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Every week around 500 children under five are rushed to hospital because it's thought they have swallowed something poisonous. Find out how putting a few simple measures in place can stop this happening to your child.
Keep medicines well out of reach and out of sight of young children. Put them in a high cupboard, a cupboard fitted with a child-resistant catch, a lockable cabinet, or even a lockable suitcase. Don’t keep them:
If a medicine needs to be kept in the fridge it will say so on the box. If it does, keep it as high up and hidden as possible.
Carbon monoxide is a poisonous gas which can build up when household appliances that use flames - like boilers, water heaters, stoves or open fires - are faulty and are not getting enough oxygen to burn efficiently. Carbon monoxide is particularly dangerous as it has no smell, taste or colour, so it is very difficult to know when it is being produced.
You can guard against carbon monoxide poisoning by doing the following:
If you think your child has swallowed a harmful medicine or chemical:
The information on this page is provided by CAPT. For more information about children’s accidents visit the Child Safety Week website.