Babies will put everything into their mouths, even if it doesn’t taste good. Many ordinary things in your house can be poisonous to your baby.  

Choking hazards while eating: 

• Always watch your baby while they’re eating. 

• Keep small objects out of their reach. 
• Do not allow children under age 3 to eat small, round or hard foods, including small pieces of hot dogs, cheese sticks/chunks, hard candy, nuts, grapes, and popcorn. Other hazardous food items include raw vegetables, jellybeans, raw unpeeled fruit slices, dried fruits, grapes, or chunks of meat. 
• Cut foods into small pieces and give infants soft foods that they do not need to chew. 
• Do not let your child eat or suck on candy or other hard foods while lying down or playing. 
• Baby food pouch caps or lids are choking hazards. Do not let your baby hold or play with the lids to these. 

• Have children sit in a high chair or at a table while they eat. 

Choking hazards while playing: 

• Balloons may be fascinating to babies, but they are a choking hazard. Avoid having balloons in your home until your baby is older. 
• Check the floor for choking hazards. Get on the floor on your hands and knees, so that you are at your child’s eye level. Look for and remove small items such as jewelry, coins, buttons, pins, nails, and stones.  

• Look for choking hazard safety labels on toys. Toys that are labeled for children 3 years and older should be kept away from children under age 3. These toys may have small parts and could cause choking if placed in the mouth. 
• Find an empty toilet paper roll and see if the toy or any parts will fit through it. Only toys that don’t fit through the roll are safe for your baby to play with. 
• Regularly check toys for damage that may have created loose small parts. Damaged or dangerous toys should be repaired or thrown away immediately.