More children getting drunk on hand sanitizer | The Compost Bin | Forums

Who thinks about locking up hand sanitizer?

ATLANTA  — Six-year-old Nhaijah Russell swallowed three or four squirts of seemingly innocuous liquid hand sanitizer at school. It tasted good, she said, like strawberry.

It also contained enough alcohol to make her dangerously drunk. She arrived at the emergency room slurring her words and unable to walk.

Since 2010, poison control center hotlines across the United States have seen a nearly 400% increase in calls related to children younger than 12 ingesting hand sanitizer, according to new analysis by the Georgia Poison Center.

“Kids are getting into these products more frequently, and unfortunately, there’s a percentage of them going to the emergency room,” said Dr. Gaylord Lopez, the center’s director.

The amount of alcohol in hand sanitizer ranges from 45% to 95%. Ingesting even small amounts — as little as two or three squirts in some cases — can cause alcohol poisoning. By comparison, wine and beer contain about 12% and 5% alcohol, Lopez said.

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