Children are curious and often put objects in their mouth and accidentally swallow them. These might be toys they were playing with or other objects they find, such as batteries or pills. If you know or suspect what your child might have swallowed, it can be helpful if you can take an example or any packaging with you to the hospital.
Sometimes you might not be sure if your child has swallowed something, or they might tell you but you haven’t witnessed them do it. If you think your child might have swallowed or choked on something, check for the symptoms in the red box and if they have any symptoms take them to A&E. Tell the nurse or doctor what you are worried about, let them know if you have any button batteries or small magnets in the house, and if any might be missing.
If your child has swallowed something else that is smaller than a sweet, isn’t sharp or possibly poisonous, you can watch them closely at home. Most objects will pass through the intestines without any difficulty. You do not need to check your child’s poos for the objects but watch closely for any of the features.
If your child has swallowed a poisonous substance
If you think your child has swallowed pills or medicines:
- Keep your child calm
- Unless you’re sure what they are, look for the missing pills
- If you still think your child has swallowed something, take them straight away to A&E
- Take the full set of tablets with you so the doctors can check the labelling and calculate how much your child may have taken
- Keep a close eye on your child and be prepared to follow the resuscitation sequence
- If possible, write down the name of whatever you think your child has swallowed so you can tell the doctor
Do not
- Do not give your child salt and water or do anything else to make them sick
- Do not encourage them to walk around to keep awake
If you think your child has swallowed household or garden chemicals:
- Calm your child down as much as possible (this will be easier if you stay calm)
- Act quickly to get your child to A&E
- If possible, write down the name of whatever you think your child has swallowed so you can tell the doctor
- If your child is in pain or there’s any staining, soreness or blistering around their mouth, they’ve probably swallowed something corrosive. Give them milk or water to sip to ease the burning and quickly get them to the hospital
If a child swallows a button battery or strong magnet
- Button batteries are small round, silver batteries found in lots of electrical toys and devices
- If your child swallows a button battery or you think they may have swallowed one, take them to A&E straight away
- As well as being a choking hazard, button batteries can cause internal burns, internal bleeding, and sometimes death
- They can also cause burns if they’re lodged in a child’s nose or ear
- Strong (rare earth) magnets are popular toys but can easily be swallowed by young children and can cause serious intestinal injuries. If you suspect your child has swallowed any magnets, you should take them to A&E
- X-rays can be taken that will help assess if your child has swallowed a metallic object and needs any other treatment
When should I worry and what should I do?
Call 999 or go to A&E now if your child:
- has swallowed a battery
- has swallowed a magnet or more than one magnet
- has swallowed something large or sharp
- has swallowed the object to harm themselves
- is drooling more than normal or has blisters in their mouth
- develops noisy breathing, difficulty breathing, with any changes to their normal voice or a new cough
- is choking or coughing when eating or drinking
- is refusing food or eating less than usual
- starts gagging, vomiting or retching. Dark green vomiting can mean that there is a blockage somewhere in the intestine.
- develops pain in their chest or neck
- has blood in their vomit or poo
- becomes confused or is difficult to wake
If none of the above symptoms are present:
- If you think your child might have swallowed something small that doesn’t have a sharp point (such as a coin or plastic bead), you do not need to take them to A&E immediately. Watch over the next couple of days for symptoms that might suggest:
- a blockage like vomiting, gagging, drooling, not wanting to eat, stomach pain
- a breathing problem like coughing, wheezing or stridor
- See what wheeze and stridor can be like in babies and children
- You can get general advice on the NHS website
- If your child develops any of the symptoms in the black box above, go to A&E or ring 999
Self-care
Most swallowed objects are harmless and will pass through the digestive system without causing any harm. Studies suggest that it takes about 3 to 5 days for the object to pass out into the stool (poo).
We do not recommend routinely looking through the stool to find the object, as this can be unpleasant and not helpful.
It can be challenging to always stop young children from putting things in their mouths that they might swallow. However, there are some things you can do to reduce the risk of accidents happening. You can learn about what objects are particularly harmful if swallowed and then reduce the risk of your child getting hold of these objects.
Button Batteries
All batteries can be harmful if swallowed but button batteries are particularly dangerous. These batteries are flat and round, ranging from 5 to 25mm in diameter. Button batteries can get stuck in the oesophagus (food pipe) and cause permanent damage within hours. If your child has swallowed a button battery, bring them to the Emergency Department straight away. They might need to undergo a procedure to remove it.
Button batteries are flat and round. These ones are about the same size as a 5 pence piece.
Button batteries are found in many objects that you might have at home, including hearing aids, car keys, remote controls, weighing scales, musical greeting cards and some toys.
What you can do:
- Check every battery-powered device in your home and anywhere that your child stays. Ensure the battery case is shut and secured
- Know what objects in your home use button batteries and do not let your child play with them. Keep these objects out of your child’s sight and reach
- Be careful buying toys online, overseas or in markets as these may not meet UK toy safety standards
- Teach older children about the dangers of button batteries and that they should not give to younger children to play with
- Keep spare batteries in a locked cabinet or box
- Dispose of old batteries safely. Anywhere that sells batteries, such as a supermarket, should offer a collection of old batteries
Magnets
Magnetic ball toys are about 10 times stronger than traditional magnets. If a child swallows more than one of the magnetic balls, they can stick to each other inside the body and cause damage to the bowel and other structures that get caught in between. They can be challenging to remove, often requiring surgery to do so. If your child has swallowed one or more magnets, bring them to the Emergency Department straight away.
What you can do:
- Do not buy magnetic ball toys for your children or other people’s children.
- If your child is older, talk to them about the dangers of these toys and discourage them from buying them. It is very easy to buy unregulated toys online. Even if your child is sensible, accidents can happen.
- If you have them in the house consider getting rid of them.
More information on magnetic toys
More information on toy safety
More information on choking prevention
References
Kids Health Information : Swallowed (ingested) foreign bodies (rch.org.au)
Where should you seek help?
- If it is non-urgent, speak to your local pharmacist or health visitor.
- Or contact you GP practice and a qualified member of the clinical team will assess if your child needs to be seen urgently. For an urgent out-of-hours GP appointment, call NHS 111.
- You should only call 999 or go your nearest A&E department in critical or life threatening situations.