Be warned, Latex Balloons Can Be Fatal

latex balloonsPhoto byMadison OrenonUnsplash

This article is summarized from articles from Reader’s Digest. St. Louis Children’s Hospital, and personal experience. Sources are linked above.

When I was seven years old, in second-grade, my friend choked to death on a rubber balloon. She was playing with an old rubber/latex balloon and sucked it into her throat when she was trying to blow it up. Though we lived across the street from a fire station, the paramedics were unable to get the balloon out and we were all in shock the next morning when we were told about her death.

My story is not as unusual as one would think. Per the St. Louis Children’s Hospital, “Latex balloons… are also the leading cause of choking deaths in children in the U.S. About 38 percent of all toy-related choking deaths reported between 2001 and 2014 involved balloons. Most of the balloon accidents involved children under the age of 6.”

Though mylar balloons have cornered the market in recent years, these have their own risks, and in many states are being banned. Latex balloons could make a comeback so it’s important to know the dangers.

“Accidents involving balloons happen in a few ways. Some children suck balloons into their mouths while trying to inflate them. Others swallow balloons they were sucking or chewing on. Even pieces of broken balloons pose a serious potential choking hazard because they are easily sucked into the throat and lungs.”

As was the case with my friend, “Balloons are also very hard to remove from a child’s mouth or throat because of their smooth, slippery texture. Usual first-aid methods, like back slaps, the Heimlich maneuver (abdominal thrusts), or finger sweeps of the child’s mouth often do not work.”

Beyond the risk of choking, there are other unpleasant balloon factors to consider.

Popping balloons is loud and can hurt your ears. You may not know that the “impulse noise” which is caused by a sudden burst of energy “can reach 168 decibels, according to a report in Canadian Audiologist.” That’s the equivalent of “five decibels higher than a 12-gauge shotgun—and more than enough to result in permanent hearing loss, especially in the very young, who have sensitive eardrums.” Per the article that references a study in Canadian Audiologist, the pops “have the potential to create large waves in the basilar membrane of the inner ear causing damage to the delicate hair cells.”

What else can go wrong with balloons? Though breathing helium may seem harmless, and the cartoonish voice that results can be amusing, “when you inhale helium, you displace oxygen.” Doctors warn that “that the effects of helium on the body are similar to what happens when a scuba diver comes up for air too quickly: A stroke is sometimes caused when a gas bubble gets into the bloodstream through a tear in a blood vessel, which blocks blood flow to the brain.”

There’s no argument that mylar and latex balloons are whimsical and fun but it’s important to know the dangers to stay safe.