Saving a child from choking

In a recent incident, a 10-year-old speech-impaired boy died after a litchi seed stuck in his throat in the capital's Hazaribagh area. A few years ago, another child died reportedly after a blueberry seed stuck in her throat. It is not just that children are dying with fruit seeds stuck in their throats. It is often seen that children are choking on candies, marbles, small toys, metal coins, etc. A situation where food or something else gets stuck in the throat and causes suffocation is called choking. Every year, around one million people around the world choke on food or other objects. In every two hours a person in different parts of the world dies of choking due to food or something stuck in the throat. These incidents could be easily avoided if people trying to help the victims were aware of certain first-aid measures.

If a child swallows fruit seeds, there is nothing to worry as the seeds might enter the stomach, get digested and come out in the form of stool. However, if the seed or something else causes chocking or breathing problems, the first thing one should do is hold the child and tap a bit hard on his back three to four times. This might force out the seed stuck in the upper respiratory tract. If you are too scared of the incident, better consult a physician. Do the same if your child choke after swallowing candy or any non-food item. In such a situation, if treatment does not start within 7-12 minutes, it becomes difficult to save the victim.

Ashikujaman Syed and

Samia Jahan Shefa

syedashikujaman@yahoo.com,

shefasamia8@gmail.com