The 12 choking hazards of Christmas – and how to save your child in an emergency
FROM rushing to unwrap presents to gorging on sweet treats - Christmas is a frenzy of activity when there are kids around.
But according to experts, this makes the festive season one of the worst times for choking hazards.
Unfortunately, between small pieces of toys and chunks of Christmas dinner, the risk of blocked airways in children is dramatically heightened.
And in the UK, choking kills one child per month and hundreds more require hospital treatment.
However, if parents remain vigilant and are aware of the main choking hazards, and know what to do if the terrifying situation arises, any Christmas drama can be avoided.
Here, experts at , take us through the main choking hazards to look out for and what to do if your baby is choking.
The main hazards this Christmas
Babies explore the world around them by putting things in their mouths - this means they're at high risk of choking.
And there are several main choking hazards that pose a threat to children this Christmas.
1. Sweet treats: Boiled sweets, chocolates containing whole nuts, solid balls of chocolate, all of which are popular coffee table centrepieces this time of year. Tempting for kids with a sweet tooth but also risky when it comes to choking.
2. Whole nuts: Christmas makes people nuts for nuts, a bowl of these snacks with nutcracker in tow are a seasonal staple for many and one of the worst offenders of choking incidences.
3. Decorations: They are shiny, they come out once a year and this makes them worth exploring, unfortunately, little ones do so with their mouths. Tree light bulbs and jingle bells are just two examples.
4. Sprouts: Parents may think getting their children to eat sprouts is a blessing but these round vegetables are the perfect size to get stuck in a little one’s gullet.
5. Toy packaging: Despite the planet cutting down on unnecessary packaging, Christmas toys come with plenty. In the frenzy of unboxing it is easy to miss a few pieces that may end up in the hand of a crawling babe.
6. Meat bones: Of course, care is taken to ensure these never reach a child’s plate, but accidents can happen so just be vigilant.
7. Pigs in blankets: Chunks of meat are notoriously difficult for a little one to break up due to no molars or small molars. Mixed with a chewy or crispy bacon coating these festive feast musts pose a risk.
8. Cracker toys: Crackers present five minutes of joy, but generally no one keeps their cracker toy or gift, meaning they are discarded and left unattended.
9. Button batteries: Not only a choking risk but a serious health risk. As more toys become interactive and digital the chances of one of these small batteries reaching the mouths of little ones increases.
10. Bottle caps:‘Tis the season to eat, drink and be merry. Popping the caps off bottles is a mindless activity, however, if you have children, be mindful about where those caps end up. Under the sofa? On a side table?
11. Cheese and crackers: Cheese can be claggy and get easily caught in a throat if not chewed thoroughly, while crackers are notoriously dry. Do not deprive children from this Christmas favourite but ensure they are supervised.
12. Marshmallows: They are sweet and go great on top of a hot chocolate, but their stickiness can mean they are unable to slide down the throat if swallowed before being chewed.
What to do if your baby is choking
During the festive break many children stay home from childcare, meaning they are away from those who are paediatric first aid trained, so parents need to be prepared to deal with any potential incidences.
The first thing to note is a baby who's choking won't be able to cry, cough or make any noise, as they struggle to breathe.
Here are the three main steps you should do if this happens:
Step 1. Give your baby five back blows
Hold your baby face down, resting them along your thigh with their head lower than their bottom.
Hit them firmly on their back between the shoulder blades up to five times.
If back blows don't dislodge the object, move on to step two.
Step 2. Give up to five chest thrusts
Turn your baby over so they are facing upwards and place two fingers in the middle of their chest just below the nipples.
Push sharply downwards up to five times.
Step 3. Call 999 if the object does not dislodge
Continue with cycles of back blows and chest thrusts until the blockage clears or help arrives.
These tips follow shocking new statistics that revealed one in ten adults do not know the correct steps to take if their child was choking.
Similarly, 30 per cent of parents believe gagging and coughing are a sign of choking and over half of parents don't know CPR for children.
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As Joe Mulligan, head of first aid at British Red Cross, said: "Babies can be very curious and love to explore their surroundings by putting things in their mouths, especially when they're teething.
"No parent wants to be in the situation where their baby is choking and they don't know what to do, but helping is easy when you know how."
He said if every parent in the UK knew just a few simple first aid skills, they could deal with the everyday injuries and illnesses their little ones may face.