September is Baby Safety Awareness Month, and it's a great time to turn our attention to one of the common questions we see: what to do if a baby is choking? Choking is very common, with one child dying from choking every five days. In fact, more than 12,000 kids are taken to emergency rooms each year because of a food-choking incident. Knowing what to do if your baby is choking is a matter of life and death. This guide will help you know what signs to look for and what to do if your child is choking.
Be aware: Signs of a baby choking
Common objects that cause baby choking
Toddlers can choke on any number of things. They are learning to chew solid foods and will place just about anything in their mouth, especially when teething. These are all choking hazards. Parents should know that hard, smooth foods are often the culprit in choking incidents.
These foods include:
- Nuts
- Sunflower seeds
- Watermelon
- Cherries with pits
- Raw carrots, peas, and celery
- Popcorn
- Hard candy
- Raw apples and pears
Additionally, some soft foods can be dangerous and should be cut into small pieces or avoided:
- Cheese cubes
- Hot dogs
- Sausages
- Grapes
- Caramels
Parents should encourage kids to chew thoroughly before swallowing to teach them sound and safe eating habits. Small toys and objects can be swallowed and lead to choking as well. Common objects include:
- Balloons
- Toys with small parts
- Doll accessories
- Batteries
- Erasers
- Marbles
- Broken crayons
- Jewelry
- Magnets
- Bottle caps
- Coins
Food and common objects aren’t the only culprit when it comes to choking. It’s important to note that choking is not always related to an object the baby swallows, as mom Melissa Libby explained to Mom.com. Libby and her husband were out shopping, and she had her infant daughter in her infant carrier.
“Upon entering the store, I look down and see her lips are blue. She didn’t have a bottle, so we didn’t realize that she could have been choking,” Libby recalled. While the appropriate measures were taken by the store’s pharmacist to get her baby breathing again, Melissa and her husband didn’t know how the baby was choking.
After a ride via ambulance to the emergency room, Melissa’s daughter was diagnosed with BRUE (brief resolved unexplained event). The doctors believe that her baby had acid reflux that led to her choking. While the situation was resolved with a happy ending, Melissa said it was terrifying not being able to help her child.
