Holiday Safety Tips

Thursday, December 20, 2001

Batteries and perfumes, as well as grandparents medications can ruin your holiday season. Adults should be extra careful around the holiday season. Poisonings can be prevented with a little extra care.

Batteries can be hazardous if bitten or swallowed. The alkaline contents can leak from the battery and cause a chemical burn to the mouth, lips and tongue. Swallowed batteries can obstruct the airway or esophagus. All batteries should be out of the reach of small children. Even the small disc or button batteries can be dangerous.

Perfumes are popular Christmas gifts that can be dangerous because they contain large amounts of alcohol. Perfumes that smell good are more tempting for a child to taste. Children are more sensitive to the effects of alcohol than adults so a small amount can be dangerous.

Holiday decorations can pose special poisoning hazards. In homes with small children, take special care to avoid decorations that are sharp or breakable, keep trimmings with small removable parts out of the reach of children to avoid the child swallowing or inhaling small pieces, and avoid trimmings that resemble candy or food that may tempt a child to eat them. The following tips may also help save a life:

Bubbling Christmas tree lights may contain very toxic chemicals that can be life threatening.

Artificial snow should always be applied with adequate ventilation. Inhaling the propellants and solvents from the can or spraying the aerosol near the eyes can cause injury. Use spray snow according to directions and in properly ventilated areas.

Potpourri smells good and looks pretty but many contain irritating oils that can cause allergic rashes or vomiting and diarrhea.

Use care with "fire salts," which produce colored flames when thrown on wood fires. They contain heavy metals that can cause intense gastrointestinal irritation and vomiting if eaten. Keep them away from children.

Lamp oils usually come in bright attractive colors. Even though most lamp oil bottles have child safety caps, most lamps that the oils are poured into do not. Lamp oil can get into a young child’s lungs if swallowed and can be deadly. Keep oil lamps away from children. Remember, child safety caps only slow children down.

Seasonal Holiday plants should be kept out of a child or pet’s reach. The following recommendations can enhance holiday safety:

Identify and mark all plants in your home. To determine if a plant is a poisoning danger call the Oklahoma Poison Control Center or the local Oklahoma State University Extension in your county.

Take care in decorating with plants. Mistletoe, holly berries, and Jerusalem cherries can be poisonous if large amounts are swallowed. The berries and leaves of holly and mistletoe can cause persistent nausea, diarrhea, abdominal pain, and weakness. Any plant can be a choking hazard.

There is no scientific data to support the common myth that the poinsettia plant is a severe poisoning hazard.

Holiday season means holiday parties. Parents should clean up immediately after a party. Sweet-tasting alcoholic drinks can be attractive to children. Even small amounts of alcohol are poisonous to children and the effects last longer in children than in adults. Tobacco products, including cigarette butts, can cause seizures in children. Don’t forget to keep ashtrays clean and tobacco products out of reach. Guests not familiar with the inquisitive nature of small children may unknowingly store a variety of poisoning hazards in purses and travel cases. Nationally, cosmetics and personal care products are the most frequently reported causes of poisoning in children under the age of six. All medicines should be securely locked away. Purses and diaper bags are not good places to keep medicines even when the bottles have child safety caps.

Adults should examine their home through the eyes of a child. Stoop down or crawl on your hands and knees to see what attractive nuisances you may have overlooked.

The Oklahoma Poison Control Center web site is provided free of charge to the public as an informational and educational tool. This web site is NOT intended as a substitute for a consultation with the Oklahoma Poison Control Center. The center is a statewide program operated by The University of Oklahoma College of Pharmacy in cooperation with Children's Hospital at the OU Medical Center. Our pharmacists and nurses are specially trained poison experts available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

Suspected Poisonings Call: 1-800-222-1222