Are you aware that several everyday products like household cleaners, alcoholic drinks, medications, and even leftover food can be poisonous if used in the wrong way or consumed accidentally?
It’s easy to downplay the dangers of such products in your home, but threats of poison can lurk around and cause unintentional injuries silently. Here are some fast facts that show how serious it is.
- In the Philippines, a food poisoning outbreak from the production of candy brought 2,000 people—most of them children—in the hospital in 2015.
- In 2018, 76.7% of poison exposure across all ages were found unintentional.
- Poisoning is one of the top three causes of fatal, unintentional injuries in the United States.
Accidents happen. The best you can do to prevent poisoning accidents is to put preventive measures in place. This is highly important if you have children around the house since they’re naturally curious and may find hazardous household products or medicines fascinating enough to reach out for it.
There are different types of poisoning, including toxic chemicals that are not meant for human contact or consumption, such as cleaning products and paint thinners. However, some products that are meant to be consumed, like food and medicine, can also be harmful; for instance, when someone consumes spoiled or raw food.
A huge part in preventing further complications when poisoning has occurred is figuring out the signs and symptoms and gathering information about the possible cause (e.g., keeping the pill bottle).
Keeping tabs on poisonous substances or toxic products at home and properly storing them can help protect your family from a stressful and costly trip to the emergency room. Educating your family about the dangers and threats of poison at home is essential for your safety. Check out this infographic for helpful tips on poison prevention, and what you need to do when someone shows signs of poisoning.
