Poison Protection

• Symptoms of carbon monoxide poisoning include headache, nausea, dizziness or drowsiness. Also watch for rapid heartbeat, loss of hearing or blurry vision.
• Often symptoms are mistaken for a heart attack or the flu.
• If you think someone in your house has been poisoned, get them outside and to a hospital as soon as you can.
• There is no first aid you can do. The only treatment is pure oxygen supplied by the hospital.
• Any appliance that burns fuel—water heaters, gas stoves and clothes dryers—could cause carbon monoxide poisoning.
• Hire someone to inspect your gas appliances every fall, right before the winter heating season.
• Buy a carbon monoxide detector and place it near your furnace or heater. Make sure the alarm is loud.

Dr. Winnie King
Dr. King is an attending physician at Florida Hospital Central Care in Orlando, and the medical expert for Lifetime's What Should You Do?

Please note: The information regarding safety and survival tips are suggestions only. There is no guarantee that these suggested techniques will prevent injury or death.