- Knowledgebase: Child Safety, Injury Prevention and Treatment
- Questions about child safety and injury prevention, as well as treatment for minor injuries.
- 22. Preventing Choking - Top
- Protect your child from choking
Children, especially babies, will put anything in their mouths. It is up to you to protect them by keeping dangerous items out of their reach and by avoiding certain foods which commonly cause children to choke.
Below is a partial list of items than can result in choking:
Small parts to toys.
Deflated balloons or pieces of balloons that have burst.
Jewelry.
Buttons.
Small batteries for watches, calculators and other small electronic devices.
Marbles, jacks and small plastic building blocks.
Safety pins (make sure you do not put them within reach of a child when changing diapers).
Nails, tacks, screws.
Sewing items, such as needles and pins.
Coins.
Eyes and noses that can be torn from dolls and stuffed animals.
Broken crayons.
Toothpicks.
Hair accessories, such as bobby pins or barrettes.
Soda or beer caps.
Foods which can result in choking include:
Hot dogs. (This is the number one cause of choking in children.)
Peanuts, sunflower seeds and other nuts.
Hard candies.
Popcorn.
Grapes.
Raisins.
Raw carrots.
Seeds and pits in fruits.
Bones in fish, meat and fowl.
You can protect your child by taking the following steps:
Cut food into small pieces before giving it to a child.
Never allow children to run with food in their mouths.
Do not allow children to lie down while eating.
Check pacifiers to make sure the nipple cannot be pulled loose.
Do not allow your child to drink from a Styrofoam cup. Small pieces can be bitten or broken off.
Check the floors and tables often to make sure you have not left jewelry, loose change or other items within your child's reach.
Check toys to make sure they have not been broken or that parts are not coming loose.
Keep purses, jewelry boxes and tool boxes out of reach.
Do not give your child latex balloons.
Make sure babysitters know about the dangers of choking.
Learn to help a choking child
Most local pediatric hospitals or American Red Cross offices offer courses on what to do if a child is choking. They also offer classes on how to perform cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) if an airway is blocked. Sign up for a class so you can help your child during an emergency. But remember, it is best to protect your child from items that can cause choking.
- Updated: June 11, 2001
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