HealthyLife Articles

Tag: Child Safety

  • The One Question Parents Need To Ask

    FAMILY LIFE

    Image of gun and bullets.

    Before you let your child play at another person’s house, you may ask some safety questions. For instance, you’ll probably want to know if adults are there, when they will be home, and what they will be doing.

    There’s another question that may be harder to ask, but your child’s life may depend on it: “Is there an unlocked gun in your house?”

    The American Academy of Pediatrics says half of all U.S. homes contain firearms. More than a third of all accidental shootings of children happen in the homes of friends, neighbors or relatives.

    Follow these gun safety tips to help keep loved ones safe:

    *  Never keep a loaded gun in the house or in a car.

    *  Keep guns locked up and unloaded. Lock ammunition up in a separate location. Be sure your kids can’t get the keys.

    *  Put trigger locks on all guns.

    *  Know how to operate a gun before you load it.

    *  Don’t point a gun at another person.

    *  Unload the gun before setting it down.

    © American Institute for Preventive Medicine

  • Wired And Dangerous

    FAMILY LIFE

    Image of sport drinks with yellow "Caution" tape wrapped around the bottles.

    Parents beware. If your tots and teens get their hands on your energy drinks, they could experience seizures, heart palpitations, or other problems that drive them to the hospital ER.

    Children most at risk appear to be those who regularly consume the increasingly popular caffeine-laden energy drinks or gulp down a relatively large amount of the liquid in a short span, according to Rutgers University’s poison control experts.

    “These drinks are made for adults. When young children drink them, they consume a large quantity of caffeine for their body mass. At the minimum, they become wired-just as an adult would-and it might be difficult for parents to console them or calm them down,” said Bruce Ruck, director of drug information and professional education for the New Jersey Poison Information & Education System at Rutgers.

    “Children also might have trouble falling asleep or experience tremors, anxiety, agitation, heart palpitations, nausea or vomiting. Of more concern, they may experience a rapid heart rate or seizures,” he said.

    Ruck also said that, in addition to large amounts of caffeine, most energy drinks contain sweeteners, vitamins, and maybe herbal products, some of which may hold hidden risks for certain people.

    *  Don’t let kids be lured by the “rock star” graphics  on the cans that look like soda pop.

    *  Store drinks on a high shelf, away from the view  of kids.

    *  Monitor and limit your teens’ exposure to these drinks. Mixing them with alcohol or a rigorous workout can cause death.

    *  The journal Clinical Toxicology has reported that children under age 6 who consumed caffeine-infused energy drinks accounted for more than half of the energy drink-related poisonings involving children. The American Medical Association is calling for a ban on marketing energy drinks to children under 18.

    © American Institute for Preventive Medicine