Planning can steer children clear of holiday injuries

Around the holidays, senior adults across Alabama eagerly anticipate visits from grandchildren, nieces, nephews and other young friends. Not one of these adults wants a child’s holiday highlights to include a trip to the emergency room.
   
Injuries related to poisoning, choking, drowning, motor vehicles and burns are the number 1 cause of death for children under the age of 15 in Alabama and nationwide. Forethought and planning are the keys to making your home safer for visitors of all ages during the holidays and year-round.
   
Ann Slattery, supervisor of The Regional Poison Control Center with headquarters at Children’s Hospital in Birmingham, suggests three key steps to take to make your home more child-safe before visitors arrive, regardless of the time of year:
   
First, get down on your knees (or have someone do this for you) and patrol the low places. “You have to get down to the child’s eye level and think about everything they would be able to see,” Slattery said. “Be sure you’ve vacuumed and there are no pills on the floor.”
   
Second, put up or lock up. Make sure cleaning products and other toxic substances are put up high (at least refrigerator level) and that cabinets storing such products are locked with child-resistant locks. Another idea is to put all chemicals and cleaning products in a room that you can lock.
   
Remember that children can easily mistake window cleaners for blue juice drinks and pine cleaners for apple juice. Be sure to keep all cleaning products and chemicals in their original containers to avoid any confusion. Getting to these products when you need them may be a little inconvenient, but not nearly as a trip to the emergency room would be.
   
Third, always keep the national and regional poison control number in an obvious place near a telephone, along with the telephone number of each individual’s physician.
   
Specialists in poison information answering phones at regional poison centers help callers determine a course of action when a person of any age has ingested a potentially dangerous substance. The National Poison Help number is 1-800-222-1222. It works like 911 and will route callers to the closest poison control center. You may reach the Regional Poison Control Center in Alabama by calling either 1-800-222-1222 or 1-800-292-6678.
   
During holiday visits, there are some additional precautions you should take as well:
   
–Keep holiday plants out of children’s reach. Young children love pretty things, and they are notorious for putting whatever they touch in their mouths.
   
–Be particularly careful about holly berries, amaryllis, Christmas rose, English ivy, Jerusalem cherry and mistletoe, all of which can cause serious complications including vomiting and diarrhea if ingested. Poinsettia has a reputation as being an extremely poisonous plant but ingesting the leaves of this plant is more likely to cause mild irritation of the mouth and throat.
   
–Choose decorations carefully. Holiday decorations can create wonderful memories for children, but some also pose safety hazards for children. Be especially careful with small objects such as plastic bow pins and tinsel, which can be choking hazards. Also watch children around electrical decorations, such as villages and tree lights. Keep cords hidden and out of reach.
   
–Decorate the tree with kids in mind. Put ornaments that look like food or candy up high, and use ribbons to hang them. Make sure lights and cords are out of kids’ reach.
   
–Choose appropriate toys for gifts and play. Although you can’t wait for your grandson to play with the farm set his father enjoyed as a child, he may not be ready yet.
   
Small toys and toys with small parts are inhalation and choking hazards for young children, especially those under 3. Even the eyes and noses of stuffed animals can be dangerous to a small child.
   
When choosing toys, look for the letters ASTM which indicate that a product meets safety standards and pay attention to the age suggestions on the toy’s packaging. If you’re not sure about an old toy, see if it fits inside a paper towel roll. If so, it is too small for a child under 3.