How would you react if you noticed a ‘hole’ in your baby’s mouth? You’ll freak out, right? Well, this is exactly what happened to this new mum.
She discovered a “black hole” in the roof of her 10-month-old baby while changing his diaper.
The panic-stricken mum rushed the baby to the A&E, only to be told it wasn’t a hole but something else. Even though she left quite embarrassed from the hospital, but she decided to share her story to sound off the alarm to other parents.
Baby Found With Hole In The Roof Of His Mouth
Becky, 24, said she was convinced her son had something seriously wrong with him because he even screamed when she tried to touch the ‘hole’, as reported in The Mirror.
She noticed that her son needed his nappy changed, so she laid him down. It was then that she spotted a hole in the roof of his mouth.
She recalled that she was, “shaking, sweating and holding back the tears. “We put a torch on it to which his dad asked ‘What the hell is that?”
Panic-stricken she called her mum, who told her to call for an ambulance. But, his dad told her to take him straight into A&E. After dropping her two oldest kids off at their grandparents. They made the 30-minute drive to their closest A&E hospital. She was extremely terrified of what the doctors might say.
After examining the hole in the roof of his mouth the medics said, “That’s a sticker.”
The mum was still not convinced and she insisted, “No look that’s a hole.”
The nurse then put her finger in his mouth and pulled it out. While she laughed, her son also found it funny. “I told her I felt like a right prat, and that if Covid wasn’t a thing I would hug her.” “She replied with ‘Well I’ve never fixed a cleft palate at A&E doors before’.
Even though Becky said she was ’embarrassed’ about the gaff, she decided to share her story as a warning to other parents to keep stickers away from newborns.
If you have a young toddler roaming around your not-so-childproof home, here are a few precautions you can take.
Child Safety Precautions For Newborns
1. Remove cords
Cords could get around your baby’s neck and en strangulate them, making them extremely dangerous. You can tie up the electric cords, drape cords, or curtain cords so they are less than 6 inches long and out of your child’s reach.
Also don’t forget to remove strings on crib toys and pacifiers.
2. Select toys carefully
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Look for toys that are well made and appropriate for your child’s age. You should always look for safety instructions on the toy or labels such as ‘Not recommended for children under 3 years of age,’ or ‘non-toxic’ on toys.
This helps to prevent poisonous chemicals ending up in your child’s mouth. Also look for ‘washable/hygienic materials’ on stuffed toys and dolls. Never give your kids toys that have sharp edges, small parts, or sharp points.
3. Keep medicines away from their reach
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Kids can’t distinguish between medicines or candy. Moreover, they may get tempted by the colours of the pills. It is, therefore, important to keep them away from the reach of your kids.
Always store medicines in locked cabinets. You might get tempted to keep it outside thinking but, in fact, not only should you keep the medicines away, but also out of the sight from your baby.
4. Keep your sleeping baby safe
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Your baby will spend a lot of time in the crib, napping during the day and sleeping at night. It’s important to make sure it’s always a safe space.
Place your baby to sleep on his or her back to help prevent sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS).
Also ensure the following additional safety precautions that while setting up the crib:
- Ensure there are no sharp or jagged edges
- The slats are no more than 6 centimetres apart and aren’t cracked or loose
- There are no screws sticking out
- The crib sheet snugly fits the mattress
- The mattress is firm, not soft
- Mobiles are removed when the baby starts to push upon his or her hands and knees, or by 5 months, whichever comes first.
5. Choking and suffocation
Babies explore their environment through their sense, which means putting anything and everything into their mouths first. You should therefore never leave small objects in your baby’s reach, even for a moment.
Be careful at the time of feeding them too. Avoid feeding your baby hard pieces of food such as raw carrot, apples, hot dogs, peanuts and others.
Plastic wrappers and bags form a tight seal if placed over the mouth and nose and may suffocate your child. So its best to keep them away from your baby.
Most importantly, stay alert and understand that as your baby grows, they will become more curious about people and objects around them. But they are not in a stage to differentiate between safe and dangerous products.
Which is why childproofing your house can help prevent your baby from hurting himself.
News source: Daily Record, Mirror
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