Skip to content
- Over two million poison exposures are reported annually to poison centers throughout the United States.
- 53 percent of poison exposures occur in children under the age of 6.
- Most poisonings involve medications and vitamins, household and chemical products, personal care products and plants.
- 89 percent of all poison exposures occur in the home.
- Poison exposures often occur during mealtimes when parents are busy with preparations. Poisonings also occur when the normal routine changes–holidays, moving, visiting, traveling, etc.
- 77 percent of exposures can be treated on the phone with guidance from the local poison center and without the need for an ambulance or hospital admission.
- There are five types of poison exposures: ingestion (through the mouth), inhalation (breathed in through the nose or mouth), ocular (in the eyes), dermal (on the skin), and parenteral (bites or stings).
- Child-proof caps are only child resistant. Given enough time a child can open these containers.
