Fans to be given advice on health and safety

THE IRISH Pharmacy Union (IPU), which represents 1,850 pharmacists, has issued a Safe Code for Festivals in advance of Oxegen 08.

The code gives some practical tips on personal health and safety issues for fans to consider while attending the festival.

Fans are asked to bring along an adequate supply of any prescription medication they may be taking.

This particularly applies to asthma sufferers who should take preventitive inhalers even if they are showing no symptoms. Being outdoors and exposed to pollen and dust may cause asthma to flare up.

Anyone with an allergy to any prescription medicine, such as penicillin, should wear a bracelet or necklace which states this fact.

This means that in the case of an emergency, medical personnel will be aware of the allergy and will know the correct medication to administer without putting a life in danger.

Stomach upsets can be common during festivals as people's normal dietary routine is interrupted.

Festival-goers should eat small amounts regularly and should bring along their own snacks.

To avoid food poisoning, check that food is cooked thoroughly and do not eat any food that has been left outside the fridge or in direct sunlight.

Though there is little or no chance of a heatwave, the sun is strong this time of year and there could be spells of sunshine.

Festival-goers have been advised to bring sunscreen of at least factor 15 and to wear a hat when the sun is at its strongest.

Drinkaware.ie is advising motorists not to drink the night before they drive home from the festival.

Drinkaware has published a dedicated Oxegen Festival Survival guide.

Together with the guide, a drinkaware.ie team will also be on hand in all Oxegen car parks to hand out information cards detailing what a standard drink is and how long it takes your body to get rid of it.

Fionnuala Sheehan, chief executive of Meas, the alcohol responsibility organisation behind drinkaware.ie, said: "Your body gets rid of roughly one standard drink per hour; that's one hour for a half a pint or a glass of wine or one single shot to be eliminated from your body.

"This weekend fans are encouraged to avoid being at risk the morning after by planning how they are going to get to and from Oxegen in advance."

This article appears in the print edition of the Irish Times