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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

Lollipops are a choking hazard aren't they?

64 replies

3littlerabbits · 30/06/2014 12:31

I don't think I am being unreasonable in saying that lollies on sticks are a totally choking hazard. The lolly bit is the right shape and size to perfectly lodge in a child's throat and they slide off the stick so easily. However people are constantly giving them to my 3 under 6's - party bags, prizes, treats from friends and so on so I am wondering if it is just me who thinks like this or are there more lollipop haters out there?

Obviously it is very nice of people to treat my kids but I do confiscate them and replace with a bit of choccy or similar. AIBU?

OP posts:
Fairylea · 30/06/2014 12:32

Yanbu.

I'm not anti chocolate for children's parties etc but lollies on sticks are basically a boiled sweet which is very dangerous for little ones.

CorporateRockWhore · 30/06/2014 12:33

Yeah, they freak me out too. DD got given one recently and I didn't like it. I kept a close eye on her until she gave up because 'I can't understand how to eat it, Mummy' Grin

onestepbeyond · 30/06/2014 12:33

I hate them too. It's one of the few things I am adament that dc can't have. Just too dangerous.

Luggagecarousel · 30/06/2014 12:33

I hate them. I think they are dangerous and disgusting. What other food do you keep putting in and taking out of your mouth?

My Dc have them only when in a plane taking off or landing, at no other time.

HauntedNoddyCar · 30/06/2014 12:35

Yanbu. I don't like them at all.

Fairylea · 30/06/2014 12:36

I don't think people understand (or care?) how dangerous they are though... The other day I walked past a man getting his dd out of the car seat as they'd just pulled in and she had a half finished lolly hanging out of her mouth - she couldn't have been older than 18 months. I must admit my judgey pants squeaked as I raised them higher.. I don't agree with lollies like that at the best of times but so young and in the back of a car while the parent had been driving and eyes on the road? .

snowgirl1 · 30/06/2014 12:37

Er, personally I'd say YABU. Anything that goes in the mouth is a choking hazard. I've seen a toddler start choking on a bit of biscuit. I'd say it's more important to try to get children to sit down to eat (so they're not at risk of tripping and something getting lodged in their throat) and being around when they're eating so if they do start choking you can take action. I'd be more concerned about the issue of the lollipop being bad for their teeth than the risk of choking, but each to their own.

NCISaddict · 30/06/2014 12:37

I didn't let mine have them until they were at school and then they had to sit down with them. Hate seeing little children running around with lollies in their mouths. I also used to police party bags for uninflated balloons as they are really dangerous for little ones to inhale although I don't know if putting them in party bags is as common now.
Generally prefer children to sit down with any food though as choking is/was one of my main worries.

Vintagejazz · 30/06/2014 12:40

I hate seeing small kids with them, If it comes off the stick while they're sucking it and gets lodged in their throat, the consequences could be horrendous.
My mother can't even look at any of her smaller grandchildren sucking them. She hates them (the lollipops, not the grandchildren).

Aeroflotgirl · 30/06/2014 12:41

Yes they are, very dangerous, children have died.

Original poster
3littlerabbits · 30/06/2014 12:42

Glad it's not just me then! I will keep taking them off the DC then. I wish people, and I know they are being kind, would just stop giving them out though. If it's obvious to us why isn't it obvious to everyone else?

OP posts:
LangenFlugelHappleHoff · 30/06/2014 12:45

It's not just the sweet that holds the danger. Those sticks have been forced through roofs of mouths and backs of throats when a child has fallen whilst it was in their mouth.

I'm evil my dc are only allowed them when sat down, licking only and a time limit of 5 minutes max...I hate the bloody things.

ArcheryAnnie · 30/06/2014 12:47

I cannot bear seeing kids run around with them in their mouths. All it takes is a trip, and that's a stick jammed in their palate or through their throat.

LizzieMint · 30/06/2014 12:48

My SIL choked on one when she was a child, someone bumped her and she swallowed it and it got stuck in her throat. Fortunately there was a doctor there who managed to remove it and it didn't come off the stick. Because of that, she doesn't allow her children to have lollies at all. I let mine have them (swizzles ones not boiled sweet ones) as long as they sit down with them. I have seen children with them on bouncy castles etc though. Although to be honest, without having heard SILs story I'm not sure whether it'd have occurred to me as a hazard really.

NCISaddict · 30/06/2014 12:48

Also remember to closely supervise older siblings with sweets. Went to a choking once where an older child had kindly given their baby sibling a percy pig. Those sort of sweets are very difficult to remove from an airway.

7Days · 30/06/2014 12:49

me too i hate to see kids with them

TheLovelyBoots · 30/06/2014 12:49

Yes. I particularly hate seeing kids on scooters with lollipops, I see so much danger.

Asleeponasunbeam · 30/06/2014 12:50

Mine are only allowed them once they're four, sitting down and in the presence of an adult. I choked on one as a child and can still remember the fear. I never buy them - only allow them post-party or something. I hate them really.

LadyintheRadiator · 30/06/2014 12:51

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

Idontseeanyicegiants · 30/06/2014 12:59

YANBU.
DS1 choked on one when he was 4. It got stuck and only came out because I ended up flipping him upside down and thumping his back until it came loose. He was starting to go blue by that point and DH had called an ambulance.
DC's are all banned from having them, it's the only thing I'm completely strict on with no compromise.
All food is a choking hazard yes but lollipops are my own 'thing' and I won't budge.

Notso · 30/06/2014 13:09

I agree that they are a choking hazard but I don't confiscate them because of that.
Marshmallows are another one, I let them have them in Costa though for example.
I prefer to teach my children how to eat carefully and get them to sit down to eat snacks rather than ban them.
I do throw a lot of party bag sweets out, they end up festering in the sweet box going sticky otherwise.

Itsjustmeagain · 30/06/2014 13:36

Yanbu but since my dd ended up being rushed to hospital after choking on scrambled egg I have come to view all good with suspicion. I think the danger with lollies is the walking /running around with them.

Itsjustmeagain · 30/06/2014 13:37

food

CrohnicallyExhausted · 30/06/2014 13:42

It's not just the running around with them, it's the shape of them. As the OP says, most lollies are spherical, and the perfect size to slide into the child's airway and lodge there. Grapes, hotdogs, cherry tomatoes etc are high risk for the same reason. I make sure that any 'round' food is cut in half lengthways before giving it to toddler DD, and something like a lolly that can't be cut, well I'd eat it for her!

AmberLav · 30/06/2014 13:50

Statistically, I think uncut grapes are the most hazardous food to give to a small child, according to my retired HV mum...

But a good reminder, I think I was slightly lax on supervising DS's post haircut lolly at the weekend.

Giving a child anything to eat or drink in the back of the car can be dangerous, even a sip of water can lead to vomiting if it goes down the wrong way - learned that one from experience when 18mo DS did that when I was alone in the car with him!