While we want to focus on making meaningful memories, it’s important to stay safe and healthy over the holidays too.
Thanksgiving is a time for us to enjoy family, friends, great food and fun gatherings. While we want to focus on making meaningful memories, it’s important to stay safe and healthy over the holidays too.
Check out this article for tips on food and fire safety, traveling and managing the stress that can come with the start of the holiday season.
Food Safety
If you’re in charge of cooking this Thanksgiving, it’s important to follow some important safety tips.
- Keep foods separate. Raw meats, like your turkey, need to be kept away from other foods. Counterspace, cutting boards and utensils that touch meat should not be used with produce or other foods.
- Store and serve food at the right temperature. If you’re planning to get some cooking done ahead of time, think about where you’ll store your food to keep it safe to eat. Foods should be kept either cold or hot enough to ensure bacteria cannot grow. If you’re having turkey or another meat, check out these meat roasting charts to ensure you’ve cooked things properly. Once you’ve eaten, refrigerate your leftovers within two hours.
- Wash your hands. You’ll need to wash your hands frequently while cooking, including before, during and after preparing food, and after touching raw meat, poultry, seafood or eggs. Washing your hands can help prevent cross-contamination and the spread of germs.
Fire Safety
Cooking is the leading cause of all home fires, and the average number of fires on Thanksgiving is often double what it is on other days. Here are some fire safety tips to keep you and your guests safe:
- Never leave your stove unattended. If you’re in charge of cooking, that’s where your mind should be. Give tasks that take you away from the stove to someone else. Turn handles around toward the back so no one accidentally bumps into them or pulls anything over.
- Have a plan. Keep a lid or a baking sheet nearby to use as a cover if a pan catches on fire. You can also pick up a fire extinguisher for your home at many local stores or online. It’s a good idea to ensure your smoke detectors are working before any holiday gatherings as well.
- Keep flammable items away from the stove. This includes paper towels, cloths, food packaging, wooden utensils and any of your clothing that is loose-fitting or baggy.
- Move the party away from the stove. Kitchens are often the gathering place for parties, but big crowds in the kitchen can be dangerous. Instead, create food tables and drink stations away from the kitchen.
Travel Safety 
Thanksgiving is often one of the busiest travel times of the year. With so many people on the roads, be sure you’re prepared to travel safely.
- Make sure your car is working well. Before you leave for a trip, check the basics – Do you need an oil change? How’s your tire pressure? Do your lights and wipers work well?
- Pack an emergency kit. Ready.gov has suggestions for what you should include in an emergency kit, including items such as a blanket, an ice scraper, a flashlight and a car charger.
- Check the weather. Look at the weather before you travel. Will you hit rain? High winds? Snow? What should you be prepared for?
- Take breaks. Ensure you’re alert and rested while driving. Plan to stop, take breaks, stretch and keep yourself awake and focused.
- Prepare your house for travel. Before you leave for a trip, secure all your windows and doors and ask a neighbor to collect your mail so it doesn’t pile up. In addition, you may want to avoid posting your plans to travel on social media (the world doesn’t need to know you have an empty house).
Holiday Stress
While the holidays are often filled with happiness, they can also be stressful. Here are some tips to help you manage your stress around the holidays:
- Let people help. If you’re hosting, let people take over simple tasks to make your job easier. Ask someone to bring dessert. Have someone else plan to stay late to help you clean up. Have someone else bring a game or activity for the kids.
- Figure out what you can handle. Holidays can be a tough time for a number of reasons. Maybe you’ve recently experienced a loss and find it hard to be around other people. Maybe you’re dealing with an alcohol use problem and worry about being served a drink. Maybe you’re dealing with post-traumatic stress disorder and loud, crowded spaces make you anxious. Figure out what you can handle this holiday season and plan accordingly. It may mean you opt for a quiet dinner at home instead of a big family gathering. Or it may mean asking the host to provide an alcohol-free meal.
- Make time for yourself. Before you surround yourself with family or friends or take on a million tasks, find time to do something for yourself. Take an early morning walk, have a quiet cup of coffee or do a mini yoga session when you get up.
- Decide ahead of time how to manage difficult topics. Between the recent election and politics in general, many families have very different opinions and beliefs. Decide ahead of time what will work best for your family. For example, can you have respectful conversations about politics? If not, maybe it’s best to agree ahead of time to avoid certain topics. If you do decide to open up the discussion, everyone should agree to stay respectful and open to one another. The point of the holidays isn’t to argue, get angry with one another or try to persuade each other who’s right or wrong. Try to put differences aside and work on building meaningful connections.
- Remember the why. Gatherings can be stressful when you consider all the cooking, cleaning, shopping and prepping that can go into it. Take moments to enjoy what the holidays are for, even if it means you leave the mess for a while.
- Be kind to yourself. Thanksgiving, like most other days, probably won’t be perfect and that’s OK. Relax and try to enjoy it as much as you can. If you’re struggling with more than just normal stress, consider getting some additional support. The Department of Veterans Affairs offers several mental health services to help you feel your best.
Have a safe, healthy and happy Thanksgiving!