ABERDEEN PROVING GROUND, Md. – The Army Public Health Center is advocating for increased awareness of poisonings among children and adults, including among members of the Army family, as part of National Poison Prevention Week, held March 21-27. NPPW provides an opportunity to highlight some household poisoning prevention tips in order to prevent future tragedies.
Hundreds of children in the U.S. are seen in emergency rooms each year due to accidentally ingesting household products (cleaning products, detergent pods, car fluids, medicines) or accidental overdoses of medicine given to them by a caretaker.
Protect your family with the following tips:
- Save the Poison Control Center Hotline number 1-800-222-1222 in your cell phone and post it near every home phone
- Educate your child about hazards in your home with this U.S. EPA website interactive learning tool
- Read and re-read labels to ensure proper dosage (especially for children) and possible interactions before giving your child medications or taking them yourself.
- Safely dispose of unneeded products and medications; lock up or move those you need to hard-to-reach locations.
- Seek assistance through the Army’s “Community Resource Guide” to find local help if you are concerned about your own, or a family member’s, misuse of a medication or other drugs
- If you think a child or other family member has been poisoned:
- Call Poison Control Center Hotline if the individual is awake and alert
- Call 911 if the individual has collapsed or is not breathing.
For more information on protecting children from hazards in your home see the APHC Child Youth Health webpage on Child Safety Hazards .
The Army Public Health Center focuses on promoting healthy people, communities, animals and workplaces through the prevention of disease, injury and disability of Soldiers, military retirees, their families, veterans, Army civilian employees, and animals through population-based monitoring, investigations, and technical consultations.
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