Stay on your guard about the risks of poisoning at home 

"From pain-relief medication to liquid detergent capsules and reed diffusers, everyday products can seriously damage your child's health"

Pic: iStock

It can happen so quickly. You take your eyes off your toddler for an instant and, when you turn around, he is grasping a bottle of cough syrup. Somehow it is open, spilt all down his top and — most panic-inducing — his mouth is stained.

Last year, the National Poisons Information Centre (NPIC) received 6,374 enquiries about poisonings in children under 16 years. The NPIC 2021 annual report found almost 60% of poisoning enquiries involved children aged 14 years and younger – an 8% reduction in such queries compared to the previous year.