Poisons in Your Home

Call (800) 222-1222 for:

Treatment for an acute poisoning
Help with a drug overdose
Bites and stings
Pesticide information
Food poisoning
Occupational exposures
Poisonings of animals
Information on poison prevention for the home
Safe plants
Educational programs for your school or organization

Each day in homes throughout the United States accidents happen to young children when parents, older brothers or sisters or a non-family member provider of child care may have looked away momentarily or whose watchful attention was distracted. Accidental poisonings involving children who swallow a potentially harmful household product such as drain cleaners, automatic dishwasher detergents, laundry detergents, furniture polishes, pesticides or even medications that were improperly stored occur often on these occasions.

In our homes the risk of unwanted exposure to some product that might be potentially poisonous if eaten, drank or inhaled is very real as hundreds of products are stored and used some more frequently than others everyday. The ease of accessibility, attractive packaging, often lack of or failure to properly use child-resistant closures make many products used around the home a leading cause of accidental poisoning. Experience with poisoning incidence among children show that nearly 98% of the household cleaning product exposures are accidental and contrary to conventional belief that most of these experiences occur while the product is in proper storage and packaging, nearly 80% of the time the product is in actual use!

Since products around the home are responsible for the single largest category of accidental poisonings among children, it is important to become aware of how these incidents can be prevented. In cases when an accidental poisoning has taken place, the parent or the child care provider should know what immediate actions to take to get proper advice and assistance.

Factors that contribute to a poisoning:

Poisonous products are not put away immediately after use.
Poisonous products are stored in food or drink containers.
Empty product containers are discarded improperly.
At least one child in the family is under the age of 5.
Stressful situations or changes in the household's routine (illness, holidays).
The most common poison emergencies involve medication, especially over-the-counter medications.
Each particular room of the house has a potential for a poison emergency.

Where Are Harmful Things in Your Home?

Is your home safe? Go through each room described to make sure all potential poisons are properly closed and store out of reach of small children and pets.

Kitchen

Cleaners/carpet, rug, upholstery
Cleansers
Corrosives/Caustics
Ammonia
Drain Openers
Oven Cleaners
Metal Cleaners
Automatic Dishwasher Detergent
Rinsing Concentrates
Detergents/Soaps
Furniture Polish
Insecticides

Laundry

Bleaches
Disinfectants
Softeners (Concentrates)
Detergents/Soaps

Bedroom

Cosmetics
Perfumes/Colognes
Nail Polish Remover
Jewelry Cleaners
Sleep Aids

Bathroom

Aftershave
Denture Cleaners
Bath Oil/Bubble Bath
Cleansers
Deodorizer/Sanitizers
Drain Openers
Cleaners/walls, tiles, glass
Mouthwash
Hydrogen Peroxide
Shampoo/Hair Products
Hair Removers
Permanent Wave Solution
Hair Coloring Solution

Garage/Storage

Antifreeze
Fertilizer
Gasoline/Kerosene
Lighter Fluid/Charcoal Fluid
Lamp Oil
Lime
Acids
Lye/Alkalis
Paint Remover/Thinner
Pesticides/Insecticides
Weed Killers
Turpentine
Radiator Cleaners/Automotive Products

Miscellaneous

Alcoholic Beverages
Tobacco Products/Cigarettes
Medicines/ prescription and non-prescription
Vitamins With Iron Pills
Diet and Weight Reduction Aids
Cough and Cold/Anti-Allergy Preparations

The Most Common Categories of Poisons

According to the American Association of Poison Control Centers, the following are the most common categories of substances involved in poisonings in 2001.

Cleaning Products - drain cleaners, toilet bowl cleaners, bleach, soaps and detergents
Analgesics - acetaminophen, aspirin, opiates, ibuprofen and other nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory agents (NSAID)
Cosmetics - mouthwashes, fingernail polish remover
Plants - flowers, shrubs, roots, leaves
Cough and Cold Preparations - antihistamines, cough suppressants, expectorants, decongestants
Hydrocarbons - inhalation (abuse) of butane and other halogenated hydrocarbons
Bites and Stings - insects, animals, spiders, snakes/reptiles
Topicals - products used in treating infection, skin/itch complaints, joint pains
Foreign Bodies - coins, toys, packaging material
Chemicals - ethylene glycol (antifreeze) most common

Poison Proof Your Home

Anticipate your child's developemental stages.
Don't leave a child and a poison alone even "for a second".
Put products away right after use.
Never tell children medicine "tastes like candy".
Give medicine only to the person the doctor has prescribed it for.
Don't take or give medicines in the dark or without reading the label.
Clean out medicine chest regularly.
Flush old medications down toilet.
Store all medicines, sprays, powders, cosmetics, mouthwashes, etc., out of reach in locked cabinets.
Keep all cleaners, household products and medications in original safety top containers.
Store all bleaches, soap and detergent out of reach.
Store household cleaning products in locked cabinets.
Store insect spray and weed killers in locked area.
Keep gasoline and car products in locked area.
Store turpentine, paints and paint products in locked area.

How to Keep Your Home Safe

Keep medicines and household cleaners locked up and placed where children cannot see or reach them.
Buy items with child resistant caps on them but remember - nothing is childproof!
Always read labels and follow their directions.
If it is medicine, call it medicine don’t call it candy.
Poisons can look like food and drinks. Teach your children to ask and adult before eating or drinking anything.
Keep a one ounce bottle of syrup of ipecac in your house. Always call the poison hotline ((800) 222-1222 ) before you give it.