Doctors Are Calling For "Choke Proof" Hotdogs
Hotdogs are a witch's brew - hoof of cow, eye of rat, filler of unknown origin - extruded into a wiener, and put into a bun. Condiments optional.
They're gross. No one REALLY knows what's in hotdogs. But at every barbecue, carnival, and Fourth of July, you'll find hotdogs. And, kids love them. That's the problem.
Doctors insist the hotdog shape presents the perfect choking hazard for kids, so they want hotdogs to be "redesigned."
Writing in the journal Pediatrics, a new policy statement says every year more than 10,000 children under 14 years old are rushed to the emergency room after choking on food - up to 77 die - and hotdogs are responsible for 17% of the cases.
When kids take a bite out of a hotdog, it makes the "perfect plug" for a child's airway, and it's near impossible to un-wedge the morsel.
Putting a choking hazard warning on packages is an option, but a spokesperson for the National Hot Dog and Sausage Council - how funny is it that a "hotdog council" exists - says more than half the hotdogs sold in stores have tips to prevent choking, like cutting them up in bits.
I say the answer is pretty simple; take all the hotdogs and get the people at Life-Savers to drill holes in them!
Via USA Today.
16 Comments
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Created / Updated: July 17, 2010
I, for one, am in full support of the life-savers idea :)
ReplyJust using some quick math.....
Not sure if that 17% refers to the 77 who die or the 10,000 who choke. So....
If its 17% of the 77 deaths, that's 13 deaths a year from choking on hot dogs.
If its 17% of the 10,000 choking victims, it's 1700 deaths.
The U.S. has a population of almost 73 million people under the age of 18, God knows how many of them eat hot dogs but I'm sure the numbers are fairly high considering the popularity of this food item. That's pretty insignificant. Just about every product, food or otherwise, has a potential dangerous side. Do these folks have nothing better to do?
ReplyThat's awesome! Freakonomics style! Seriously good question I am sure there is a better use for their time.
ReplyThat's awesome! Freakonomics style! Seriously good question I am sure there is a better use for their time. Like teaching people how to do abdominal J thrusts.
ReplyOr just don't feed your kids hot dogs. Problem solved!
Replyhow about chew your food
ReplyI agree & taking smaller bites instead scarfing down the food. For me, no prob since I don't eat hot dogs.. don't like them!
ReplyDuh! I mean how dumb can these ppl get?
Replysoo...should the banana be 're-designed' as well? what happened to supervising your children when they are eating?
ReplyI'm guessing, and I'm probably not far off, that this is the result of some parent whose kid choked to death on a hotdog and, in their grief, they've declared war on the hotdog. Stuff like this happens all the time, it's why we have so many silly laws and bylaws.
ReplyJessica's right. What's next, bananas? How about carrots. Especially those baby ones. How about we just puree everything for kids until they're 18 years old and eliminate all choking danger altogether! This country is raising a nation of coddled wimps.
ReplyI agree we should all be fed a nutritious paste-like food from cradle-to-grave. All for our own good of course.
Replyhow about the parents cutting the hot dogs into pieces and keep an eye on their small children while eating. why make this every ones problem?
ReplyHow about either not eating hot dogs or if you must, coming up for breath in between bites?
ReplyGrapes and nuts were also choking hazards for my kids when they were toddlers and younger. I just didn't give them nuts until they were old enough to fully chew them to a paste. Grapes - I cut them up when they were old enough to chew through the skin (before that, I'd sometimes skin them - that was a pain!). With hot dogs, I cut them up until they were old enough to take small bites themselves. Most of these issues are easily resolved through common sense and teaching your kids to take small bites. If they redesign the hot dog, what of the bun?
ReplyHaving choked on a hotdog as a child (scared the "you know what" out of me), I don't think it's such a bad idea. I had forgotten all about this until I read this. By the way...it wasn't because I took too big a bite, or was eating too fast...I was just moving it from one side of my mouth to the other, and it slipped down my throat. My mother, God bless her, stuck her finger down my throat and retrieved it (she didn't know the heimlich maneuver). I am grateful to this day...I would have died!
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