We childproof our kitchen cabinets, place cough syrup and aspirin out of harm’s way and keep cleaning products on a high shelf in the garage, but some items, like nicotine gum and tobacco mints are left out on a dresser, stuck in the corner of our purses, or in the console of the family minivan. And they are poisonous and potentially deadly when ingested by children.
With an increasing number of cities, counties and states mandating no-smoking zones, people are turning to alternatives, either to quit or to take the edge off during long lulls between puffs. To adults they can be lifesavers, but to children they can be life-enders. The amount of nicotine found in smokeless products that mimic children’s gum and candy, Approximately .5 milligrams of nicotine per pound of body weight is the minimum lethal dose for a child. New products, such as the Camel Orbs, contain .83 milligrams of nicotine. These dissolving mints can easily be mistaken for ordinary candy and a small child eating several could spell disaster
Greg N. Connolly, D.M.D., the director of the Tobacco Control Research Group at the Harvard School of Public Health, led a study that found that smokeless tobacco products are the second most common cause of nicotine poisoning in children. After reviewing data from 61 poison control centers, the researchers identified almost 14,000 cases of tobacco ingestion between the years of 2006 and 2008, the vast majority of which were in infants. Smokeless tobacco was involved in approximately 13 percent of the cases.
"Nicotine is a poison, and now we're seeing smokeless tobacco products that look like Tic Tacs or M&M's, which parents can leave on the counter and children can be attracted to," Connolly said.
In addition to the Camel Orbs, which come in both mint and cinnamon flavor, other smokeless tobacco products that are sending up red flags are the Camel Sticks, which resemble toothpicks and also dissolve in the mouth, and Snus, which are small tobacco-filled pouches used similarly to snuff. Connelly is concerned that “snus are attractive, flavorful, and easily ingested by an infant or child."
This is a strong reminder that any tobacco products, much like over-the-counter and prescription medicines, should be kept inaccessible children, be it cigarettes, nicotine gum, or any of the new tobacco substitutes.
