National Poison Prevention Week - March 20-26
National Poison Prevention Week raises awareness of poison prevention nationwide during the third full week of March every year. The week is an opportunity to highlight the dangers of poisonings for people of all ages and promote community involvement in poisoning prevention.
It is observed during the third week of March every year and exists to highlight the risk of being poisoned by household products. Take a peek under your kitchen sink or in your laundry room and there’ll be tons of stuff that could be dangerous. Household cleaning agents, prescription medications, pesticides, and other items can pose serious hazards to the health and well-being of our families and even our pets.
History
In 1961, Congress established National Poison Prevention Week to raise awareness, reduce unintentional poisonings, and promote poison prevention. The first National Poison Prevention Week was observed in March 1962 under the presidency of John F. Kennedy.
It is sponsored by the National Poison Prevention Week Council. Each year, the Council holds a children's artwork contest to raise awareness about poisons. Additionally, poison centers across the country conduct activities to raise awareness of the dangers of poisoning.
Over 2 million potential poisonings are reported in the U.S every year, with over 90% of these occurring in the home and the majority of them being young children. Every day over 300 children require treatment in an emergency department, with an average of two deaths per day being recorded. Most of these incidents revolve around highly toxic household items such as cleaning products and medicine.
General Tips for Using Medicine Safely
It is important to know as much as possible about your medicines to avoid poisoning.
Know Your Medicines
- Know the names, reason for use, and possible side effects.
- Review all your medicines with your doctor or pharmacist. Do this at least once a year, or when you start using new medicine.
- Know how and when to use your medicine, how much to use, and for how long. Never use more medicine than prescribed. Using more does not mean you will get better faster. Also, using too much medicine can poison you.
Keep a Current Medicine List
- Bring a list of all the medicines you are using to your doctor’s appointments.
- This includes all prescription medicines, over-the-counter medicines, vitamins, and herbal supplements.
Keep All Medicines Locked Up and Out of Children’s Reach
- No container can promise to be childproof.
- Store your medicines in a safe place so that children cannot get to them. This will prevent accidental poisonings.
Tips For Using Prescription Medicine Safely
Common over-the-counter (OTC) medicines include pain relievers, cold medicines, laxatives to cause a bowel movement, and antacids for heartburn. Many of these can cause problems when used with other medications. To prevent problems, you should:
Read the Drug Facts Label
Pay attention to what is listed under Active Ingredients—its name, what it does, and how much is in each pill or teaspoon (5ml). These are parts of the medicine that make it work. For more information about the Drug Facts label, visit www.fda.gov/medsinmyhome.
Compare the Active Ingredients
Make sure the active ingredients are not the same for two or more medicines that you are using. Too much can harm you.
Check with Your Pharmacist or Doctor
Know what OTC medicines to avoid using with your prescription medicines.
Call Poison Help (1-800-222-1222) if you think medicine was not taken as directed or if too much medicine was taken by accident. Call 911 if someone has trouble breathing, trouble waking up, seizures, or other life-threatening signs.
Observing National Poison Prevention Week
Educate yourself
If you don’t know much about poison prevention and would like to learn more, visit the Poison Help website, which educates us on ways to prevent poisoning and how to respond if it occurs. The more information you know, the better.
Do some spring cleaning
Since National Poison Prevention Week and Spring fall in the same week, this is the perfect time to deep clean the rooms in your home, get rid of old and outdated products, and open windows when using strong chemicals to allow air into the house.
Participate with friends
The National Poison Prevention Week Council holds an annual poster contest to promote National Poison Prevention Week. This is a fun activity you could do with your friends. After you make your posters, put them up in your neighborhoods to spread more awareness.
Sources:
https://poisonhelp.hrsa.gov/what-you-can-do/poison-prevention-week
https://aapcc.org/nppw-2022/#:~:text=The%20third%20full%20week%20in,March%2020%2D26%2C%202022.
https://nationaltoday.com/poison-prevention-week/
https://poisonhelp.hrsa.gov/sites/default/files/poisonhelp/resources/brochure_safe-medicine-tips.pdf