While attending the Mid-Michigan Women’s Expo at the Lansing Center last month, I saw a very dramatic display of consumer items that paired poisonous/dangerous products with their look-alike food/beverage item. Similar in packaging and product color, it was a vivid demonstration of how confusing some products are. We’ve all seen the gag where an adult squirts hair cream on their tooth brush and ends up with a mouthfull of Brylcreem®; distastefull maybe, but not disasterous. Envision though, a large bottle of Tide® detergent, orange plastic with a large grip handle on the side. Now think about a gallon size container of Minute Maid® orange juice, same orange plastic with a large grip handle on the side. Or, how about Scope® mouthwash – cool peppermint flavor, pretty blue color in a transparent container. Put that next to Jet Blue® dishwasher soap or automobile window washer fluid (which are also a pretty blue color in transparent containers) and I think you can see what I mean. These are just 2 examples of “mistaken identity” or “look-alikes” of products that can be deadly. Which leads me to the fact that March 15-21, 2009 is National Poison Prevention Week.
In 1961, President Kennedy signed Public Law 87-319 which allowed for the annual designation of the third week in March as National Poison Prevention Week. The Poison Prevention Week Council was organized to coordinate this annual event which Congress intended as a means for local communities to raise awareness of the dangers of unintentional poisonings and to take such preventive measures as the dangers warrant.
In the mid-Michigan area, our regional poison center is located at the Helen DeVos Children’s Hospital in Grand Rapids. The center responds to calls from health care professionals as well as the general public, 24 hours a day, everyday. They can be reached at 1-800-222-1222 and calls are answered by registered nurses specially trained in poison information. In addition, they provide advice on emergency treatment for poison exposures, educate the public and professionals on poison prevention and treatment, and staff a toxicology laboratory.
Locally, the Downtown Lansing Library has a supply of free poison safety tools – a Poison Safety Guide pamphlet, bookmarks, and refrigerator magnets, on the 2nd floor Consumer Health information kiosk. Each contains the center’s toll free number of 1-800-222-1222. Also displayed is a poster that provides more examples of cases of ”mistaken identity” of safe and dangerous products. As the poison center says on their website, “Poisons act fast – so should you”.
Online you can find examples of look-alikes at the cooperative extension service of the University of Kentucky and the Cardinal Glennon Children’s Medical Center.
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