The holiday season is meant for celebration, but that does not mean the upcoming months do not bring risks.
The Poison Center and Public Health Collaborations of Practice (PCPHCop) wrote in 2023 that the holiday season is a “time of increased poisonings risks and hazards in the home,” with various potential threats sitting around the house.
One of the biggest concerns with the holiday season is the potential for young children to unknowingly ingest medications, with Vannia Atao Wrobel of the North Texas Poison Center explaining that children can find these potentially hazardous medications.
Wrobel says that many adults do their best to keep these medications away from children, but everyone must be careful because children can still find the items, and “there’s no such thing as childproof.”
“It’s important to keep them up and away from children. If we have things that are called look-alikes, pills may look like candies. It’s important to make sure to keep them off the counters, especially if they’re medications that are for the heart or diabetes and stuff because that can cause severe damage,” she said to KERA News.
“They love to observe everyone around them and their surroundings. And so they will figure out how to open that bottle if it’s something that they really want.”
While many people are aware of potentially hazardous items such as drugs and medications, other pieces of the holiday season could pose a threat for potential poisonings.
In 2023, the PCPHCop wrote that many of the plants used to decorate houses, including poinsettias, holly, mistletoe, and bittersweet nightshade, can be toxic to children and small animals.
“No matter the holiday plant, when decorating, the best practice is to place them where children and pets can’t reach them, such as up on a mantle,” wrote the PCPHCop.
Wrobel confirmed the potential for some of these plants to cause issues with small children and animals, telling KERA that mistletoe and holly can be “toxic if ingested.”
“They are very pretty. But again, making sure that these holiday plans are telling the little ones like, ‘Hey, don’t eat these’ and stuff like that, because as much as they’re pretty, they can be toxic. A lot of plants can be toxic if ingested as well.”
Other potentially toxic materials that adults should be conscious of during the holiday season include alcohol, small batteries in decorations, carbon monoxide from poorly ventilated areas, and decorations such as tinsel and artificial snow.