Health Buzz Kids Increasingly Injured After Swallowing Button Batteries

More kids are landing in the emergency room after swallowing coinsized button batteries There were nearly 66000 batteryrelated hospital visits by children under 18 between 1990 and 2009 and the annual number more than doubled jumping from 2591 to 5525 Thats according to a new study published today in Pediatrics The situation is worst for children 5 and under who accounted for more than 75 percent of all batteryrelated hospital visits Tiny round button batteries are found in many watches cameras television remotes and other small devices they can cause severe injury in less than two hours if lodged in the esophagus Often there are no symptoms early on so its important that an Xray be taken as soon as possible if ingestion is suspected researcher Gary Smith director of the Center for Injury Research and Policy at Nationwide Childrens Hospital in Columbus Ohio told USA Today Parents need to make sure their children cannot get access by taping battery compartments shut and keeping loose batteries out of childrens reach

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Home Safety Hidden Risks to Children

The child left his mothers sight for mere minutes Yet that was enough time for 21monthold Ollie Hebb to fall into the toploading washing machine and become submerged in a full tub The Utah boy died a day later after suffering severe brain damage

Between 2005 and 2009 two children under the age of five died as a result of laundry room accidents according to the Consumer Product Safety Commission Washing machinerelated injuries are more common than deaths says Scott Wolfson director of public affairs for the CPSC Aside from drowning children may suffer burns from hot water in the machine or injuries to their limbs if they come into contact with a rapidly spinning basin Kids are curious We have to be very vigilant about our children and really live in the moment and be present when were supervising them says Kate Carr president of Safe Kids Worldwide which aims to prevent unintentional childhood injuries

Washing machines arent the only hidden dangers lurking in homes Here are 5 others to be cautious of

Standing water Drowning concerns extend beyond swimming pools Any type of standing watereven if its just an inch deepcan harm a child The bathroom is the riskiest room in the house says Garry Gardner chair of the American Academy of Pediatrics council on injury violence and poison prevention Children lean over and look into the toilet or bathtub they trip and they fall in Keep young children out of the bathroom unless theyre being closely watched and teach others in the home to keep the bathroom door closed at all times Ice chests with melted ice water buckets or pails and whirlpools also pose risks Empty all buckets pails and bathtubs completely after use never leave them filled or unattended And adjust the water heater thermostat so that the hottest temperature at the faucet is 120 degrees Fahrenheit to help avoid burns Read more Home Safety Hidden Risks to Children

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Is Veganism Appropriate for Kids

The cover of Vegan is Love is deceptively cheerful There are smiling elephants zebras pandas and even pink lambs But inside Ruby Roths new childrens book youll find wounded animals Rabbits trapped in laboratories The slaughter house and the circus Blood Killing an animal is not braveit is cowardly What we need today are people with the courage to protect animals not hurt them writes Roth a former elementary school art teacher and selfappointed animal rights activist We can choose to live without using animals for food clothing or fun As vegans we live this way because it is best for our health for animals and for the earth and that is love

Vegan is Love North Atlantic Books 1695 is designed to inspire children to adopt a vegan lifestyle at an early age Its aimed at kids ages 6 and up and includes lessons on animal cruelty and the environmental consequences of eating meat such as pollution emitted by animal farms Critics argue that it focuses too heavily on violence against animals And some say its unwise to graphically promote a restrictive vegan diet to young impressionable readers

Date : 15 May, 2012
Reference : health.usnews.com/health-news/articles/2012/05/14/health-buzz-kids-increasingly-injured-after

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