‘I DO NOT want to see you at Christmas’

[SelotapeChicken]

Yes I got your attention. I’m not being unreasonable I could save your kids life. Also I am the op of the previous aibu post but I binned my account in a social media cleanse and then realised I needed to try and reshare tbe post. Finally I started a new thread because im
afraid people will see 2024 and think
’zombie thread and disregard my post’

It’s Christmas I am a colorectal surgeon and we have had to perform 5 emergency operations in 2 weeks related to button batteries but this is so far from the normal, it is increasing exponentially
If you suspect your child or elderly person with dementia or anyone with SEND and who has difficulty communicating has swallowed a button battery and I mean if you even notice the compartment on a battery operated toy or tea light is open and missing and you didn't see you child swallow it. GO IMMEDIATELY TO A&E! Button batteries and shiny, easy to grab for
Toddler and easy to confuse for tablets for elderly patients

If your child is over the age of 12 months old give 2 teaspoons of honey every 10 mins until you reach hospital. This is crucial and will coat the battery so it doesn't burn the oesophagus or intestines.
Yes it's not ideal if the child needs surgery but there are emergency procedures we can do to minimise risk of aspiration and the risk of aspiration of honey is less than the risk posed of the battery.

I can’t tell you to give honey to an under 12 month old baby because it’s against nhs guidelines but I would have no issue giving it to my child if I knew they’d eaten a button battery.

In the US, all energiser branded button batteries are coated to taste bitter and covered in a safe dye that dyes the tongue and mouth blue. This is being rolled out the Uk slowly but surely.
There are photos online portraying the damage that honey does to the battery on the slice of ham but it's not to be looked at because the whole point of the honey is to coat the battery and help it not stay too long in one place and move through the digestive tract.

I will also add these absolutely horrific orbeez things to this thread but really they need banning from the world.
If your nursery or child care provider uses them in sensory play, please tell them to stop or move child care providers (hard I know) but orbeez feel brilliant to children and when they have no taste so when they're exploring orally it's very very easy to eat them. And you can't see them on xray until they're a certain size and even then they look like built up gas in the bowel. Obviously if the child has ingested loads then they you see them. However if it's one or 2 they can be tiny when swallowed but they continue to expand and expand, they can case major bowel obstructions.
Please do this. No orbeez and keep and eye out for button batteries (god why are they in so many toys??!)
First photo is a button battery on ham for 30
Mins, second photos is an orbeez removed from
A child and the 3rd shows you how many much they can expand from
The original.
Don't let it impact your life but just keep it at the forefront
If this stops 1 more family from meeting me for surgery on their child then good!

fantastic thread.

when ds was little and spent a lot of time there our local A and E had a display about the dangers of button batteries (and another for trampolines!) and that was 16 years ago so it’s a shame that the message still needs spreading but if your post saves one child it’s worth it!

Thank you for posting, OP. I remember your thread from last year.

I haven’t read anything about batteries or honey since you posted then. Or indeed the swelling beads.

I very much pray you don’t meet any new families this season!

The other one that scares me is little magnets especially the balls that stick to each other. They are another one which needs immediate attention

Yes this is the first I'm hearing about this simple safety measure - doesn't solve the problem but a no brainer to roll it out ASAP.

Commenting to keep the thread active.

Thanks OP a helpful reminder to us all

Thank you for this, it is such important information and every parent and every carer (I care for my mum with advanced dementia who is now like a toddler) needs to know.

Just last night I was watching a Tik Tok clip from a mother who has recently lost her 2 year old daughter to these damn batteries. It was heartbreaking.

Excellent post, OP, thank you. Battery safety isn't mentioned as much as it used to be, I think.

I remember your thread from last year.
Thank you for the reminder about honey every 10mins if you suspect a button battery has been swallowed.

We have avoided buying anything that has button batteries since I saw your first thread.

Bump.

Thank you, OP.

Jesus @Mismatchedshoes that's horrifying

I hope someone starts a prosecution. Strikes me that this is exactly why we sometimes need "red tape".

Thank you OP, may a quiet Christmas await you.

I count doctors (& also nurses & paramedics & hospital pharmacists) in my family & they always say if anyone wishes them a quiet shift it goes the other way & they are run off their feet.

Over the years we’ve developed a code where I say the opposite to try & glean the opposite effect. A bit like telling an actor to “break a leg” just as they go on stage.

So I’ll thank you for this important info @SelotapeChicken bump your wonderful thread & wish you an insanely busy Christmas & new year, work-wise 😉 😀

Hope it is as quiet as possible and mumsnet is an excellent place for this information.

Thank you for posting this. My kids are way beyond toddlerhood now but I confess whilst I was vaguely aware of the risk of button batteries being swallowed when they were younger, I don’t think I’d appreciated just how awful they could be or how imperative it is to act so quickly

Excellent post. Have a silent and peaceful Xmas.

Thanks OP, one of my worries with little ones 🙏

Thank you for this, I am extremely careful with button batteries but had never heard of orbeez. I've texted my children who have LOs to make sure. I do have two tiny button batteries in my very heavy kitchen drawer in an old table, but will get them safely disposed of...horrific.

Thank you.

My god, having looked up Orbeez I cannot believe something so dangerous - an obvious swallowing risk- is on the market. They look just like fruity sweets!

Hadn't crossed my mind about hearing aids and the risks for both groups being that a child can visit a grandparent and be at risk or the wearer themselves could be confused.

Adding this to help keep the thread going.
Thank you for sharing your expertise and the shocking consequences. I was shocked at the inflation of the Orbeez. They should be banned.
It's easy for people to become complacent and forget.

Im sure i read this last year. Thanks for the timely reminder. Merry Christmas

As a nurse the ‘Q’ word is making me twitch.

Thank you OP. I swallowed a button battery at around 18 months old, only a few months older than my son is now, so I live in fear of this.
Luckily my mum spotted straight away and somehow I managed to pass the battery a few days later, as I was being prepped for abdominal surgery on the Monday morning, with no adverse affects. I was incredibly lucky but for other poor families, it's a different story.

Roll on the safety features (the bitter coating and dye) becoming the minimum standard in this country.

Yes, I think the OP was BatteryChicken last year.

Thank you OP for the information and for the work you do.

Batteries do at least have legitimate uses but those Orbeez things… is anyone petitioning/campaigning to ban them? They’re a completely unnecessary product.

Well said, photos speak for themselves. Former gastric unit nurse & now childminder...no battery toys in my setting & constantly reminding parents about the dangers of them. Orbeez also banned, so many alternatives for sensory play.