Tuesday, May 25, 2010

Choking 101

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Did you know that choking continues to be one of the leading causes of death for children under age four or five? I did not. Yikes.

The article Labels Urged for Food That Can Choke is a good reminder that you can never be too careful. I've always been a Nazi about cutting up my daughter's grapes and slicing her carrots and hot dogs since I heard they were some of the worst choking hazards. We give her popcorn and nuts all the time though and often times we aren't even in the same room together (not that it matters since so many parents were "right there". Something to reconsider clearly.

The worst food choking hazards are:

whole grapes
peanuts and other nuts
popcorn
hard candy and chewing gum
hard foods, including raw vegetables
soft foods, such as large cubes of cheese, caramels, etc.
chewy foods, such as thick spoonfuls of peanut butter
uncut hot dogs


Visit Baby Center for a reminder on Infant First Aid for Choking and CPR.

1 comment:

Christi Bennett @ pisforparty said...

ugh...so scary and frustrating. I have always been a Nazi about cutting up the obvious things as well. But we definitely let our 3 1/2 year old have popcorn on occasion and he loves scoops of peanut butter! I'm always there with him when he eats the pb, but still!

Thanks for posting!