By SubstancePoison Safety & Prevention

Keeping Your Family Safe Around Medicine

Today there are more medicines in the home than ever before, and this increases the potential risk to children of accidental medicine poisoning.   Every year, more than 59,000 young children are seen in emergency rooms because they got into medicine while a caregiver wasn’t looking.  Almost every minute of...

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Button Batteries…They Look Innocent

Many toys and electronics are powered by small disc batteries.  These batteries are often accidentally swallowed by small children, and sometimes adults.  Every year in the United States, more than 3,500 people of all ages swallow these miniature disc or “button batteries”.  A study of 2,382 cases of battery...

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Child-Resistant is NOT Child-Proof

It seems as though those hard-to-open bottles have been around forever. And for new parents today, they have. But what is the reason and history behind the child-resistant packages? Back to the 1960s children were dying from poisonings in large numbers. The country developed an education program to warn parents...

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Don’t Google…Just Call!

Isn’t technology great!  We’ve become a technology-based society. If we want to go someplace, we use a GPS device instead of finding a map. Our music is played on devices that fit in the palm of your hand. If we need to look up a definition of a word,...

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The Curiosity of an Infant: Poison Dangers

A new study raises awareness of the dangers of unintentional exposure to poisons for babies 6 months and younger. Traditionally, this has not been an age group that poison center educators have focused on, because infants aren’t up and walking about. But while a young baby may be less mobile,...

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Who Do I Call If I Think Someone Has Been Poisoned?

According to the CDC, poisoning is the No. 1 cause of injury death in the U. S., with most deaths happening due to drug and medicine misuse and abuse. More than 3.1 million calls were received by poison centers last year. Anyone can call. Poison centers aren’t just for parents...

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Halloween Safety Tips

Trick or Treaters Carry a flashlight Walk, don’t run Stay on sidewalks Obey all traffic signals Stay in familiar neighborhoods Avoid wearing masks while walking from house to house If no sidewalk, walk on the left side of the road facing traffic Wear clothing with reflective markings or tape Approach house that are lit Stay away from and don’t...

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A Parent’s Guide to Poison Prevention

Because of young children’s curiosity and their unique behavioral patterns (e. g., hand to mouth activity), it is not surprising that over half of the 2.4 million cases of poisonings reported to poison control centers each year involve children less than 5 years of age. Children like the attractive packaging...

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Highly Concentrated “Single-Load Liquid Laundry Packets” Can Cause Serious Harm to Young Children

These new laundry packets dissolve in the washing machine. Because they are colorful and squishy, they are attractive to children. They can look like candy or something fun to play with. Poison centers receive many calls each year about children getting into laundry detergent. Swallowing it often causes mild stomach...

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Summer Picnic Tips To Keep You and Your Family Safe from Food Poisoning

Summer is here and most of us take advantage of the warm weather to hold barbecues and picnics. Most common food related illnesses are caused by improper storage or handling of food. Depending on the kind of bacteria causing the problem, symptoms of the most common kinds of food...

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