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National Poison Prevention Week
National Poison Prevention Week is in March of each year.
This is the time of year to think about how to protect your
children from poisoning, a common cause of preventable injury
to a child.
The Alabama Poison Center and the Consumer Product Safety
Commission want you to know that you can decrease the risk
of your children being poisoned by doing these things:
- Keep all chemicals and medicines locked up and out of
sight.
- Child-resistant packaging is child-resistant, not child
proof! Properly closing the container securely after each
use or choosing child-resistant blister cards, help protect
children and saves lives.
- Call (800) 222-1222 immediately in case of poisoning.
- When products are in use, never let young children out
of your sight, even if you must take them along when answering
the phone or doorbell.
- Keep items in original containers.
- Leave the original labels on all products. Read the
label before each use.
- Do not put decorative lamps and candles that contain
lamp oil where children can reach them. Lamp oil can poison
if ingested, especially by young children.
- Always leave the light on when giving or taking medicine.
Check the dosage every time.
- Avoid taking medicine in front of children. Refer to
medicine as "medicine," not "candy."
- Clean out the medicine cabinet periodically and safely
dispose of unneeded and outdated medicines.
Other household products that can injure children if ingested,
according to the American Academy of Pediatrics, include
'moth balls, furniture polish, drain cleaners, weed killers,
insect or rat poisons, lye, paint thinners, and dishwasher
detergent'.
Childproof outside the home too! Many
poisons are located in the garage and storage shed too.
Charcoal lighter, paint thinner and remover, gasoline, antifreeze
and turpentine are very poisonous and can cause serious
injury or death to children. It is important to keep these
things locked up and out of reach of children. Always store
these products in their original containers.
Even if you don't have young children living in your home,
you may have young children visit or spend time in your
home. So it’s a good idea to always keep your home
childproofed. Parents make sure that any home or classroom
your children visit is child and poison proofed.
FOR MORE POISON PREVENTION ABOUT POISON PREVENTION WEEK VISIT...
www.poisonprevention.org
...OR CALL 1-800-462-0800
- John Fisher, Pharm.D., Director, Alabama Poison
Center
- Lois Dorough, RN, BSN, CSPI, Education Director/Data
Manager, Alabama Poison Center
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