Your Event Health and Safety Checklist
With summertime upon us and restrictions from the COVID-19 pandemic being eased up, in many places people are heading back to some semblance of normal life. With vaccine rates up, this includes concerts opening back up. Here’s everything you need to know about attending and enjoying concerts while staying healthy and safe. We’ve compiled an event health and safety checklist for you.
1. Always Use Sun Protection
An essential step to staying healthy and safe at a concern, particularly an outdoors one, is plenty of sun protection. Cancers of the skin are the most common type of cancer, and long days under the sun can do serious damage if you are not keeping yourself protected.
Slather on sun protection in the form of sunscreen (ideally at least SPF 30, and do not forget areas like hands, feet, ears, face, and the part in your hair) and reapply often. In addition, sun protectant garments like hats, shirts, and sunglasses can help you beat the heat and keep your skin protected during a long day.
Not only are sunburns painful and damaging to the skin, but too much sun exposure can zap your energy levels and contribute to heat exhaustion.
2. Protect Your Hearing
In addition to protecting your skin from the sun, do not forget about protecting your ears from the potential damage that can come from exposure to high volume, such as at concerts.
It’s not just the musicians who can damage their ears without ear protection. Frequenting concerts, or even just attending one, can do potentially permanent damage to your hearing. Worst of all, you do not have to spend hours near the front of a stage to do damage – it can take just a few minutes, and you will not usually get any warning signs until it is too late. So, make sure to bring ear plugs – there are many types nowadays that do not block out the sound quality at all, but will keep your ears safe.
3. Hydrate, Hydrate, Hydrate
It’s all too easy, especially in the hot summer temperatures, for a fun day at a concert to wind up in a case of dehydration, or even worse, heat exhaustion. Especially at a long all-day concert or when temperatures are high, it can happen more easily than you would think.
A good rule of thumb is to keep water on you at all times, and refill often! Drinking half your bodyweight in ounces is the general goal, but you may need even more at a long all-day concert, especially in the sun. Other good options include drinks with added electrolytes such as Gatorade or the natural alternative, coconut water. Don’t skimp on the regular H20 though!
4. Fuel Up With Healthy Snacks
If you are headed out for a long day at a festival or even a regular concert, do not forget to healthily fuel up with plenty of calories to get you through the day. What we eat has a huge impact on our energy levels and mood.
A long day on your feet or out in the sun can be draining, and you never know what food options will be available to you at the concert, especially for those with dietary restrictions. It’s always wise to plan ahead and eat beforehand and consider bringing plenty of nourishing snacks like nuts, fruit, protein bars, or sandwiches to make keep your mood and blood sugar levels stable.
5. Don’t Forget a Mask
For now, the CDC has said it is safe for people with both of their COVID vaccines to ditch their masks in most situations (other than in medical settings or when using mass transit like planes and buses.) However, it is a good idea to bring a mask with you even if you have both vaccines, in case you find yourself in a heavily crowded area indoors or if your venue requires a mask, as many do.
And with new concerns like the Delta strain and the COVID situation continually changing, it is never a bad idea to have a mask on hand just in case. Want to wear your mask all the time? It definitely does not hurt! And of course, if you are not yet vaccinated, you will definitely still need one to be in accordance with health guidelines.
6. Grab Tickets Online and Know Before You Go
Speaking of COVID-19 restrictions like masks, it is always important to plan ahead before a concert, but the pandemic has made this even more important.
Sites like StubHub, Ticketmaster, and Events Ticketmaster make it easy to grab your tickets and scope out all the details of the concert before you arrive. You can learn about their venue policies and refund/cancellation rules, and whether you will need a mask or have to show proof of vaccination, which will depend on the event venue usually.
Whether you are looking for an outdoor only concert, spaced out seating options, a festival, or an indoor event, you can get the info you need and the tickets on sites like these.
In Conclusion
These basic health and safety tips may seem straightforward, but they go a long way in keeping you feeling your best and enjoying your concerts now that we are all headed back to events like live music. Done right, concerts can go a long way in boosting our spirits and wellbeing with the social connectedness, joy, and excitement they bring. Enjoy!