Every parent knows what it's like. If you take your eyes off your toddler everything they touch as they explore their new world goes into an orifice.

'One of my children lodged a tiny toy in her ear,' my patient Leonie says. 'Her older brother thought it was a good idea to try to vacuum it out. I just caught him in the nick of time. Lord knows how much damage that could have caused.'

And if you ask any emergency room doctor, they'll be able to
tell you similar woeful tales.

'We tend to see a lot of swallowed coins and safety pins,' says Associate Professor Gary Brown from The Children's
Hospital at Westmead.

The good news is that, even if the safety pin is open, it tends to lodge blunt side down. In these cases, parents are put on 'poo watch'!

'Less commonly, where the coins or objects are larger, we have to remove them surgically,' he adds.

Then there are the honker hazards. 'One of the worst things we see are button batteries up the nose,' Professor Brown says.

These batteries put out an electric current that results in implanting themselves in the lining of the nose and eroding away tissue.

'Lollies up the nose aren't a major problem because they dissolve, but things such as peas don't dissolve and cause an inflammation. Often a week after the child has inserted the pea they present at the emergency ward with a smelly discharge.'

Here are some other household horrors and what to do about them: 

• Pen ink: It's best to avoid, but if your child does ingest biro ink they will usually suffer no bad effects.
• Shampoo: According to the Poisons Information Centre, usually the worst that can happen with shampoo is vomiting, and most kids will just spit it out. Still, avoid leaving shampoo where little fingers can reach it.
• Dishwashing powder and laundry powder: Keep under
  lock and key as they're highly corrosive and can kill a child.
• Paracetemol: While all medicine is dangerous, paracetamol probably tops the list because people are less wary of it than other drugs.Too much paracetamol can
  cause vomiting and harm the liver as well as cause internal bleeding. Professor Brown says that over-consumption often happens when a bottle is left open, perhaps by a tired parent, and the child drinks it because it's sweet.
  'Or sometimes the child has a fever and the parent gives a regular dose of paracetamol in the right amount but continues to give it for a long period of time, so the child
  can become toxic,' he adds.
  Toddlers should not be given paracetamol for more than 48 hours at a time without seeing a doctor.

Safety watch

1. Install locks to prevent toddlers getting to prescription medicines, vitamins, soaps, detergents, petroleum products and shampoos.
   And don't forget to place baby-proof gates on kitchens, stairs and bathrooms if possible.
2. Never transfer household products to containers that once contained food. Washing powder in a container similar to the one the biscuits are kept in is attractive to young ones.
3. Don't give your child long objects they can choke on, such as pens and pencils, or small parts in toys or games.
4. Watch button batteries in children's toys and other batteries as they can be stuck up the nose or swallowed.
5. See the world from your child's perspective by getting on your hands and knees.
   Are there TVs that might fall on top of you, drawers that can be overturned or saucepan handles that aren't turned away from little fingers? Do the batteries in your remote control easily fall out?
6. Make sure you have an electrical safety switch.
7. Keep the phone number of the Poisons Information Centre (131 126) on the fridge.

If your child ingests something:

• Don't induce vomiting. If the substance burnt when it went down it will do the same again as it comes back up.
• Take the suspected container with you to the hospital.

For more great health advice from Dr John, check out the latest issue of New Idea - on sale now!