There are some common emergencies in the home for which people may not be prepared for; and these could lead to regrettable casualties. According to a report, at least one child dies from choking on food every five days in the U.S., and more than 12,000 are taken to a hospital emergency room each year for food-choking injuries. There are several proven ways for preventing choking among children and in addition grownups.

The information provided in this series ‘Your Guide to Health’ are based on the book “Your Guide to Health” written by Dr. Clifford Russell Anderson and other references from https://www.healthline.com/. The following is meant as public enlightenment rather than as an alternative to engaging the services of a qualified medical professional. ‘Your Guide To Health’ is available on Amazon both on paperback and kindle version. https://www.amazon.com/GUIDE-HEALTH-Clifford-Russell-Anderson/dp/B08L41B3WS/ref=tmm_pap_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1606254607&sr=8-2

Young children will swallow almost anything small enough for them to get into their mouths! Small toys, seeds, pieces of wood, pins, nails, coins, and fruit seeds—any of these may cause trouble. Sometimes the object becomes lodged in the throat, at other times in the wind- pipe, or perhaps the esophagus. Parents should protect their young children from the danger of strangling, providing only toys that are perfectly safe.

Even adults are not left out of choking incidents. On the 13th of January 2002, Fmr. President George W Bush briefly lost consciousness after choking on a pretzel while watching a football game on television. Although children are more likely to experience due to ignorance, adults are however prone to choking due to distraction or excitement.

What to Do: Hold the victim forward, head down, and slap him vigorously on the upper back between the shoulder-blades. Another method is to lay the child across the bed with head and shoulders hanging over the side and slap the upper back. If the victim is a young child, hold him up by the heels and slap his back. Any of these movements may help to dislodge the object. If breathing is difficult or irregular, give artificial respiration as required. Get him to a hospital emergency room as soon as possible.

For adults, when by themselves, choking can also be cleared by jumping and getting a fluid to drink as quickly as possible.

References:-

1. Choking Prevention for Children – https://www.health.ny.gov/prevention/injury_prevention/choking_prevention_for_children.htm
2. George W. Bush vs. a pretzel – https://potus-geeks.livejournal.com/84687.html