First Aid for Poisoning - Part 1
Poisons in the home. Poisons account for thousands of accidental deaths each year. Most of the victims are children who have swallowed substances that were never intended for their consumption. Household preparations such as ammonia and cleaning fluids account for many poisonings. But pesticides and overdoses of medicines such as aspirin account for the largest proportion.
Preventing poisonings. There are a number of things you should do to "poisonproof" your home. First, obtain your parents’ cooperation and aid in your attempt to reduce the hazards of poisonings. Second, place everything poisonous in cabinets and on shelves that cannot be reached by young children. Third, throw away all unlabeled medicines, out-of-date prescriptions, old bottles of iodine and other antiseptics, and old cough medicines. Finally, label all medicines and place them in a locked cabinet.
Detecting poisonings. If you saw an unconscious person being pulled out of the water by two lifeguards, you would assume that the person had had a drowning accident. It would be easy to decide on the proper first-aid treatment.
If the unconscious person were a little girl in your back yard, you would not be so sure of the cause. You might think she had fainted, had fallen from a tree, had been shocked, or had been poisoned. In this case, the only first aid you could give would be to send for a doctor. You would not be sure what had happened to her.
If the accident victim were conscious, or some sign of a poisoning were present, you would be able to do more. In this case you could proceed with the five first-aid measures that follow.
Treating poisonings. When you arrive on the scene and a victim is still conscious, there are several things you can do.
1. Give the person as many glasses of water or milk as he can drink, even if it promotes vomiting. This step should be taken immediately. The water will dilute the poison and reduce its action. The water may produce vomiting, which is a helpful reaction.
2. Find out what poison he has taken and the antidote that will counteract the poison. The antidote is often listed on the container. Give the antidote if it is readily available.
3. Call a doctor and give him as much information as possible.
4. Induce vomiting right away unless the poison is a corrosive acid, an alkali, or a petroleum product. This can be done by giving milk of magnesia or a solution of baking soda.
5. Keep the person lying down and warm.
These first-aid measures will be of great value if performed soon after the poisoning has occurred. The water or milk helps slow the absorption of the poison and dilutes it. The vomiting gets rid of at least part of the poison in the stomach. Getting rid of the poison is extremely important.
Many times the victim of a poisoning can tell you what poison he has swallowed. In other cases, a telltale container or an acid or alkali burn on the victim’s mouth may indicate that he was poisoned.
When you have evidence of a poisoning, you can proceed to administer first aid without delay. Any delay increases the chance of injury.
