Meet the Other Phone. A phone that grows with your child.

Meet the Other Phone.
A phone that grows with your child.

Buy now

Please or to access all these features

AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

‘I DO NOT want to see you at Christmas’

240 replies

SelotapeChicken · 17/12/2025 06:12

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!

Sensitive content
‘I DO NOT want to see you at Christmas’
Sensitive content
‘I DO NOT want to see you at Christmas’
Sensitive content
‘I DO NOT want to see you at Christmas’
OP posts:
Sonolanona · 17/12/2025 20:22

Thank you for this!
I had the sheer panic last year when my 3 yr old grandson handed me two button batteries that had just fallen out of a toy car... and I couldn't find the third so we rushed to A+E. ( He's not a child that puts things in his mouth but I couldn't be sure...I found it when we got home!)

Now I look after his 10m old sister who is a crawling hoover... everything in the mouth. We have hidden every battery toy we can find, but still... I have passed this info onto my DD just in case! Would golden syrup also work?

Bedismyhappyplace · 17/12/2025 20:52

Bump and thank you

SelotapeChicken · 17/12/2025 20:53

Justchilling07 · 17/12/2025 19:31

Good question.I don’t know, personally l’d rather do this than not @SelotapeChicken would it be the same principle for pets do you think?

Hey so I think it would be good to do in a pet situation because when they did tests to see if the honey works every time they replicated case studies of children who had been given the honey immediately or had none in animals (namely pigs) and the honey was successful in the vast majority of cases. I’ll Add the study here https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC10569471/

The use of honey in button battery ingestions: a systematic review - PMC

Button battery (BB) ingestions may cause severe and possibly fatal complications, especially if the battery is located in the esophagus. The application of oral honey has recently been proposed by the National Capital Poison Center in the USA and in .....

https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC10569471/

OP posts:
SelotapeChicken · 17/12/2025 20:56

Sonolanona · 17/12/2025 20:22

Thank you for this!
I had the sheer panic last year when my 3 yr old grandson handed me two button batteries that had just fallen out of a toy car... and I couldn't find the third so we rushed to A+E. ( He's not a child that puts things in his mouth but I couldn't be sure...I found it when we got home!)

Now I look after his 10m old sister who is a crawling hoover... everything in the mouth. We have hidden every battery toy we can find, but still... I have passed this info onto my DD just in case! Would golden syrup also work?

i would have said yes last year but new studies have come out now to suggest it’s something in the honey that also neutralises the acid from the battery? Olive oil works about as well according to studies but I’d guess it would be way harder to get a child to eat 10 ml of olive oil every 10 mins (that is 2 calpol syringes) whereas honey is pretty easy to get kids to eat!

OP posts:
Justchilling07 · 17/12/2025 21:06

SelotapeChicken · 17/12/2025 20:53

Hey so I think it would be good to do in a pet situation because when they did tests to see if the honey works every time they replicated case studies of children who had been given the honey immediately or had none in animals (namely pigs) and the honey was successful in the vast majority of cases. I’ll Add the study here https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC10569471/

Thank you op, appreciated.

WilfredsPies · 17/12/2025 21:08

Thank you for a very timely reminder. I wish you a very happy Christmas and hope never to meet you in a professional capacity 🙂

Kidsaregrim · 17/12/2025 21:11

SelotapeChicken · 17/12/2025 06:12

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!

I’m a health visitor and we talk about button batteries (and other things) at our 6-8 week discharge but I did not know about the honey! Thanks for this!

stayathomegardener · 17/12/2025 21:11

Bumping

sanityisamyth · 17/12/2025 21:19

elliejjtiny · 17/12/2025 11:00

Thank you OP. I always end up arguing with FIL because I bin used button batteries (and all other ones too) immediately rather than keep them to be recycled, i don't take chances with batteries and i don't want them lying around.

Putting lithium batteries in the bin is what causes them to explode and set bin lorries and recycling centres on fire when they’re crushed.

aWUBBAWUBBA · 17/12/2025 21:23

Thank you for this, OP. I hope not to meet you this Christmas, too! No offence Grin

lemondropsandchimneytops · 17/12/2025 21:39

I remember seeing your post before but, as the mum of an almost two year old, thank you for the reminder 🙏🏻

Doesn't bear thinking about.

Missj25 · 17/12/2025 21:51

You’re a kind thoughtful woman to post this .
Thankyou .
Wishing you the best always . x

Justchilling07 · 17/12/2025 22:04

@Missj25 Well said.

Jambags · 17/12/2025 22:42

Best post I've seen on here!

drspouse · 17/12/2025 22:47

sanityisamyth · 17/12/2025 21:19

Putting lithium batteries in the bin is what causes them to explode and set bin lorries and recycling centres on fire when they’re crushed.

Edited

We do not have such small children any more but we have a special recycling drawer for all batteries. You could use a lockable container or put it high up in a cupboard as with medicine?

SelotapeChicken · 17/12/2025 23:13

I am sorry for the rage bait but I am so happy to see it’s been well received! Much as we all love kids at Christmas I still do not wish to see yours this year!!

OP posts:
Slowdownyouredoingfine · 17/12/2025 23:18

I have bought my 2 eldest children clip on book lights for Christmas, they have these button batteries. I also have a 4 year old. I’m binning the lights. It’s just not worth the risk. Thank you OP.

SelotapeChicken · 17/12/2025 23:23

Kidsaregrim · 17/12/2025 21:11

I’m a health visitor and we talk about button batteries (and other things) at our 6-8 week discharge but I did not know about the honey! Thanks for this!

That’s crazy! I’m glad to be of service! I’m only saying it’s crazy because I know that we send reports to health visitors after a child visits A&E and we’re actually starting to do more preventative measures with them like having them tell parents what to do if a child has ingested a battery. The head of health visiting in my area is so into this side of things we got permission to use the video from an operation (all endoscopic operations are recorded anyway and we also have a camera in the operating lights so we can have other surgeons from other hospitals basically advising on a call seeing live images from surgery but that’s a tangent)!

So the parents were absolutely brilliant and their child is doing fantastically and I still see them in clinic but the images from their operation plus scans and stuff were so so clear that we use them as an educational aid for health visitors and I think adult A&E in other hospitals as well obviously all our A&E staff (paeds hospital) on training days, as a way to help the staff to understand what to do if a parent attends A&E with a potential ingestion and also to help demonstrate how important you guys are in a preventative way. If you guys can instil the message that batteries have no place near children then I’ll never see them and I can sleep easier !

Thank you for the work you do

OP posts:
SelotapeChicken · 17/12/2025 23:27

Slowdownyouredoingfine · 17/12/2025 23:18

I have bought my 2 eldest children clip on book lights for Christmas, they have these button batteries. I also have a 4 year old. I’m binning the lights. It’s just not worth the risk. Thank you OP.

Oh that’s such a shame! Why are they in everything?? We got my Niece and Nephews these for Christmas last year because they run off a triple A battery instead! I’m not advertising anything I just refuse to buy anything with a button battery

https://www.ifplc.com/products/the-really-compact-travel-book-light/

The Really Compact Travel Book Light | LED Reading Light | IF

Slip in your travel bag for reading when the sun goes down

https://www.ifplc.com/products/the-really-compact-travel-book-light/

OP posts:
Originalbutter · 18/12/2025 00:52

Thanks op!

Ihavelostthegame · 18/12/2025 01:20

Thanks for the reminder @SelotapeChickenim both a carer and run a dementia activity service and will add reminders about battery safety into our Christmas newsletter tonight.
It has long been a bugbear of mine that hearing aids use button batteries. A huge number of people remove the batteries every night to turn the hearing aid off and to save the battery. They then inevitably fall out. There is no reason they should have removable batteries in this day and age.

SelotapeChicken · 18/12/2025 01:38

Princessdebthe1st · 17/12/2025 07:55

One other thing, if you think your child /vulnerable person has swallowed one of the batteries, as the OP said time is of the essence. Go straight to A&E but don't wait in a long queue to be triaged. Go to the front and tell them you think they have swallowed a button battery and it is a time critical emergency.

Yes absolutely this. Go straight to the counter and tell them you need to be triaged immediately because you suspect a battery has been swallowed. Don’t sit in the waiting room to be call forward

OP posts:
SelotapeChicken · 18/12/2025 01:39

Ihavelostthegame · 18/12/2025 01:20

Thanks for the reminder @SelotapeChickenim both a carer and run a dementia activity service and will add reminders about battery safety into our Christmas newsletter tonight.
It has long been a bugbear of mine that hearing aids use button batteries. A huge number of people remove the batteries every night to turn the hearing aid off and to save the battery. They then inevitably fall out. There is no reason they should have removable batteries in this day and age.

I really had never considered that people would take batteries out to save the charge !

OP posts:
SelotapeChicken · 18/12/2025 01:52

Newsenmum · 17/12/2025 07:44

Thank you. Does anyone know of any popular children’s items that have them?

Most toys from TikTok shop, nearly all bath toys. Lots of small cheap light up things. If you’re not likely to replace the battery when it dies then maybe glue to compartment shut? The issue with button batteries in toys is they are usually used because they are cheaper than other ones and come with them already installed, but because the toy is cheaper than others they’re not particularly well made so the batteries fall out.

As a fun little thing I actually have a list of things the batteries that we have removed from people’s bodies over the last 2 years. I just put it in my notes app on my phone because I’m weird and I want to do more research about pressuring the government to crack down on standards. So over the last 2 years the offending items were;

cheap TikTok shop toys
gaming headphones and head sets that light up
light up toys and things bought at events
tea lights
night lights
light up children’s Christmas jumpers
car keys
key finder tool
keyring light
musical cards
musical / talking book
Digital scales
thermometer
hearing aids
toys won at arcade and then dropped.

I don’t have figures on how many of each but I do know that as a hospital we have carried out approx 200 operations over the last 2 years to remove batteries and magnets from bodies.

As you can see I’m so weird when it comes to this but actually it’s super interesting and we managed to get the CE tag and fire safety standards increased in the uk so why can we ask for better standards for our children’s toys and also in things that vulnerable people have access to?

OP posts:
FrodoBiggins · 18/12/2025 02:00

@SelotapeChicken I love your list and thanks for everything you're doing, you're brilliant.

Swipe left for the next trending thread