A nurse has cautioned parents about the risks associated with not child-proofing Christmas trees following a toddler who accidentally ingested a Christmas ornament.
Sarah Hunstead, a paediatric nurse in Australia and the creator of CPR Kids, a children's safety portal, posted some horrifying X-rays of the festive ornament stuck in the child's throat.
“Christmas is an exciting time, but it can bring some specific holiday season hazards. This unbelievable image shows a part of a Christmas bauble swallowed by a toddler,” Hunstead said on Facebook. "Fortunately, there was just enough room for the baby to breathe before it was taken out".
"Even if you usually remember to baby-proof everything in the house, it's easy to forget about the temporary seasonal additions."
After a mother named Casey emailed her the frightening X-ray, the nurse was compelled to spread the word about the little-known choking hazard in the hopes that other parents wouldn't have to go through what she had.
There have been issues raised over the post, with many parents expressing horror at the X-ray photos.
One mother said, "This is what I was worried about."
"Yep, I've taken all my baubles off my tree after seeing my daughter fit the whole thing in her mouth," another person commented. Thank you; that's enough to frighten me.
"That's the whole reason we need to be so careful," one person said.
However, another stated: "I wish more people knew how dangerous 'personalised baubles' in malls can be! My one-year-old tried to mouth one and it broke into small glass shards with almost no force; we had to spend the night at the emergency room.
