Keep detergent packets from kids

The North Dakota Department of Health is urging parents to make sure to keep highly concentrated “single dose packs” of laundry detergent away from children. This comes after a warning from the American Association of Poison Control Centers.

Poison centers across the United States are reporting a recent increase in calls about exposures of children to laundry detergents packaged in very small, single-dose packets. Some young children and toddlers who swallow these small packets have become very ill and have required hospitalization. Other children have gotten the product in their eyes, resulting in significant eye irritation. Some children have been exposed when the product burst after putting it into their mouths.

“When we checked with the poison control center that serves North Dakota, we were informed that four of these cases have been reported from North Dakota,” said Diana Read, Injury/Violence Prevention Program director for the North Dakota Department of Health. “Luckily, the cases reported in North Dakota were not serious, but we want to make sure that parents know these detergent packages can be dangerous so they can make sure they are stored somewhere children can’t get to them.”

The American Poison Control Centers recommends the following steps:

* Always keep detergents locked up and out of reach of children.

* Follow the specific disposal instructions on the label.

* If a child is suspected to have been exposed to a laundry detergent packet, call the local poison control center at 800-222-1222 immediately.

For more information, or to request stickers and magnets with the national poison control number, contact Diana Read, North Dakota Department of Health, at 800-472-2286 (press 1) or visit the website www.ndpoison.org.

Tags: life, health