Choking risk, whole grapes for young children. When is it safe to not cut them up?

[Meglet]

My dc's are 3.7 and 22mo. If they have grapes I cut them in half as I was under the impression whole grapes are a choking risk?

But my step-mum gives them whole grapes, which made me a bit . Then one day she said she was giving them frozen whole grapes to cool them down in the hot weather and I was . She doesn't have her own kids BTW, she's generally quite sensible.

Am I being neurotic (me, never ) or are whole grapes better for when they are a little older, or at least until little DD is bigger.

[KatyMac]

I would strongly suggest cutting them in half for pre-school age

[jaffacake2]

I would recommend cutting up grapes until you are sure the child can bite into them well. dont ever let them eat them wandering around,then it is easy for them to choke.

We had a toddler at the surgery where I work choke badly on a whole grape aged 2yrs,nearly died cos it was stuck in his larnyx by the vocal cords. just survived but nearly died in ambulance.

last year toddler choked to death on a grape at a shop check out.

You are not being neurotic.

[PollyTechnique]

I have a friend who is a nurse who personally knows two families who lost little ones because of choking on grapes.

Best to be really cautious....

[Gaston]

It depends on the child, but children under 4 years generally need them cut up. I still cut them up for DS2 who is 5, but my 7 year old is fine with whole, and my 2 year old I quarter grapes for. Grapes happen to be slippery bu*rs and can slip quickly down the throat while trying to bite into them (at any age!)
Frozen grapes ? why ?

[thisisyesterday]

no, not neurotic at all. i would cut them up until you know they can bite into them straight away
i still remind my 5 yr old to do this!
my 2.5 yr old will sometimes bite them, but normally is shoving them in too fast, so i tend to cut them for him

actually, i hardly ever buy them because i can't be arsed to cut them up

[Meglet]

thank you all! I always cut them up but was starting to think I was being over cautious.

I will have a word with my step-mum then.

[BoysAreLikeDogs]

certainly cit for pre schoolers and a big fat NO to frozen grapes, that is v dangerous indeed

[BoysAreLikeDogs]

cut not cit

[kkey21]

The guy running my first aid course said his children (from memory age 7 & 9) still have their grapes cut up, as he has personally witnessed the awful situation they can cause :-(

My first aid course took place 5 days after my ds1 (then 15mths) choked very severly on a chunk of apple, going blue then floppy-we did discuss this on the course and i was told we were very lucky.

My ds2 aged under two needless to say currently has his apples grated.

[Meglet]

oh God, should I be cutting up / grataing apples too? . Its the only non messy fruit they seem to like.

[TeenyTinyToria]

I stopped cutting grapes for ds when he was about 2. He is 3.5 and copes fine with them.

Dd is only just 1, so I halve them for her.

[kkey21]

The grape is the perfect size/shape to get lodged... Most of my friends don't cut them up for their children now, but i will do for a long time.

[Rockbird]

DD is 2.5 and I cut them up still. Frozen grapes sound lovely, just not for children.

[Ledodgy]

I am paranoid about this I did stop cutting dd's when she was 6 then there was a story about a 6 year old that choked to death on one so I went back to chopping.

[OnEdge]

I rip them open so they are flattened

[BlueEyeshadow]

Oh! I've been giving DS1 (3.6) whole grapes for ages. Now I feel awful! I've been peeling them as well as cutting them for DS2 (10 mths). How long is that necessary for?

[Bumperlicious]

I still do at 3yo but I think most of my friends think I am being precious.

[southeastastra]

i have an easy solution - don't give them grapes

[isthatporridgeinyourhair]

I don't cut them up for my 6 yo and haven't done so since he was about 4. For my 10mos I cut them up but don't skin them.

[Loshad]

my ds3 nearly choked on a grape at 3 yo, worse i was driving at the time (brothers feeding him grapes). I literally stopped dead in the middle of the road, grabbed him out of his car seat and had him dangling upside down - the guy behind me got out of his car and came over - i think he was going to bollock me for stopping in a silly place but when he saw me thumping ds3 on the back he was really helpful. Jeepers, that's 9 years ago now and i can still remember it really clearly - cut the wretches up.

[Rindercella]

I still cut up grapes for DD1 who is 2.11, but tbh I very rarely buy them now as it's a faff. If/when I buy them I will be cutting them up for her for the foreseeable future.

[diggingintheribs]

My ds (3.3) is under strict instructions not to take whole grapes and will ask for them to be halved!!

It's my only paranoia - my paediatrician friend is very chilled about child safety but is adamant that grapes should be cut in half for as long as possible. She has seen 3 deaths and 1 severe brain damage from grapes.

Not only are they the perfect size for choking but they also have skin that makes them hard to cough up.

[debka]

I feel v lax in not cutting up my 14mo's grapes now, but she always sits in her highchair with us when she eats so I keep a close eye on her.

[BoysAreLikeDogs]

deb the shape and size of a grape is exactly that of a small child's windpipe, this is why they are so so dangerous

think again about cutting them?

even if you are sitting next to her, by the time you have unstrapped her to lift out precious time will have been lost

I'm not being dramatic, honestly