Health Tip: Help Prevent Choking While Eating

Things you can do to protect your child

July 8, 2010 RSS Feed Print

(HealthDay News) -- There's a long list of everyday foods that are potential choking hazards for young children, the Nemours Foundation says.

The foundation offers these suggestions to help prevent choking on food among infants and toddlers:

Teach your child to sit quietly while eating and to thoroughly chew and swallow food.
Don't let your youngster play, run or ride in a car with food, gum or candy in the mouth.
Carefully inspect food labels for information about choking risks.
Don't feed young children foods that are hard and smooth that could easily get stuck in a windpipe. Examples include foods with nuts, seeds, small pits or popcorn.
Soft foods that could choke a child should be cut into very small pieces. Examples include raw fruits and vegetables, cheese and hot dogs.