Preventing Household Poisonings- National Poison Prevention Month

Preventing Household Poisonings

Every year  in March the Poison Prevention Council raises awareness about the dangers of household poisonings and this month was no different.

The group’s goal is to help homeowners make their home’s safe from accidental poisonings which cause hundreds of injuries and deaths in children and adults every year.

Even if you don’t have children, but have children occasionally in your home, you should take into consideration the suggested poison prevention tips.

Here are some suggested safety tips by the Center for Disease Control and Prevention for preventing medicine poisonings:

1- Read the label and follow directions whenever you take or give medicines Make sure you read all warning labels.

2- Keep medicines in their original containers to prevent someone from accidentally taking the wrong drug

3- Keep opiate based prescription pills in safe place away from children at all times

4- Throw out unused and expired prescription drugs

Some tips for preventing household chemical poisoning:

1- Keep all household chemicals in their original packaging as it usually contains accidental ingestion instructions

2- Keep all household chemicals out of reach from babies and small children

3- Never mix products together as this can produce toxic gasses (i.e. bleach and ammonia)

4- Always read labels before use

Another type of poisoning to watch out for in the home is carbon monoxide poisoning. Read this article on preventing carbon monoxide poisoning.