Poisoning

What is poisoning?

Poisoning is when exposure to a toxic substance makes you sick or harms you. Many different substances are toxic to humans. A few examples include heavy metals, certain gases and even some plants you encounter while gardening. Poisoning often happens suddenly and accidentally. For example, a child might drink cough syrup, or you might splash a harsh cleaner into your eye.

What is the poison control number?

In the U.S., the number to call for poison control is 1-800-222-1222. The call will automatically direct to a local poison control center (there’s one in every U.S. state and territory). When you call this number, an expert will answer and help you in real time. You’ll talk with a doctor, nurse, pharmacist or other trained expert.

You can also call this number when there isn’t an emergency. You can simply call to ask questions about prevention and how to keep your family safe.

It’s a good idea to keep this number where you can easily see it, like on your fridge. Having the number handy can save you valuable time when someone needs help.

Poisoning is sometimes a method of self-harm for people who are thinking about suicide. If you have thoughts of self-harm, call the Suicide & Crisis Hotline by dialing 988 on your phone. This free, confidential service is available 24 hours a day, seven days a week. You’re not alone. Someone is ready to talk with you and help you.

What are the effects of poisoning?

The effects of poisoning range from mild to severe. Some cases are fatal. How poisoning affects you depends on many factors, including:

• The amount that enters your body. Too much of anything can be poisonous. Even oxygen, in high concentrations, can make you sick. The more toxic something is, the less it takes to make you sick or harm you. Poisons are generally more dangerous in larger quantities.
• The type of poison. Certain types of poison cause mild symptoms that go away with at-home care. Other substances are more likely to cause severe illness.
• How it enters your body. Poisons can enter your body through your skin, mouth, nose or eyes. Swallowing a toxic substance (like a household cleaner) often causes more harm than touching it with your skin.
• How long you’re exposed to it. A poisoning can be either acute or chronic. An acute exposure might just be seconds or minutes. A chronic exposure involves long-term exposure to a poison. Chronic exposures often happen on the job, especially in mining, factory settings or agriculture.
• How soon you get treatment. Quick treatment may limit or stop the effects of poisoning entirely.
• Factors unrelated to the poison itself, like your age and overall health. Poisons affect children differently than adults. Children are smaller, so a dose that wouldn’t harm you could be deadly to them. People with underlying medical conditions might also get sicker from poisons or have a harder time recovering.

Depending on these factors, healthcare providers may be able to treat poisoning and prevent lasting effects. More serious cases may lead to hospitalization, long-term treatment or permanent disabilities or injuries.

What are poisons?

Poisons are substances that can make you sick or harm you. They can be liquids, solids or gases. Some substances are poisonous in any circumstance. For example, carbon monoxide (CO) is a colorless, odorless gas that’s always poisonous for humans to inhale. Poisonous mushrooms contain toxins that’ll always make you sick. There’s never a time when you could safely breathe in CO or eat poisonous mushrooms.

However, other substances are poisonous only in certain situations. For example:

• Medications that normally are safe for you can become poisonous if you take more than the recommended dose.
• Chemicals in cleaning products are usually harmless. But if a child finds a bottle and drinks from it, they can get poisoned. That’s also why you shouldn’t mix some cleaning products (mixing bleach and ammonia makes chlorine gas, which is extremely deadly when inhaled).
• Most of us can think of a time when a delicious dinner led to food poisoning. That’s because bacteria can live and grow in food, even when the food looks and tastes fine. These bacteria can turn an otherwise harmless meal into a poisonous one.

What are the symptoms of poisoning?

The signs and symptoms of poisoning vary according to:

• The amount and type of poison.
• Your age and overall health.
• How the poison gets into your body. For example, a poison that splashes into your eye causes eye-related symptoms. Swallowed poisons cause digestive symptoms.
• The duration of exposure (acute vs. chronic).

Symptoms of acute poison exposure

There are many possible symptoms of acute poisoning. These can affect your whole body and/or individual parts. Symptoms may show up immediately. Or, there might be a delay of hours or days.

If you think you might be experiencing poisoning symptoms, call poison control or your local emergency services number. Symptoms can include:

• Changes in body temperature.
• Changes in heart rate.
• Chest pain.
• Confusion.
• Cough, possibly with blood.
• Diarrhea, nausea and/or vomiting.
• Dizziness, weakness or fainting.
• Eye pain, redness, swelling or tearing.
• Headache.
• Severe burning in your eyes, nose, throat and airways.
• Skin rash, redness, pain, burning or stinging.
• Stomach pain and cramping.
• Trouble breathing.
• Trouble seeing or loss of vision.

Symptoms of chronic poison exposure

Chronic exposure may not show symptoms until many years have passed. For example, long-term exposure to toxic gases can cause lung damage. Symptoms that may develop include shortness of breath and chronic wheezing. Long-term radon exposure is a serious problem that can lead to lung cancer.

Talk to your healthcare provider about your risk for chronic poison exposure. They can offer advice based on your unique situation, including your line of work and where you live.

What causes poisoning?

Poisoning happens when you’re exposed to enough of something to make you sick or harm you. For example:

• You inhale a poison that’s in the air around you.
• You eat or drink a substance that contains a poison.
• A poison gets into your eye.
• A poison touches your bare skin and gets absorbed.
• An animal or insect bites or stings you and injects venom.

Exposure isn’t the key factor. The dose is. Some substances are dangerous even in tiny amounts. Others will only hurt you in large amounts. It depends on the poison in question, and how susceptible you are. For example, children are more susceptible to most poisons because they can’t tolerate the same dose an adult can.

Types of poison

There are many types of poisons, or substances that have the potential to harm you. You know some poisons by name, like carbon monoxide or lead. Other poisons are less obvious and contained in foods or products you use every day.

Here’s a list of poisonous substances that you should be aware of:

• Poisonous plants. Certain plants contain toxins that can harm you when absorbed into your skin or ingested. Examples of poisonous plants include poison ivy and poison hemlock.
• Venom. A venom is a poison that animals make. It can enter your body through a wound or injury. Examples include bee stings, jellyfish stings, scorpion stings, fire ant bites and snake bites. Venom exposure can cause mild symptoms or, in some cases, life-threatening reactions.
• Heavy metals. When heavy metals build up in your body, they can become poisonous. Examples include mercury poisoning, arsenic poisoning and lead poisoning.
• Carbon monoxide. Breathing in carbon monoxide (CO) fumes can lead to carbon monoxide poisoning. CO is especially dangerous because you can’t see it or smell it. A working CO detector is the only way to know it’s there. High levels of CO in your body can cause death after just a few minutes.
• Contaminated food. Toxins from bacteria, fungi and mold can contaminate your food and cause food poisoning. This happens when you eat food that’s not fresh, washed properly, cooked thoroughly or stored at the correct temperature. Common bacterial culprits are E. coli, salmonella and listeria. Ciguatoxin is a toxin in some types of fish that less frequently makes people sick but can lead to serious illness.
• Mushrooms. Toxins from poisonous mushrooms often cause digestive symptoms that usually pass on their own. But some toxins can lead to liver and kidney failure. Always use extreme caution because deadly mushrooms are easy to mistake for delicious ones.
• Medications. Any medication can become a poison if taken incorrectly. Common examples include narcotic pain medications, acetaminophen (Tylenol®) and blood thinners. Even over-the-counter (OTC) medications and supplements can cause harm. This is why you need to tell your healthcare provider everything you take that’s not prescribed so they can determine if these are safe to continue. If your provider knows everything you’re taking, they can also determine whether there are interactions between or among your medications.
• Nicotine. Nicotine poisoning can happen to anyone, but it’s most common in children who may eat cigarettes or consume liquid nicotine (from e-cigarettes).
• Alcohol. Alcohol poisoning happens when you consume ethyl alcohol (commonly just called “alcohol”) faster than your body can process and eliminate it. It can also happen with types of alcohol your body can’t process safely, like isopropyl (rubbing) or methyl alcohols (also known as “methanol” or “wood alcohol”).
• Cleaning products. Many household cleaners contain chemicals that are poisonous when ingested, mishandled or used incorrectly. Mixing certain chemicals, like bleach and ammonia, can create chlorine gas (which is deadly).
• Pesticides. Chemicals in most pesticides are poisonous if consumed. Children face the greatest risk.

These are some of the most common examples of poisonous substances. But there are many others, too. You can learn about other types of poison and how to avoid them by visiting the U.S. Poison Control Center website.

How is poisoning diagnosed?

Experts at a poison control center or other healthcare providers diagnose poisoning. Diagnosis may take place over the phone and/or in person.

If you or someone you’re with has a suspected poison exposure, don’t wait for symptoms to appear. Take action right away:

• Do first aid.
• Call 911 (or your local emergency service number) in certain cases, or call poison control at 1-800-222-1222.

First aid

Doing first aid within seconds or minutes of a poison exposure can prevent serious harm. Only attempt first aid on someone if the person is awake, alert, breathing normally and able to swallow. Otherwise, call 911 immediately. First aid depends on the type of exposure.

Call for help

Skip first aid and call 911 right away if a person:

• Collapses.
• Has a seizure.
• Has difficulty breathing.
• Is unconscious.

Call 911 after starting first aid if a person:

• Has severe eye irritation, pain, redness, swelling or vision issues after rinsing for 15 to 20 minutes.
• Has severe skin symptoms like blistering burns, pain, swelling or redness after rinsing for 15 minutes.

Otherwise, after doing first aid, call poison control at 1-800-222-1222. Do this even if there are no signs or symptoms yet. This is a national number, but it routes your call to your local center.

A poisoning expert will talk to you over the phone. They’ll ask for key information so they can give you the best possible advice. Be prepared to share:

• The person’s age and weight.
• Known health conditions and allergies.
• The type of poison or product.
• Amount of exposure.
• How it entered the body (swallowed, inhaled, etc.).
• How much time has passed since exposure.
• First aid provided.
• Noticeable symptoms like vomiting.
• The person’s exact location and the nearest hospital.

The expert will give you detailed instructions on what to do and whether you should go to a hospital.

What tests will be done to diagnose poisoning?

You may not need tests if you know the name of the poisonous substance. Healthcare providers can usually learn much from talking to you or the affected person and doing a physical exam. In some cases, you might need tests. These include:

• Blood tests.
• Urine tests.
• X-rays.

What is the treatment for poisoning?

Poison control or your healthcare provider decides the best treatment in each case of poisoning. In many cases, at-home care is enough to help you recover. Some people need care at a hospital to recover.

Treatments vary widely according to the type of poison and how it affects you. Possible treatments include:

• First aid measures (described above) and monitoring.
• Rest, IV fluids, antidotes and/or medications at the hospital.
• Activated charcoal and stomach pumping to prevent the poison from absorbing into your bloodstream. This should only be used in the hospital and not on your own.
• Supportive care, like mechanical ventilation, to help your body function while the poison clears from your system.
• Induced vomiting (rare). NEVER induce vomiting unless poison control or a trained, qualified healthcare provider tells you to do so.
• Chelation therapy. This is a form of treatment that uses medicine to remove metals in your body so they don’t make you sick.

What’s good against poison?

Antidotes are medications or substances that counteract or reverse a poison’s effects. There are many different types of antidotes. What works against one poison may not work against other types. Some poisons have no antidote. Poison control or your healthcare provider can tell you more about antidotes and whether one is appropriate for you.

Can poisoning be prevented?

Most types of poisoning are preventable (and you can reduce the risks of many others). This is especially important if there could be a risk to children in or around your home.

Here are some tips:

• Install a carbon monoxide detector in your home and change the batteries yearly.
• Keep cleaners, soaps and household or cleaning chemicals where children can’t reach them.
• Keep all medications out of reach of children. Prescription medications should always be kept secured in a locked storage place.
• Talk to your healthcare provider about appropriate doses for medications. Always ask your provider before taking any new medication.
• “Over the counter” doesn’t mean it’s automatically safe. Talk to your healthcare provider about safe dosing of over-the-counter drugs, too.
• Keep cleaners and chemicals in their original packaging with the labels on them. This helps avoid confusion. It also lets you know what’s in a substance if you need to call for help.
• NEVER mix cleaning products or household chemicals. The results can be deadly.
• Don’t touch or eat unfamiliar plants you encounter outdoors. If you’re traveling in an unfamiliar area, do some research to know about plants and animals to avoid.
• Take food safety measures like cooking meat to the proper temperature and rinsing fruits and veggies under running water.

What can I expect if I have poisoning?

Poisoning affects each person differently. It depends on the type of poison and other factors like your age and health. Some common forms of poisoning, like food poisoning or poison ivy exposure, are mild and go away with at-home care. More serious situations may require hospitalization. Sometimes, poisoning can be fatal.

When in doubt, err on the side of caution and get medical attention immediately.

What’s the difference — toxin vs. poison?

The word “poison” refers any substance that can make you sick or harm you. A toxin is a specific type of poison.

Living cells or organisms (like plants or animals) produce toxins. Examples of toxins include a snake’s venom and the oils that poison ivy produces.

But there are many other poisons besides toxins. These include industrial chemicals and ingredients in medications that are harmful in large doses.

It might help to remember it this way: All toxins are poisons. But not all poisons are toxins.

What’s the difference — poisonous vs. venomous?

The word “poisonous” refers to any substance that can harm you. The word “venomous” refers to poisonous substances that enter your body through a wound or injury. Stings and bites are the most common forms of venom exposure.

A note from Cleveland Clinic

Poisonous substances can cause unpleasant symptoms at best, and at worst can be fatal. It’s easy to overlook many common sources of poisoning that could put you or your family at risk. But you can do a lot to keep yourself and loved ones safe. Whether you double-check that medications are locked away or use a meat thermometer when cooking, simple steps can make a life-saving difference.

Talk to your healthcare provider to learn more about ways to prevent harm from poisons and what to do if you have symptoms.