Parents could write a book about all the things their curious child puts in their mouth. Once they learn to crawl, babies are raring to explore uncharted territory and opportunities. By then, mums and dads are (hopefully) used to clearing hazards out of the way. “When in doubt, clear it out.”

In the oral phase, children get to know their environment using their mouth. This phase ends at about 18 months. But even after this, children will still put anything they can into their mouth. So it’s not surprising that Tox Info Suisse records the majority of calls for toddlers in the under 5 age group (more details in the annual reports annual reports).

Accidents happen. And recognising dangers is one of many things children have to learn. The goal is to collect experiences and explore their environment through play. It is the parent's job to make sure this happens as safely as possible, taking the necessary precautions in their everyday surroundings.

The internet provides parents with rapid access to information even in an emergency. In the course of its daily advisory service, however, Tox Info Suisse has noticed that this often causes uncertainty for callers. If you take words like “harmful, carcinogenic, life-threatening...” out of context, they will sometimes cause panic. In relatively harmless situations this can mean alarmed parents taking action for the sake of it and resorting to unnecessary or even dangerous interventions. Mothers put their finger in the child's throat, fathers make the child vomit by giving them raw eggs or a salt solution to drink. Tox Info Suisse strongly advises against inducing vomiting. In the worst-case scenario, attempts to do so could cause harm when the situation was quite safe in the first place.

Contact Tox Info Suisse if you are unsure!

The following products are ones we are often asked about and are non-toxic (as well as many others):


“No Panic” list from Tox Info Suisse

There’s no need to worry about poisoning with these but do read the section “There’s no list without ifs or buts”.

• Animal food (dog, cat and bird food)
• Baby cream (rash cream)
• Ballpoint pens
• Candle (wax)
• Cardboard
• Chalk (blackboard chalk, pavement chalk)
• Chewing gum (does not apply to nicotine chewing gum; sugar-free chewing gum may also contain xylitol, which is toxic for certain animals such as dogs.)
• Crayons
• Cream (face cream, everyday body lotion with no medicated additives)
• Cut flower food (sugar such as sucrose, glucose)
• Desiccant (silica gel)
• Expanded clay
• Eye make-up (kohl, eyeliner, eyeshadow…)
• Faeces
• Food colourings (Easter egg dye)
• Lip care products (lipstick, lip balm)
• Matchstick heads
• Packaging material residue on food
• Packaging pellets (generally made of polystyrene, cornstarch or card)
• Paints (acrylic paint, coloured pencils, felt tips, wax crayons and glitter pens, watercolour paint, finger paint, wax paint etc.)
• Paper (newspaper, craft paper etc.)
• Pencil (leads)
• Plastic (plastic toys such as Lego blocks, Playmobil etc.)
• Play-Mais (children’s craft kit made from cornstarch)
• Polystyrene
• Potting compost
• Rubber (plasticine, eraser)
• Teething rings (toys for babies)
• Unwashed fruit (organic or not)
• Water from a flower vase
   

No poisoning is to be expected!

Accidental consumption of the products will at most lead to mild gastrointestinal symptoms.

Possible corrective measures:

• Clean and rinse mouth/skin.
• Drink 100–200 ml of clear, fat-free fluid
  e.g. water, cordial or tea
• Do not induce vomiting.

Medical attention:

• If there are any signs of problems with a foreign body (e.g. difficulty breathing or swallowing...) seek immediate medical attention and call an ambulance.
• In the event of severe gastrointestinal symptoms.

If your little Picasso licks finger paint off their fingers, there’s no harm involved. Consuming five pots of finger paints as an afternoon snack is unlikely to happen if parents or guardians are nearby. However, that would likely result in pronounced gastrointestinal problems.

The listed products above are non-toxic. But some of these products could get stuck in the oesophagus or reach the trachea and respiratory tract. In the worst-case scenario, a baby or infant won’t be able to breathe. Call for an ambulance.

Parents shudder at the thought of their sweet baby munching on cat faeces. Babies and infants don’t have any such revulsion and grab anything they can get their hands on. Faeces are not poisonous. However, they can cause gastrointestinal infections and parasite transmission. Wait and see what happens. Seek medical attention if gastrointestinal problems are severe and there is a risk of losing a lot of fluid.

“Carcinogenic traces detected in paints and craft products” is what the mum reads online. Worried, she wants to know whether her child can safely play around with crayons. Tox Info Suisse advises that official warnings such as those issued by cantonal laboratories should be taken seriously. In this specific case, Tox Info Suisse would advise against letting the child play with the craft materials. However, it is difficult to assess the individual risk, which is the responsibility of other institutions. 

In particular, Tox Info Suisse can make statements on the acute risk of poisoning. From this, we derive recommendations for urgent action. If the same mother asks whether she needs to take her child to hospital because they swallowed a little bit of the colouring materials in question, Tox Info Suisse will give the all-clear. No action is needed.

How to protect babies and children from (poisoning) accidents:

• If you need to leave the room even for a short moment, put your child in a safe place (e.g. in a playpen).
  
  
• Check toys for criteria such as quality seals, permitted age, and parts that are loose or easy to rip off.
  
  
• Avoid unnecessary products such as fragrance lamps, air fresheners, toilet blocks/discs or similar in households with young children.
  
  
• Make sure they are stored in a child-proof place! Always clear everything away immediately and keep it safe. It is recommended that products are stored in a location higher than 160 cm and in locked cupboards.
  
  
• Know the names of plants in your home and garden. Give toxic plants away or at least put them in places that are out of the reach of your children.

aktualisiert Februar 2026