Another toddler swallows a small amount of glue remover for artificial nails. Lamb knew the ingredient in this particular product is converted by the body to deadly cyanide, and sends the family to the hospital where the child is given an antidote. Advice is available in more than 100 languages. Their computer database, updated quarterly, contains 700,000 pages of text. Lamb regularly gets calls from parents asking if window cleaner is poisonous or whether pyracantha berries will make a toddler sick.
Worried diners ask about food poisoning.
Physicians and hospitals call with questions, too. In fact, the Sacramento center gets about 300 calls a day. Almost 90 percent are accidental poisonings, and half involve children under age 5. Usually a hospital visit is unnecessary. There are four poison control centers in the state.