As Canadians head out camping during the summer, parents and guardians are reminded to be vigilant about the dangers that come with flame colourant packets.
Health Canada issued a warning notice on June 22 about the use of flame colourant packets after multiple reports of poisoning were reported in 2019 and 2020.
Flame colourant packets are used to change the colour of wood-burning flames, such as a campfire, and are intended to be thrown into a burning fire unopened.
According to Health Canada, Canadian Poison Centres received more than 70 reports related to the flame colourant packets in the past two years.
The exposures, said Health Canada, involved ingestion of these packets with a small number of the ingestions resulted in major health effects.
Of the cases reported, 67 per cent involved children under the age of 12 and one-third of these cases involved treatment at a health care facility.
“Canadian Poison Centres have noted that some children and even adults have mistaken these products for candy or food due to their colourful packaging,” read a Health Canada statement.
Symptoms of poisoning from swallowing the contents of the packets include severe internal bleeding and kidney and liver damage, which may lead to death.
Parents and caregivers are reminded to keep all consumer chemical products out of sight and reach of children and always read and follow specific warnings and directions on products before using.
If you or someone else has ingested one of these products, call your health care provider right away, bring an original product container and report the incident to Health Canada.
