How to Stop a Baby from Choking

Choking is nature's way of trying to clear an obstruction in the airway. When choking occurs in children, especially babies, parents naturally panic. The truth is a baby who is choking but can still breathe, cry and cough forcefully should not be interfered with. But if the baby continues to cough for a minute or two, medical assistance should be called. And in the following situations, one should follow the rescue procedures below:
• when the baby is struggling for breath;
• when baby can't cough effectively;
• when a caregiver hears high-pitched crowing sounds; and/or
• when the baby is turning blue (usually starts around the lips).

Rescue Procedures For Babies Under One (Conscious or Unconscious):

(1) Get help. When a baby is choking, the caregiver should either get someone to phone 911 or, if the caregiver is alone, take the child with them to make the call.

(2) Position baby. Baby should be straddled on the forearm, head placed lower than the torso with baby's chin resting in the curve between the thumb and forefinger. If the baby is too big to hold this way, he or she needs to be placed in the lap of the caregiver on its tummy in the head-lower-than-the-body position.

(3) Administer back blows. Give four consecutive forceful blows between baby's shoulder blades with the heel of the free hand. Usually this is enough to dislodge an obstruction.

(4) Administer chest thrusts. If the obstruction causing the baby to choke hasn't been dislodged or loosened, the caregiver needs to find the soft area in the baby's chest right between the ribs, called the sternum. Here the caregiver needs to place two or three fingers and gently deliver four sharp chest thrusts to a depth of ½ to 1 inch with each at a rate of 1 to 1 ½ seconds apart.

If baby is conscious, continue with back blows and chest thrusts until the airway is cleared. If unconscious, continue with below steps:

(5) Do a foreign body check. Use the thumb to open baby's mouth then grasp the tongue and lower jaw between the thumb and forefinger. If there is a foreign object, the caregiver should attempt to remove it with a sweep of a finger. *Note: One should not attempt to sweep the mouth if nothing is visible nor should a pincer grasp be used as it could force the object further into the airway.*

(6) Do an airway check. If the baby isn't breathing normally, his or her airway should be opened by tilting the head/lifting the chin and administering two slow breaths with the adult's mouth sealed over the baby's nose and mouth. If the chest rises and falls, the airway is clear. If it does not rise and fall, repeat the sequences above until emergency help has arrived.

For babies over one, it is fine to administer the Heimlich Maneuver but in a gentler way than one would give it to an adult as their bodies are more fragile. One can start with the same procedures as with younger babies then move to the Heimlich if basic steps are not successful.

The most important thing a parent or caregiver must remember is not to panic or give up when their baby is choking. The goal is to keep the baby calm because the more calm they are, the more the muscles of the throat will relax and the more likely the obstruction can be dislodged.