SAFETY AT HOME – Choking and
Accidental Poison Prevention
Choking Prevention:
In addition to food, there are
household items that can become choking hazards. You can help ensure a safe
environment by keeping these items away from infants and young children:
Latex balloons, coins,
marbles, toys with small parts, toys that can be compressed to fit entirely
into a child's mouth, small balls, pen or marker caps, small button-type
batteries, medicine syringes, decorative metallic confetti (sometimes used in
greeting cards).
Choking can be prevented. Before your child begins to crawl, get down on his
level and look for dangerous items. If you have older children, pay extra
attention to their toys and be sure your younger child can't get into them. In
addition to thoroughly childproofing your home, keep this list of choking
prevention tips in mind:
Learn cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) 
http://www.savealifetfd.com/index.html
Be aware that balloons pose a choking risk to children of any age.
Keep the following foods from children until 4 years of age:
Hot dogs, nuts and seeds,
chunks of meat or cheese, whole grapes, hard, gooey, or sticky candy, popcorn,
chunks of peanut butter, raw
vegetables, raisins, chewing gum.
Insist
that children eat at the table, or at least while sitting down. They should
never run, walk, play or lie down with food in their mouths.
Cut
food for infants and young children into pieces no larger than one-half inch
and teach them to chew their food well.
Supervise
mealtime for infants and young children.
Be aware of older children's actions. Many choking incidents occur when older brothers or sisters give dangerous foods, toys or small objects to a younger child.
Avoid
toys with small parts and keep other small household items out of reach of
infants and young children.
Follow
the age recommendations on toy packages. Age guidelines reflect the safety of a
toy based on any possible choking hazard as well as the child's physical and
mental abilities at various ages.
Check under
furniture and between cushions for small items that children could find and put
in their mouths.
Do not
let infants and young children play with coins.