Warning to parents to be careful giving children hot chocolates and babycinos

Parents, as cute as it may be to order your child a babycino at a coffee shop (and as enjoyable as it is to take a sip for yourself), do so with caution.

Those little frothy cups of milk can be dangerous.

Tiny Hearts Education, which offers child first aid courses, has warned that babycinos can pose a choking hazard thanks to the inclusion of marshmallows.

They shared photos on Facebook of a ‘safe’ cup of hot chocolate or frothed up milk with mini marshmallows, and an ‘unsafe’ cup with one large marshmallow.

That one full-sized marshmallow can be easily choked on by small children.

The organisation wrote on Facebook: ‘Parents should be aware – while they might look cute, full-sized marshmallows are a choking hazard for our little ones.

‘A safer option is to cut them into small pieces, use mini sized marshmallows, or better yet – eat the marshmallow yourself.

‘Know what to do if the unthinkable happened and empower yourself with the knowledge and skill of baby and child first aid.’

It’s better to be safe than sorry – so when you’re ordering a hot drink for your little ones check what type of marshmallows they’ll put on top. If they’re not mini, leave them out.

What to do if a child is choking:

  • Encourage them to cough
  • If they can’t, then give up to five back slaps. Babies and small children should be placed over your lap with their head pointing downwards as gravity will help. Give up to five abdominal thrusts or chest thrusts if under one year old.
  • Repeat all the above if it hasn’t cleared
  • Ask someone to call 999 if this hasn’t worked or they lose consciousness

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