We recently went to a very popular restaurant for lunch and to my astonishment there were vending machines with gumballs and other small toys, right next to the jungle gym. This is a disaster waiting to happen!
Children under 3 are at the highest risk of choking because their airways are so small. Plus, chewing and swallowing is a lot more difficult for them. They also love to put foreign objects in their mouths. There is a cylindrical tool in the US used to measure toy parts that is the same size as a young child’s throat. If a toy part fits into this cylinder it’s a choking hazard and a warning label has to appear on the toy packaging. Therefore any object smaller than 3 cm wide is a choking hazard for small children.
WHAT IS A CHOKING HAZARD?
Any object that can get caught in a child’s throat and block the airway is a choking hazard.
TOP 10 HOUSEHOLD CHOKING HAZARDS
Once your baby starts to crawl and explore, choking hazards are all of a sudden everywhere.
- Coins
- Small caps of bottles e.g. juice and water bottles
- Small round batteries
- Jewellery
- Buttons
- Toys and toy parts
- Balloons (uninflated or popped)
- Garden pebbles
- Nails and screws
- Stationary e.g. staples, paper clips and pen lids
If you have older kids too, you should keep their toys separate and make sure they learn to pack their toys away.
There are countless more choking hazards. You should probably get down on your knees and have a look at your child’s eye level. How many more choking hazards can you find?
TOP 10 FOOD CHOKING HAZARDS
Hotdogs, grapes and popcorn are the top 3 causes of choking in children under the age of 3. Young children have a hard time chewing their food since they lack the proper dentition (canines for tearing and molars for grinding). They are still trying to coordinate chewing, and as a result, often just swallow their food whole. This makes smooth, slippery, round and hard foods especially dangerous.
The foods in the list below are not recommended for children under 4 years of age. The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) goes even further and recommends that hotdogs, grapes and popcorn not be given to children until they are at least 5 years old.
If you do however want to give your children some of these foods, then cut them in such a way that you change their round shape. Hotdogs should be cut lengthwise before slicing and skins of other sausages removed. Grapes and other round fruit should be cut into quarters.
- Whole grapes, cherry tomatoes and other round balls of fruit (blueberries are ok for toddlers as they are soft to chew)
- Hot dogs and other sausages
- Popcorn
- Tough, large pieces of meat
- Fruit pips and stones
- Nuts and seeds
- Hard round sweets and caramels
- Raw vegetables, especially carrots
- Marshmallows
- Chewing gum
BE CAREFUL
- Children can trip and choke more easily if playing and eating at the same time. Your child should not walk, run or lie down while eating. Children should not be distracted whilst eating. They must sit upright and concentrate on what they are doing.
- It is also not advisable to have your young child eat in their car seat whilst you’re driving. You might not even notice if they’re choking.
- You should always supervise your child when they are eating.
It’s important that all parents and caregivers learn first aid for choking and CPR. There are many training academies that offer such courses around the country that are usually done over one day and will make you feel more confident when dealing with childhood emergencies.
RESOURCES
Altkorn, R. et al. (2008) Fatal and non-fatal food injuries among children (aged 0–14 years). International Journal of Pediatric Otorhinolaryngology, [online] 72 pp. 1041—1046. Available from: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0165587608001298[Accessed 24 October 2018].
CDC (2018) Choking Hazards [online]. Available from: https://www.cdc.gov/nutrition/infantandtoddlernutrition/foods-and-drinks/choking-hazards.html [Accessed 24 October 2018].
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