Below are basic safety
tips that you can use to
help reduce your
children’s risk of
choking. Please note
that the American
Academy of Pediatrics
recommends that children
under age 4 do not
eat whole grapes
(because of their shape
and size). Furthermore,
even children up to age
6 may not yet have all
of their teeth and
therefore are still
relatively more
vulnerable to choking
than older children and
adults.
We
also provide educational
information on safety
and health in the
children’s section of
our Web site. We
include a checklist for
S.M.A.R.T. eating, and
we also have a
poem on
safe eating which your
children (or you) can
teach to younger
siblings to keep them
safer from choking
hazards. Safety, after
all, is a family
matter. Everyone in the
family can help keep
each other safe.
We
wish your family well!
The
Fizzy Fruit Company
Keeping your
Children Safe from
Choking Hazards
The following
recommendations on
choking prevention are
based on information
from the Food and Drug
Administration (FDA),
the Centers for Disease
Control (CDC), and the
American Academy of
Pediatrics (AAP). For
more complete
information on the
prevention and treatment
of choking, please
click
here for a link to the
FDA Web site or
go to
www.fda.gov/fdac/features/2005/505_choking.html.
Generally, parents
and caregivers can
reduce their children’s
risk of choking by
following these
suggestions:
Always supervise
children when they
eat or play. (Make
sure that they do
not eat and play at
the same time.)
Children should sit
down while eating
instead of lying
down or moving
around.
In addition to
sitting still,
children should not
talk, sing, or laugh
while eating.
Teach children to
chew their food
thoroughly before
they swallow.
Remember that
children under age 6
do not yet have all
of their teeth and
cannot chew as well
as older children
and adults.
Therefore, they are
vulnerable to
choking on large
chunks of food. Very
important: The
AAP recommends that
you do not feed
children under age 4
any round, firm food
unless it is cut
into small pieces no
larger than one-half
inch. Therefore,
you should not feed
whole grapes to
children under age
4. In addition,
these choking
prevention
guidelines for
children under age 4
may still apply to
slightly older
children who are
still waiting for
more teeth.
Keep dangerous
foods, toys, and
household items
(small objects such
as balloons and
coins) out of
children’s reach.
For a list of unsafe
foods and objects,
refer to the FDA Web
site.
Keep an eye on older
children to make
sure they do not
give unsafe foods or
objects to younger
children.
Learn how to
give early treatment
to children who are
choking. Consider
taking classes on
basic first aid,
CPR, the Heimlich
maneuver, and
emergency
prevention.
