Melatonin Overdose in Kids: Essential Advice for Parents
JUN 13, 2024If melatonin is in your medicine cabinet, heed this important message: accidental ingestions by children have risen dramatically.
Read MoreIt’s every parent’s “Oh no!” moment. Your child ingests something they shouldn’t, like a cleaning solution or medication. Or maybe you accidentally gave a second dose of acetaminophen to your sick child when you should have alternated with ibuprofen.
It happens, and you’re not alone. Thousands of children are seen in emergency rooms every year for accidental poisonings.
Now with social media, parents have the added concern of what kids may be influenced to try – such as eating Tide pods. More recently, there’s been a “One Chip Challenge” with extremely spicy tortilla chips and the more dangerous “Nyquil Chicken” trend.
In addition, the legalization of marijuana in many states, and sale of cannabis in candy form, has given rise to this alarming statistic: 1,375% more kids age 5 and under ingested marijuana edibles in 2021 compared to 2017, according to the journal Pediatrics.(1)
No matter how well you’ve child-proofed your home, or how old your child is, it’s essential to know what to do in that “Oh no!” moment. Be ready with these Dos and Don’ts:
The good news is the worst case scenario is becoming less common. From 2018 to 2020, an average of 31 children died from unintentional poisonings in the US, which is a 70% decline from 1972.(3) Still, one is too many. So if you haven’t loaded that app yet (webPOISONCONTROL), do it now. You never know when it might come in handy.
For any additional questions or needs, reach out to a CHI Health Family Medicine provider.
Resources:
1.) https://publications.aap.org/pediatrics/article/doi/10.1542/peds.2022-057761/190427/Pediatric-Edible-Cannabis-Exposures-and-Acute?autologincheck=redirected
2.)https://ajemjournal-test.com.marlin-prod.literatumonline.com/article/S0735-6757(16)30230-3/pdf
3.) https://www.cpsc.gov/Newsroom/News-Releases/2022/CPSC-Marks-the-60th-Anniversary-of-National-Poison-Prevention-Week-and-Dramatic-Drop-in-Child-Poisoning-Deaths-Over-the-Decades
If melatonin is in your medicine cabinet, heed this important message: accidental ingestions by children have risen dramatically.
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