You should never mix two or more chemicals together, unless you’re a scientist or chemical engineer working in a laboratory wearing protective gear and know what you are doing. So too, should children and toxic cleaning products never mix. Keep children and toxic cleaning products away from each other!
Unfortunately it doesn’t always happen that children and toxic cleaning products don’t mix – they do mix, far too often, and dangerously well. Children are naturally curious and like to investigate anything they can get their hands on, and, as with the case of younger children, very often investigate with their mouths.
U.S. emergency departments treat over 300 children per day for accidental poisoning. More than 50 percent of these poisoning cases are due to children coming into contact with, swallowing, or inhaling ordinary household products. These ordinary household products include toxic cleaning products and laundry detergents.
Particularly Dangerous Toxic Cleaning Products
Caustic chemicals are particularly dangerous. The high acid or alkaline strength in some caustic (corrosive) chemical cleaning products can immediately cause chemical burns, and especially so internally in a child, who has not yet fully developed in size. These chemical burns may lead to severe injury, death, or life-long medical and health complications.
Types of Toxic Cleaning Products and Injuries to Children
Oily toxic cleaning products
- such as furniture polish and floor polish
If swallowed, the oily substance in furniture polish or floor polish may lead to the lungs being inflamed and the child may struggle to breathe. How does the oily substance get into the lungs if it was swallowed? Oily polish doesn’t taste good. In fact it tastes downright nasty. This may cause a child to cough or vomit (and then take a breath or have the oily and toxic cleaning product accidentally enter the air passages).
Acid based toxic cleaning products
- such as toilet bowl cleaning products, bathroom and bathtub cleaners, floor tile cleaners, and tarnish or rust remover cleaning products
Cleaning products are not meant for corroding your child’s stomach lining, other internal organs, throat or mouth! Unfortunately this is exactly what happens with caustic chemicals in acid-based cleaning products. It corrodes away at flesh. And it happens quickly.
Alkaline based toxic cleaning products
- such as drain cleaners, oven cleaners, and kitchen surface cleaners
Alkaline based toxic cleaning products can also cause chemical burns – even in the lungs if fumes are inhaled. There are mild, moderately strong, and strong alkalis.
Dangers of toxic cleaning products in pressurized cans
Pressurized cans may explode if they get too hot, spilling and splashing their toxic contents everywhere, including on your child.
Dangers of toxic cleaning products in spray bottles
Toxic cleaning products contained in spray bottles may be particularly attractive to young children. Spray bottles are like toys to young children – children want to press the button or squeeze the trigger that releases the toxic spray – sometimes into their mouths just like they can do with candy spray bottles …
Your injured child may be entitled to compensation
Speak to child injury lawyer Mark J. Leeds, who has many personal injury cases referred to him by other personal injury attorneys in recognition of his experience and high-level of legal practice.
Call Mark J. Leeds for a free legal consultation now!
Phone # (Toll-Free): (888) 446-1999.
