Accidental poisoning in children: a psychosocial study

Fifty pre-school children thought to have ingested potentially poisonous substances were studied, together with 50 controls. An interview of each child and mother was undertaken in the home situation. Seven at-risk factors make a child more likely to ingest a toxic substance. These are: greater accommodation changes by the family, father having had a large number of jobs, paternal past history of accidents, child's exploring ability, child's past history of poisonings, an abnormal appetite in children older than two years old and lower stimulation indices in 2-5 year-olds. Attention is drawn to the similarity between many of these factors and childhood abuse and neglect.