Pretty Poisons
Do you know what's in your yard?
 Many parents can't tell nasturtium
from nightshade but knowing the local flora can make a difference if a
child is tempted to taste the brightly colored flowers and plump berries
that delight the eye in summer.
Exposure to toxic plants is reported more often than spider and snake
bites or ingestion of such common household supplies as furniture polish
or paint thinner. Children are more likely to sample berries, leaves and
stems than they are to swallow small toys or coins. While relatively few
plants, if eaten, can seriously harm a child, some are highly toxic.
"Pokeberries eaten in large amounts can cause a severe
reaction," says Lifespan poison expert Kim Capes. Ingesting more than
10 berries can cause vomiting, diarrhea and dehydration. Yew seeds are not
toxic, but biting into the pits, Capes says, "releases a dangerous
chemical" that can poison a child. In a highly publicized poisoning
case, jimsonweed, a common weed that has a distinctive, trumpet-shaped,
purple blossom, was the culprit that hospitalized three Tiverton
eighth-graders who had eaten seeds of the plant, which is also known as
devil's trumpet.
Jimsonweed is so toxic that contact with the plant can have immediate,
frightening consequences, including increased heart rate and
hallucinations. Children should also be taught to avoid poison
ivy, oak and sumac
and stinging nettle. Poison ivy,
oak and sumac contain a resin that causes an
itchy, painful rash; the small hairs or spines on the leaves of stinging
nettle contain histamines that can cause mild to severe allergic
reactions.
Prevention and treatment tips: protect your kids 
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