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Protect Your Child Against Poisons

Hidden Hazards Lurk in Common Household Products

Children act quickly. So do poisons. Texas Children's Hospital in Houston, Texas, urges parents to become educated on preventing unintentional poisonings and deaths among children and infants.

"You absolutely cannot underestimate the curiosity of a child," says Dr. Joan Shook, chief of emergency medicine at Texas Children's Hospital and professor of pediatrics at Baylor College of Medicine. "One of the biggest mistakes parents can make is to assume their child won't be subject to normal growth and development, both of which include a certain level of curiosity. Sometimes parents will think, 'My child is so smart that he or she will figure that out,' or, 'My child is so good he or she wouldn't touch anything.' That mode of thinking can be dangerous."

It is estimated that 30 children die each year from unintentional poisoning by household products. Poison Control Centers around the country take almost two million calls annually asking for help or advice on how to treat a possible poisoning.

Potentially dangerous products include over-the-counter items such as cough medicines, mouthwash, aspirin and eyewashes; prescription drugs; and household products such as furniture polish, drain cleaner, window cleaner and glue.

"Most poisonings occur when parents are not watching children as closely as usual," says Dr. Shook. "Poison Control Centers often refer to the evening hours as the 'arsenic hours.' The hectic evening routine of getting dinner on the table and everyone settled for the day can cause lapses in parental attention."

Everyone has adverse reactions to poisons, but when children are exposed to poison, they are more likely to suffer serious consequences because they are smaller, have faster metabolic rates and their bodies are less capable of handling toxic chemicals.

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