Seniors: Risks and tips

Prevention Tips

Be prepared.
- Save your poison center's number: 1-800-222-1222 (US only).
- Save the webPOISONCONTROL online tool as a browser favorite.
Install a carbon monoxide alarm in every sleeping area of your home. Keep appliances, furnaces, fireplaces and wood-burning stoves in good repair.
Store medicines and products in their original containers.
Use child-resistant packaging, especially if young children are ever around. Replace caps securely. Why?
- Of children treated in an ER for medicine poisoning, 38% got into a grandparent's medicine.
- More grandparents identified electrical outlets than medicine as a top safety issue, but 36 times more children go to the ER for medicine poisoning. Ouch!
Store household products in a different place from food and medicine.
Use medicines safely.
- Turn on the lights, put on glasses, and read the label before taking or giving medicine. Follow instructions exactly.
- Don't take someone else's medicine.
Use household products as directed on the label. Mixing products can release dangerous gases.
Have grandchildren? Check out the poison prevention tips for the ages of your grandchildren.

Seniors Adults Teens Food and drink Autumn
Toxic squash syndrome: If it’s bitter, it’s not dinner
Toxic squash syndrome is caused by eating gourds that contain high levels of cucurbitacin. These squashes look and smell normal, but taste very bitter. Toxicity occurs when a very small amount of high-cucurbitacin squash is ingested. Symptoms include diarrhea, nausea, vomiting, and abdominal pain, which may lead to dehydration, low blood pressure, fast heart rate, headache, and dizziness. Treatment includes taking oral or intravenous fluids.
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Adults Seniors Teens Herbals and supplements
Burn fat. Burn your liver? The risks of Albutarex V2
Albutarex V2 is a thermogenic dietary supplement. There is no evidence that it promotes weight loss. It is not safe. Side effects include nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, abdominal cramps, bloating, headache, dizziness, tremors, insomnia, anxiety, restlessness, fainting, seizures, and elevated pulse and blood pressure. Severe liver and cardiac toxicity can also occur.
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Elementary Preteens Seniors Adults Teens Infants Toddlers Food and drink Toys, crafts, and jewelry
Raw flour: Don’t lick the spoon
Eating raw flour is not advisable since it can cause food poisoning from bacteria such as E. coli and Salmonella. Homemade play dough is not safe for children since it contains raw flour. Symptoms include vomiting, diarrhea (sometimes bloody), abdominal cramps, fever, and headache. Treatment may include oral or intravenous fluids, depending on severity.
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Adults Teens Seniors Preteens Elementary Prescription medicines Medication safety Medicine
Lacosamide for seizure control in both children and adults
Lacosamide is prescribed for seizures. Common side effects include drowsiness, dizziness, headache, incoordination, tremors, blurred vision, upset stomach, and difficulty with concentration and memory. Serious allergic reactions, heart and liver issues, depression, and suicidal thoughts can occur. Avoid alcohol and other depressants while taking lacosamide.
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Elementary Preteens Seniors Adults Teens Food and drink
Apricot seeds: Are they safe to ingest?
Apricot seeds (or “pits”) contain amygdalin, a compound the body converts into cyanide. Cyanide starves oxygen cells and can be fatal. Symptoms may take time to appear because amygdalin must be broken down first. Swallowing one or two whole, unchewed seeds is likely safe, but swallowing the kernels inside the pit is dangerous, as the kernel is where amygdalin is concentrated.
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Elementary Preteens Seniors Adults Teens Toddlers Food and drink
Are pear, plum, and prune seeds toxic?
Pear, prune, and plum seeds contain amygdalin, a cyanogenic glycoside that the body metabolizes into cyanide. Cyanide deprives cells of oxygen and is a lethal poison. Symptoms following exposure may be delayed. Swallowing the seeds from 1 pear core, or 1 or 2 whole plum or prune seeds, is unlikely to cause harm. Chewing or crushing seeds, or swallowing several at once, raises the risk of cyanide poisoning.
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Elementary Preteens Seniors Adults Teens Food and drink
An apple a day keeps the doctor away. But what about the seeds?
Apple seeds contain amygdalin, a compound that the body converts into cyanide. Cyanide starves oxygen cells. Symptoms may take time to appear because amygdalin must be broken down first. Apple seeds contain very little amygdalin, so swallowing the seeds in an apple core is safe. You would need to chew and swallow a large number of seeds to risk cyanide poisoning.
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Elementary Preteens Seniors Adults Toddlers Teens Infants Food and drink
Peanut allergies: What you need to know
Peanut allergy is an immune response to peanut proteins. It usually lasts a lifetime. Symptoms range from skin rashes and wheezing to tingling of the mouth and throat, throat tightness, and lip swelling. Life-threatening effects include anaphylaxis and respiratory distress. Avoid peanuts and carry an epinephrine autoinjector. Giving peanuts at an early age decreases the risk of peanut allergy.
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Seniors Adults Teens Herbals and supplements Homeopathic products Caffeine and stimulants
Can nootropics maximize your cognitive performance?
A nootropic is a substance that improves cognitive function or delays cognitive decline. Among the many substances sold as nootropics, we only have scientific evidence for prescription medication, caffeine, and omega-3 fatty acids. Side effects vary but may involve gastrointestinal, neurological, cardiovascular, and central nervous systems.
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Seniors Preteens Elementary Teens Adults Toddlers Infants Food and drink Bites and stings
Red meat allergy: Alpha-gal syndrome
Alpha-gal syndrome is an allergic reaction to a sugar found in mammals. It is transmitted by the lone star tick bite. Onset is 6 hours after ingesting red meat and other alpha-gal substances. Symptoms include hives, vomiting, wheezing, and anaphylaxis. Treatment is avoiding meat and other alpha-gal substances. Reactions are treated with antihistamines and epinephrine auto-injectors.
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