| Back to Page 1 But even if you watch
your child like a hawk while they are eating, remember that 26 per cent of non-food accidents
among children aged under three years are caused by coins – that goes up to
54 per cent of
such cases among three-year-olds. Be honest – when was the last time you dropped a
penny out of a pocket while getting changed and couldn’t be bothered to pick it up?
Top ten causes of choking each year involving items that are not food or
toys
| TYPE OF FOREIGN
BODY |
NO. OF
CASES PER YEAR |
| 0-12 months |
1-year-olds |
2-year-olds |
Total cases |
| Coin |
24 |
86 |
74 |
184 |
| Paper/foil |
69 |
20 |
2 |
91 |
| Piece of plastic/metal |
16 |
14 |
11 |
41 |
| Top of bottle/tube |
7 |
16 |
4 |
27 |
| Piece of glass |
2 |
18 |
6 |
26 |
| Packet/packaging/bag |
18 |
6 |
- |
24 |
| Screw |
8 |
6 |
9 |
23 |
| Safety/drawing pin |
8 |
6 |
6 |
20 |
| Glue/Sellotape |
2 |
10 |
6 |
18 |
| Button |
8 |
3 |
7 |
18 |
*Information drawn from the Department
of Trade and Industry’s report on choking risks to children.
So what can you do? Let’s face it, you will never be able to
completely remove every hazard from your home.
So the top tips are:
- Never leave your child alone while eating. It’s easy to shove a biscuit in their
hand for five minutes of peace in another room, but the statistics above show the risk
that can carry.
- Pick up coins that drop out of your purse, wallet or pocket and make sure they are place
high enough that your child cannot grab them.
- Make sure any toys your child has are appropriate for his or her age. Something that is
fine for a three year old could be perilous for a one-year-old. If the label has a
warning, don’t ignore it.
- When you have an older child, try to make them understand why they can’t leave
their toys in the path of your small child. The government looked into whether certain
toys currently suitable for children over three years should be relabelled for over four
years to cut choking incidents. But that would have prevented older children from playing
with small toys which develop manual and intellectual skills. Instead, you’ll have to
be aware of your older child’s toys when near your younger child.
- Remember, it is exactly because fatal choking accidents involving children are so rare
that no-one can think of a way to eliminate the risk completely. Follow basic safety
measures and your child should normally be safe. Just in case, contact the St John Ambulance who should be able to send you an
information sheet on choking, so that you would know what to do.
Where to next?
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