Safety Information
Tools & Resources
Get Involved
Donate Now
Recent Blog Posts
Choking from nuts, carrots, popcorn and hot dogs
An estimated 44 children age 14 and under die every year in Canada from choking, suffocation and strangulation and another 380 are hospitalized for serious injuries. Almost half (48%) of the above hospitalizations are from choking on food.
Here are some safety tips to prevent your child from choking:
Keep nuts, carrots, popcorn and hot dogs away from children until they are at least 3 years old.
The most common causes of choking for young children are nuts, raw carrots and other hard fruits and vegetables, popcorn kernels and hot dogs. Nuts, carrots, popcorn, seeds and other hard, crunchy foods should be kept away from children until they are three years old. If you are serving a hot dog to your child, make sure to slice it lengthwise.
Keep raw pear, apple and celery away from young children.
Young children do not have the teeth required to grind food down to a small, safe size.
