Laundry Packets Can Be A Danger To The Very Young [AUDIO]

There may be hidden hazards lurking in your laundry room. Experts warn of the dangers facing the very young from accidentally swallowing laundry packets.

Doctor Bruce Ruck of the New Jersey Poison Information and Education system says toddlers here and in other states have accidentally swallowed these laundry packets. They can cause vomiting and the kid can have trouble breathing. Ruck says if that's the case, call 9-1-1 right away. Some victims of the have required intubation, putting a tube down their throat to help the child reestablish a normal breathing pattern, when they recover from the episode. One report said that ten minutes after a 20-month-old swallowed a laundry detergent packet, the child developed profuse vomiting, wheezing and gasping and then became unresponsive to even painful stimuli.

Ruck says the most important thing to remember is to make sure these laundry products are locked away where kids cannot get to them. He says it is also important to make sure that adults in the home program the New Jersey Poison Information and Education system number into their cell phone.

The number is 1 800 222 1222. For some unexplained reason toddlers take a liking to these laundry pods, and as parents of curious young children know, everything heads toward the mouth.