At Least 40 Household Products Can Poison Your Child: Lock 'Em
Up!
Every few seconds U.S. poison centers receive a call about
someone being exposed to a poison. Forty percent of those cases
involve a child under three years old.
According to the National Safety Council, more than 50 percent
of over a million poisoning incidents each year involve children
under six years of age.
The Environmental Protection Agency urges everyone to lock up
pesticides and other household chemicals in a high cabinet out
of the reach of children. In a childhood poison prevention
program, EPA and the American Association of Poison Control
Centers send the simple message "Lock It Up" to adults
everywhere.
The campaign also publicizes the national toll-free poison
center phone number 1-800-222-1222 for immediate help if a child
may have been poisoned.
So many poisons!
Over 75 percent of poisoned children swallow the toxic substance
or item involved, and in most poisonings, the substance is
something found around almost every home: prescription drugs,
non-prescription pain killers, vitamins, cosmetics, and personal
care and cleaning products. A large portion of poisonings also
involve house plants, tobacco products and alcohol.
Check your home for toxic products or items a child can reach: -
Bathroom: medicines, toilet cleaners, antibacterial cleaners,
air fresheners, drain cleaners, mold and mildew remover, and
some cosmetics.
- Kitchen: glass cleaner, antibacterial cleaner, dishwashing
detergent, all-purpose cleaner, insect sprays, oven cleaner, and
ant or roach baits.
- Living Room: flea collars, rug or carpet cleaners, furniture
polish, cigarette or cigar butts in ash trays, and alcoholic
beverages.
- Bedroom: total release insect foggers, air fresheners, and
moth balls.
- Laundry Room: all-purpose cleaner, inspect sprays, chlorine
bleach, woodstains and finishes, and laundry detergents.
- Garage: motor oil, windshield washer fluid, oil-based and
latex paints, auto batteries, antifreeze, spot-on pesticides to
control fleas and ticks on pets.
- Back Yard: weed killers, pool chemicals including algicides
and chlorine, baits for rodent control, insect repellents, and
some new bug zappers.
Make Your Home Safer
The National Poison Prevention Week Council recommends: - Keep
all household chemical products and medicines out of reach and
out of sight of youngsters, preferably locked up when not in
use. Medicines and household chemicals on kitchen counters or
bathroom surfaces are very accessible to young hands. Make sure
any medicines visitors may bring into your home are kept safely
away from children.
- When using toxic products, never let them out of your sight,
even if you must take them along when answering the telephone or
the doorbell. Most poisonings occur when the product is in use.
- Store all medicines separately from household products, and
store all household chemical products away from food.
- Keep products in their original containers with the original
label intact. Read the label before using. - Always leave the
light on when giving or taking medicines.
- Avoid taking medicines in front of children, since youngsters
tend to imitate grown-ups. Never call medicine "candy."
The Centers for Disease Control add:
- Post the poison control number 1-800-222-1222 on or near every
home telephone.
- Know the names of the plants in your house and yard. Identify
poisonous plants and place them out of reach of children or
remove them.
- Check your home for lead-based paints. Contact the National
Lead Information Center at 1-800-424-LEAD to receive more
detailed information.
Meantime, take a few minutes and look around your home. If
anything can harm a child, lock it up!