabled.
Although some concussions are less serious that others, there is no such thing as a minor concussion. Some have explained that a single mild concussion ma not result in permanent damage; however, a second concussion soon after need not be extraordinarily strong for its effects to be permanently disabling. —Neurology Summary
Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) is a major cause of disability and death in the United States. It can result from a violent blow or jolt to the head, or an object that penetrates brain tissue, such as a bullet or a shattered piece of skull. A mild TBI may affect your brain cells temporarily. Repeated mild trauma and/or a more-serious TBI can result in bruising, torn tissues, bleeding and other physical damage to the brain—which can result in long-term complications or death.
There is no reparative treatment for traumatic brain injury. All we can do now is try to prevent secondary damage by relieving pressure on the brain caused by the initial injury. —Charlie Cox
Symptoms of TBI may include:
1) Headache
2) Confusion
3) Lack of coordination
4) Memory loss
5) Nausea, vomiting
6) Dizziness
7) Ringing in the ears
8) Sleepiness
9) Excessive fatigue
10) Weakness in the lower limbs
11) Unsteady gait
12) Slowness of muscular movements
13) Hand tremors
14) Hesitancy of speech
15) Cognitive impairment
The National Football League acknowledges that repetitive trauma to the head in football can cause a “permanent, disabling injury to the brain.” —Bob Fitzsimmons
Contributors to TBI include:
1) Falls due to dizziness, tripping over rugs and other objects, stumbling on stairs, climbing ladders (especially alone), working on the roof, wearing unstable shoes, being unsteady due to inebriation, et cetera.
2) Vehicle accidents
3) Shaken Baby Syndrome. An infant or toddler is shaken forcibly enough to cause brain tissue to bounce back and forth against the bony skull.
4) Dementia Pugilistica. This condition results from repeated cerebral concussions that can range from mild to life-threatening.
5) Violence, domestic violence, and abuse.
6) Failure to wear helmets for sports such a skateboarding and bike riding.
7) Failure to wear seat belts in vehicles. Failure to wear helmets when bicycle and bike riding. Failure to wear helmets when skateboarding. Heading in games such as soccer. And on and on.
8) Failure to wear protective gear in many sports—if the gear even exists—in sports such as: soccer, boxing, football, baseball, lacrosse, skateboarding, hockey, and other high-impact or extreme sports. Those involved with boxing, football, rugby, soccer are at higher risk.
Literally thousands of lawsuits have been filed against the NFL by retired players, many of whom say that information on brain injury in football was withheld from them. —Henry Rollins
View the short Birds ‘n Brains video #6. If possible, stand or walk in place for at least part of the video.
Almost all accidents and injuries happen when an individual is not being present and not paying attention to what they are doing. ―Tobe Hanson
Many a life might have lived and thrived successfully for another decade or two, never mind a lifetime, had the individual not experienced broken bones, head injuries, sexually-transmitted diseases, or illness related to unwise behaviors and drug addictions. Be proactive about safety on a daily basis. Information is one thing. Knowledge is another thing. It involves information plus learning from personal experiences. Implementing the combination, however, is another thing.
1) Avoid substances that may negatively damage the brain’s neuronal control centers. Avoid or minimize the use of alcoholic beverages. If you choose to drink, do not drive! Avoid exposure to street drugs and other substances that can negatively alter brain function.
2) Be careful about addictive behaviors. They can involve more than you might think. It is possible to become addicted to your own internal body substances. For example, an addiction to endorphins from over-exercising or to adrenalin and dopamine from allowing yourself to get angry and act out.
3) If you smoke, stop. If you don’t, never start. Avoid tobacco, breathing in side- stream smoke, vaping, vehicle exhaust, environmental air pollution, and smoke from fires. All these reduce oxygen levels to the brain. Fire smoke particles may lodge permanently in your lungs. Wear a mask if air quality is poor.
4) Protect your head. Wear a helmet when bike riding or engaging in any activity that has a higher risk of head injuries. Objects falling on your head can cause fractures, concussions, or worse.
5) Skull fractures involve cracks in one or more of the bones that form the skull. One main benefit of helmets is to prevent skull fractures. Concussions can cause episodes of unconsciousness. They are a result of blunt force trauma to the head and can cause damage to the underlying areas of the skull such as the membranes, blood vessels, and brain tissue.
6) Fall-proof your home. This can include removing small area rugs, runners, and anything else that can be a tripping hazard. Use sturdy stepstools when reaching for high objects. Be careful with ladders. Always have someone with you to hold the ladder steady—and stay off the roof. Be wise and leave such activities to those experts who tend to make high-risk activities look easy. Wear sensibleshoes suited to the specific activity you are doing. As one person put it, “Wearing high heels while climbing a ladder is a no-brainer.”
Safety is not expensive, it is priceless. ―Jerry Smith
1. Always use protective equipment when engaged in any activity that has a higher risk for injuries. This includes wearing seatbelts in vehicles and using car seats for babies and young children, as vehicle accidents contribute to injuries and to deaths.
Be proactive in avoiding exposure to communicable diseases whenever possible. If exposure is unavoidable, use recommended prevention tips such as wearing a face mask. If you are sick, think not just of yourself but of others as well. Ask yourself, “How can I prevent transmission of the pathogenic organism?”
There is no medicine you can take that will replace what you can do for your own health. ―Aarti Patel
2. Stay off ladders and roofs. Let the exports do it. One slip and you can be severely injured, paralyzed, or killed. It is not worth the risk. Get rid of small scatter rugs in the house and anything else that might cause you to trip and fall. If you need to reach something in the cupboard, make sure you are standing on a sturdy step-stool.
Safety includes avoiding distracted walking, jay walking, distracted driving, drowsy driving, and so on. Avoid using street drugs and drinking alcoholic beverages that can interfere with the brain and cognitive functions. They are toxic to the brain and alter its ability to function safely.
3. Keep sharp knives and other sharp objects, matches, tools, firecrackers, guns, and the like where children and teens cannot get to them. According to the CDC, guns are the leading cause of death for children and teens in the US. Firearms accounted for nearly 19% of childhood deaths (ages 1-18) in 2021. Nearly 3,600 children died in gun-related incidents that year. Over 92% of the shooters and 80% of the victims were males.
For every child who dies due to gun violence, more than two more are treated in an emergency room for a gun-related injury, costing the US health care system $109 million each year for initial hospitalizations. Reportedly, in no other comparable country are firearms within the top four causes of mortality among children,
As you begin to heal the inner you, you alter your immune system. —Wayne Dyer, PhD
4. Protect your mind. Avoid exposing it to negative pictures, images, or ideas that might return to disturb sleep, trigger undesirable behaviors, or prompt actions that might result in injury or death. Remember that mirror neurons behind your forehead fire when you watch others doing things. Watching others is a fast way to learn new processes or behaviors as the mirror neurons act as if you are doing the same things. It is also a fast way to pick up undesirable and unhealthy behaviors and choices that may trigger dysfunctional behaviors down the line.
Copycat crimes may fall into this category, as they often follow gory TV news reports about crimes. Watching enactment of crimes, gory movies, or even reading descriptions of rape, incest, and murders. What goes into the brain and mind tends to come out in some way. It may be fractured sleep, worry and anxiety, or worse.
Prepare and prevent, don’t repair and repent. Better a thousand times careful, than once dead. —Old Saying
1. What safety measures are you building into your daily routine?
Safety begins with the choices you make about everyday life and your decisions about what you will do and what you won’t do. Stop talking about what you do not want to do as that makes mental pictures in your brain of what you do not want to do, which is extremely unhelpful. Talk about what you are choosing to do as if it’s a done deal.
Are you thinking ahead about your own personal safety?
In this day and age, personal safety is a concern, especially with crimes occurring in broad daylight. The University of Central Arkansas has posted an excellent list of recommendations for personal safety. There are several categories:
1) In your home, apartment, or residence hall
2) On the street
3) In a car
4) In a building
5) Providing personal information
It might be wise to take a few minutes to review their personal safety suggestions. You may learn something immensely helpful, something you might not have thought about before.
2. What steps are you taking to lower your risk for cardiovascular diseases including strokes and heart attacks?
Safety involves prevention. Food can impact cardiovascular diseases. Here is just one example: sodium intake. Do you regularly salt your food sometimes even before tasting it? If so, you might want to minimize that behavior by using sodium-free salt and herbal flavorings. Taste buds are replaced every 10-14 days, so it doesn’t take too long to retrain them. Salt (sodium) is already in processed and restaurant foods so there is not much you can do about that except moderate their use at home. You can limit your use of added table salt while cooking and at the table and/or using non-sodium products.
Nonfat and low-fat foods often compensate with increased salt (and sugar). The same processed foods may have differing sodium, MSG, sugar, and hydrogenated fat content in assorted brands. Use natural unprocessed foods whenever possible, which contains no added sodium. Learn to read ingredient lists even if you must carry a magnifying glass.
3. What specific steps have you taken to reduce the risk of accidents?
Accidents are not always preventable—which is why they are called accidents. However, estimates are that at least half or more could be avoided. Take care to prevent what is preventable.
The better shape you are in mentally, physically, and socially, the more likely you are to be preventively alert and proactive. Give your brain the sleep you need. You are more likely to make good choices when you are rested. Stay well hydrated and make water your beverage of choice. Drink a glass of water before eating a meal. Drink a glass of water prior to going to bed to help prevent dehydration during sleep hours.
4. Do you have a family history that can increase your risk for conditions such as diabetes and obesity, et cetera?
Learn all you can about them. Talk with your healthcare professionals. There may be strategies that you can use to reduce your risk. It is really easy to get into the habit of doing something without realizing that it is either contributing toward or away from your health. This includes every thought you think.
Not everything undesirable can be prevented. Estimates are, however, that about 50% could be. Think ahead and be proactive.
An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. ―Benjamin Franklin
5. For those who read Scripture.
1) God will … keep you in all your ways ―Psalm 91:11
2) God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble. —Psalm 46:11
3) Trust in the Lord with all your heart. —Proverbs 3:5-6
4) Trust in the Lord and do good. —Psalm 37:3
An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure is understated. —Warren Buffett
Concentrate on Module #6 during this entire week. Reread the sections; review the Videos, relisten to the audiobook excerpts. It takes the average adult four times through material to really absorb the content and turn it into a new behavior. If you want positive results, rushing through the material just because you can, may not provide the desired outcome.
Practice, practice, and practice the strategies you are learning. Get plenty of sleep so your brain has time to consolidate and transfer what you are learning from short term to long term memory. Drink plenty of water to keep your brain hydrated and able to generate the mental energy you need. Your thinking cells—called neurons—are estimated to be about 85-86% water. Dehydration is unhelpful in brain central.
Slow and steady wins the race, not the person who wants to climb the whole stairs in one stride. —Michael Bassey Johnson
