Choking in Children

The shape and size of the food we eat could increase the chances of choking. Foods such as grapes, mini tomatoes, popcorn, peanuts and the small decorations on the tops of fairy cakes can lead to choking as they are all potential choking hazards particularly for children.

Fact 85% of choking deaths are caused by food

Many schools and nurseries ban grapes from packed lunches due to the high potential for choking. However, all you need to do is avoid perfect circles by cutting the food lengthways i.e. batons.

However, it is easy to forget that some chocolates and sweets can be a choking hazard for exactly the same reason- they are the perfect shape to be inhaled into the trachea (windpipe).

Did you know that Cadbury Mini Easter Eggs have a warning on the back of the package? It states that chocolate should not be consumed by children under the age of four, due to this risk of choking.

It is not just mini eggs - Maltesers, Smarties, lollipops and hard candies also have the potential to be a choking hazard in children.

How to respond to a child or infant is choking

First relax and then if you think they are choking ask them “Are you choking?”

If they can breathe, speak or cough then they might be able to clear their own throat. If not then they need your help straight away. There are two ways to remove a foreign object and that is with Back Blows or Deep Stomach Thrusts.

Back Blows in an Infant

• First of all support the infant in a head-downward face-down position. This enables gravity to assist removal of the foreign body; then

• Sit or kneel as you should be able to support the infant safely across your lap

• Now support the infant’s head by placing the thumb of one hand at the angle of the lower jaw, and one or two fingers from the same hand at the same point on the other side of the jaw

• And deliver up to 5 sharp back blows with the heel of one hand in the middle of the back between the shoulder blades

• The aim is to relieve the obstruction with each blow rather than give all 5

Back Blows in a child over 1 year

• Back blows are more effective if the child is positioned head-down and face-down

• A small child may be placed across your lap as with an infant, but if this is not possible, support the child in a forward, learning position and deliver the back blows from behind

If a back blow fails to dislodge the object and the child is still conscious, use chest thrusts for infants or abdominal thrust for children.

Deep Stomach Thrusts

Deep Stomach Thrusts in a child over 1 year

• Stand or kneel behind the child and place your arms under the child’s arms and encircle their torso

• Now clench your fist and place it just above your child’s navel but below the tip of the breastbone

• Place your other hand over the outside of the fist then bend your arms and elbows outward to avoid squeezing the ribcage and perform up to five quick inward and upward thrusts

• Repeat up to 4 more times

• The aim is to relieve the obstruction with each thrust rather than to give all 5

If the object has not been expelled and the victim is still conscious, continue with the sequence of back blows and chest (for infant) or abdominal (for children) thrusts.

Call out or send for help but if none is immediately available then UNDER NO CIRCUMSTANCES LEAVE THE CHILD!

If the object has been expelled, assess the child as it is possible that part of the object is still in the airway and can cause complications, but if there is any doubt then seek medical attention.

IF the infant or child becomes unconscious begin CPR and call 999

About Us

Rutland First Aid Training provides a full suite of first aid training all tailored to your needs. We strongly recommend that everyone should have some basic first aid skills, so why not attend one of our paediatric courses, for example our one day Care for Children course.

Rutland First Aid Training provides this information for guidance and it is not in any way a substitute for medical advice. Rutland First Aid Training is not responsible or liable for any diagnosis made, or actions taken based on this information.

First posted 19th March 2021