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Parenting

08th Jun 2020

Mum explains what you should do if your child pulls hot tea down on themselves

Melissa Carton

Unfortunately, sometimes accidents happen.

As parents we always try to be as careful as possible with our children, constantly pulling them out of harm’s way.

Whether it’s making sure they don’t touch a hot oven or climb on something they could hurt themselves falling from, it’s constant vigilance.

Unfortunately as careful as we try to be, accidents will and do happen, so it’s important to know what to do to remedy the situation as quickly as possible.

Recently mum, Claire James, went through a very stressful situation when her small child pulled hot tea on top of themselves.

Claire posted about the accident on social media along with some steps that parents can take if the same should happen in their home.

Claire posted about how her son William pulled a scalding hot cup of tea on himself and what she wants others parents to know about helping their child if they’re burned;

“1. If you can (quickly enough), make sure you quickly grab the hot clothing away from their skin if they are wearing some, to stop the burn spreading and getting deeper.
2. Get them under cool water for 20-30 minutes, as quickly as possible. Don’t use water that is ice cold it can lead to further burning and send them in to shock. This is also another oppertunity remove the item of clothing, once its been soaked through with cool water.
3. After 20-30 minutes, put clingfilm over the burns to stop the nerve endings from hurting as this stops the oxygen getting to them.
4. Continue to keep the burn cold with wet cold towels on the cling film, but keeping the rest of their body warm with cuddles and anything you can find clothing/blanket wise!”

Claire went on to say that after you take all these steps get your child to A&E as quickly as possible.

Since Claire posted her story it has been shared thousands of times by other parents, while many commented that they had something similar happen to them.

As perfect as we try to be as parents, sometimes things go wrong. The important thing is to help your child as much as you can and to seek proper medical attention if the situation warrants it.