Child physicians demand choking caution labels for food.
When the four years old Eric Stavros Adler choked to demise due to a piece of hot dog, his anguished parent never imagined that the popular children’ food can be so treacherous.
Some food producers, such as Oscar Mayer have caution labels regarding choking, but not nearly sufficient, says Joan Stavros, Eric Adler’s mother.
And the American Academy of Pediatrics agrees. The nation’s largest child physicians group is requesting for sweeping changes in the way food is designed and labeled to minimize children’s possibility for choking.
From the one-hundred and forty one choking casualties among children in 2006, above fifty percent of them were triggered by food. Surveillance systems deficiency of thorough information regarding food choking occurrence, which were thought to be underreported but continue to be a major and under-appreciated crisis, said Dr. Gary Smith, director of the Center for Injury Research and Policy at Nationwide Children’s Hospital in Columbus, Ohio.
Smith is lead author of a new policy report from the child physicians’ academy that seeks to make choking prevention a priority for government and food producers. The report was released Monday in the child physicians’ journal.
Doctors state high-risk foods, such as hot dogs, raw carrots, grapes and apples – should be slice into pea-sized portions for small children to diminish possibility of choking. Some say other risky foods, such as hard candies, popcorn, peanuts and marshmallows, shouldn’t be given to young children at all.
Federal law requires choking caution labels on certain toys such as small balls, balloons and games with small parts. Unless food producers voluntarily put more caution labels on high-risk foods, there should be a similar mandate for food, the child physicians’ academy says.
Several efforts to pass federal legislation for labels have failed in Congress.
The group also demands the Food and Drug Administration to work with other government agencies to establish a nationwide food-related choking reporting system; and to recall foods linked with choking.
The academy says the food industry should avoid shapes and sizes that pose choking risks.
Grocery Manufacturers Association spokesman Scott Openshaw declined to say whether food producers would consider caution labels or new designs, but said making parents aware of choking dangers is key to keeping children’s safe.
At the FDA, spokeswoman Rita Chappelle said the agency will review the academy’s analysis and recommendations. She said the FDA also would continue consulting with the Consumer Product Safety Commission on assessing choking hazards associated with food and take action on a case-by-case basis.
Adler considered herself educated regarding children’s safety. Her son had eaten hot dogs before without any trouble.