When my daughter was going through that phase of toddlerhood I think of as "the world is my chew toy" (or, as my Italian great-grandmother used to call it, "they put everything in-a da mouth-a!"), I asked our pediatrician to tell me about some of the strangest things she'd ever seen kids swallow. (My daughter had recently gulped down a big hunk of crayon and I needed to know I wasn't the only horrible mother in the world.)
After a few gruesome tales of swallowed Polly Pocket shoes, marbles, Legos, Lite-Brite pegs and staples, I realized crayons were about as dangerous as Cheerios. What had I been worried about??
I was reminded of that incident when I heard about the new book Stuck Up! 100 Objects Inserted and Ingested in Places They Shouldn't Be, a collection of X-Ray images and stories from doctors about, well, exactly what the title implies. And let me just say, you ain't seen nothin' til you've seen a X-Ray of a toddler's insides filled with pins. (Yes, pins!)
Looking at the X-Rays made me wonder … apparently toddlers can and will ingest anything, but what are the most commonly swallowed items? So I did a little research …
My children are thankfully past putting everything in-a da mouth-a, but if I ever have another little one I'm printing out this list and putting it on the refrigerator. With tape, not a magnet! You'll see why in a second …
Top Ten Items Most Likely to Be Swallowed by Your Toddler:
- Coins
- Jewelry
- Pills (super dangerous!)
- Buttons
- Magnets (super dangerous!)
- Toy parts
- Batteries
- Screws/Nails
- Barrettes
- Art Supplies
Has your child ever swallowed any of these items?
Image via Jason Rogers/Flickr
