Child-Resistant Safety Caps Help Keep Kids Safe

April 2015

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, each year one of every 150 two-year-olds visits an emergency department in the U.S. for an unintentional medication overdose, most often after finding and eating or drinking medicines without adult supervision. To help protect children:

  • Ask for safety caps at the pharmacy counter when filling a prescription.
  • Find a storage place too high for a child to reach or see.
  • Put medicines and vitamins away every time you use them. Never leave them out on a kitchen counter or at a sick child’s bedside, even if you have to give the medicine again in a few hours.
  • Make sure the safety cap is locked. If the medicine has a locking cap that turns, twist it until the click is heard.
  • Teach children about medicine safety. Never tell children that medicine is candy to get them to take it, even if the child does not like to take medicine.
  • Ask visitors to keep purses, bags or coats that have medicines in them up and out of sight when they are visiting.
  • Be prepared. Program the poison control number into all phones (800-222-1222).

Source: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

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