Carbon Monoxide Poisoning Symptoms and the Effects on Your Children
Because carbon monoxide is colorless, odorless, and tasteless, it’s so hard to know when an appliance in your home may be leaking too much of it or where it‘s coming from. And by the time you notice the symptoms and connect that it might be because of carbon monoxide poisoning, a lot of damage can be done. They provide early detection of dangerous levels of CO in your home and give you the heads up you need to get everyone out and into fresh air.
This is something I experienced first hand when my children were a bit older. Our furnace in the basement was leaking too much carbon monoxide. We, of course, had no idea because, at the time, we didn’t have a carbon monoxide detector. But, I remember, and my kids remember too, the absolute, exhaustion we were feeling. We were constantly sleeping, very lethargic, and we couldn’t focus our minds on anything. Luckily, the heat in the house wasn’t working right either so I had called maintenance out to check the furnace. He found that the furnace was leaking dangerous levels of carbon monoxide into our house. We are VERY lucky we were all ok and were able to fix the situation before it reached seriously critical levels. Ever since then, I have been a big crusader for CO detectors and can’t stress enough how important they are.
Symptoms will vary depending on the amount of carbon monoxideyou have been exposed to, how long you have been exposed, and your general health or the general health of your child.
**Remember that exposure to carbon monoxide can results According to Dr. Marc Bayer, medical director of the Connecticut Poison Control Center, "Carbon monoxide poisoning can cause neurological problems, learning disabilities, memory loss and personality changes in children and can lead to miscarriage or stillbirth for women exposed during pregnancy." Again, because a lot of these symptoms can be very similar to how you feel when you have the flu, carbon monoxide poisoning can be easily misdiagnosed and can result in death if gone undetected.
There can be many other, and more severe, symptoms associated with exposure to carbon monoxide. To make sure you are getting the earliest detection as possible,
have up-to-date, working carbon monoxide detectors throughout your home.
If you feel that you or your child has any of the above carbon monoxide poisoning symptoms, please get out into fresh air immediately, open windows and doors to allow fresh air into your home, and go directly to the hospital or call your doctor. Disclaimer: The information here is accurate to the best of my knowledge. I am not a doctor. If you are concerned about any symptoms listed above, contact your doctor. Return to Top Related ArticlesReturn from Carbon Monoxide Poisoning Symptoms to Household Poisons Return from Carbon Monoxide Poisoning Symptoms to The Baby Safety Site Homepage
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