The danger of children choking on milk and how to handle it
Milk choking is an extremely dangerous accident for infants. Milk choking is quite common and can be fatal if not treated promptly.
When a child chokes on milk, milk flows into the trachea, bronchi, and even into the alveoli, blocking the respiratory tract or hindering gas exchange between the alveoli and capillaries, thereby risking death.
This phenomenon mostly occurs in bottle-fed babies. Therefore, parents must pay attention to the rubber nipple. The hole of the rubber nipple should not be punched too wide, because the hole is large, the milk will flow quickly, flow strongly, the baby cannot swallow in time and will choke.
It is best to punch 1-2 small holes on the nipple. When feeding the baby, tilt the bottle about 45 degrees so that the milk covers the hole, the baby does not have to suck in too much air and easily vomit after meals.
While feeding the baby, the mother needs to pay attention to see if the milk is too much and if the baby can swallow it fast enough. The baby must be fed slowly, not in a hurry, especially for weak babies and premature babies.
For 3-4 month old babies who have started interacting with people around them, milk choking accidents still happen. The reason is because mothers feed their babies and talk to them at the same time. This is not recommended, because babies who are too busy listening to the conversation may hold milk in their mouths and refuse to swallow, and if they tilt their heads back too much, they will choke on milk going up their noses.
When the baby coughs or cries, we must stop immediately, not allowing milk to continue flowing into the baby's mouth.
Some children have the habit of eating and sleeping at the same time, which is very dangerous because the milk is still flowing but the child does not swallow. When breathing hard, the milk can be inhaled into the nose, causing respiratory obstruction.
Some children refuse to drink from a bottle, so mothers use spoons or cups to pour milk into their mouths to force them to drink, causing them to not be able to swallow fast enough and easily choke.
For breastfed babies, choking on milk is rare, but can happen when the mother has a lot of milk but the baby is weak, so the appetite is poor and cannot swallow quickly, causing choking. Or at night, the mother sleeps while breastfeeding, letting the baby suckle to stop crying can cause the baby to choke.
How to treat children choking on milk?
Milk choking is a very dangerous accident that requires immediate emergency treatment. Most babies who choke on milk die quickly before reaching the hospital because they do not receive emergency treatment immediately after the accident occurs.
According to Dr. Ha, when a child chokes on milk, parents need to be extremely calm and perform first aid in the following steps: First, pat the back and press the chest by having the child lie face down on the palm and right arm, using the palm of the other hand to pat the child's back five times quickly and strongly to increase the pressure in the chest to expel milk from the respiratory tract. But be careful to pat gently to avoid patting too hard, the child will not die from choking on milk but from improper first aid that causes severe damage to the child's lungs. If the child still has difficulty breathing and turns purple, place the child on his back on a hard flat surface, use the index and middle fingers to suddenly press five times on the lower half of the sternum, about 1-2cm below the line connecting the two breasts. Repeat five or six times until the child shows signs of recovery.
The quickest and simplest way that the family can do right away is for an adult to use his mouth to strongly suck the baby's nose and mouth. The stronger and faster the suction, the better. If left too long, the milk will go deep into the trachea, making it difficult to suck out, and the baby will be suffocated for a long time, making it difficult to save. After sucking the milk, you should stimulate the baby strongly to make him cry and breathe.
Then, take the child to the nearest hospital for timely emergency care.
How to prevent death when children choke on milk
- For babies who drink milk from a bottle: The baby's milk bottle must be sterilized by boiling thoroughly, ensuring hygiene when mixing milk, the nipple hole should not be punched too wide, it is best to punch 1-2 holes with the tip of a safety pin on the side of the nipple.
When feeding, tilt the bottle about 45 degrees so that the milk covers the hole, and the baby does not suck in too much air, leading to vomiting after meals.
- For breastfed babies: if the mother's milk comes down too much and the baby cannot swallow it, the mother can use two fingers to clamp the nipple to prevent the milk from coming down.
- When feeding your baby milk, porridge or rice cereal, you must feed and drink slowly. Wait for the baby to finish swallowing the previous bite before feeding the next. Do not force or threaten the baby.
- If the baby is crying, you must calm him down before feeding or nursing him. Especially when the baby is sobbing, when there are strong inhalations after the crying, you must wait for them to pass before feeding or nursing him.
- Never cover the baby's nose or mouth to force the baby to swallow food when the baby has it in his mouth as some mothers have done to avoid the baby choking on milk or food up his nose.