Young children, especially those under age six, are always exploring because of their developing mobility and natural curiosity. Their curiosity, however, can lead to unintentional poisoning, even around their own home.

In fact, 56 percent of the 82,675 calls to the Indiana Poison Center in 2006 involved children age five and under. Most of those calls involved unintentional poisonings and most were preventable.

When do you need to call the poison center?

Call (800) 222-1222 right away if someone may have been poisoned or if you have questions about poisons and poison prevention. If the person who is poisoned can't wake up, is having trouble breathing or is having seizures,    CALL 9-1-1.

What happens when you call the poison center?

Your call will be answered by one of the specialists at the poison center. These experts are trained nurses and pharmacists who specialize in poisoning emergency treatment and poison prevention. The poison specialist will help you to decide if you need to go to a hospital. Most poisonings are not life threatening and can be handled at home with the help of a specialist, saving you time and money.

Product Recall List

Poison Prevention Tips

Storage Tips:

• Store medicines and products in their original containers.
• Lock medicines and household products where children cannot see or reach them.
• Use child-resistant packaging. Replace the caps tightly.
• Store household products in a different place from food and medicine.
• Keep purses and briefcases out of children’s reach.

Prevent Poisoning from Medicines:

• Read the label before taking or giving medicine.
• Use medicine only as directed by your doctor or the label.
• Call medicine by its proper name, not "candy".
• Take medicine in a place where children cannot watch, because children learn by imitating adults.

Prevent Poisoning from Products and Plants:

• Use household products according to label directions. Mixing household products can cause dangerous gases to form.
• Keep house plants out of children’s reach. Even if the plants are not poisonous, they might cause choking.

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Poison Prevention Information

• Where Are the Poisons in Your Home?
• First Aid for Poisoning
• Carbon Monoxide Information
• Plant Safety
• Bites and Stings
• Seniors and Medication
• Keeping Grandchildren Safe
• Tips for Baby Sitters
• Protecting Your Baby from Poison: Are You Ready?
• How to Create Poison Prevention Displays
• What to Do with Old and Unused Medicine
• Poison Control Hotline
• Kitchen Poison Safety
• Bathroom Poison Safety
• Garage Poison Safety
• CO Poisoning
• Poison Prevention Checklist

Kids Pages

• Find the poisons
• Forms of poison
• Pick the poisons
• Poison crossword puzzle
• Poison maze
• Poison word search

When people think of poison they may think of classic poisons like arsenic and strychnine. While these are certainly poisons, things that are used everyday are more common causes of poisoning. A poison is any product or substance that can harm someone if it is used the wrong way, by the wrong person, or in the wrong amount. Examples of possible poisons include household products, chemicals at work or in the environment, drugs (prescription and over-the-counter), snakebites and spider bites.

Poisons come in four different forms:

1. Solids 2. Liquids 3. Sprays 4. Invisible gases

Poisons can enter the body through different routes and several routes at once.

• Ingestion (swallowing)
• Inhalation (breathing in through the nose)
• Dermal (on the skin)
• Ocular (in the eye)

Almost any substance can become a poison when used the wrong way or in excessive amounts. Children, adolescents, and adults are all affected by unintentional poisoning.