Child First Aid: Falls, Burns, Choking Guide

Quick Answer

Child first aid is the quick help you give a child after an injury or sudden illness, before a doctor takes over. Stay calm, keep your child safe, and call 108 or 112 for serious problems. Know how to handle choking, burns, falls, bleeding and poisoning, and which illness signs need a hospital.

Child First Aid at a Glance

Key Facts Every Parent Should Know

• Most childhood injuries happen at home: Falls, burns and poisoning are the most common

• The first few minutes matter: Quick, correct first aid can prevent serious harm

• Stay calm: Your calm helps your child stay still and helps you think clearly

• Some home remedies make things worse: Toothpaste, ghee or ice on burns, or making a child vomit, can cause more damage

• Choking first aid is different for babies: Babies under 1 need back blows and chest thrusts, not abdominal thrusts

• A first aid course is worth it: Hands-on training builds confidence

Why Should Every Parent Know Basic First Aid?

Short answer: Children explore, climb and put things in their mouths, so accidents happen fast. Knowing basic first aid helps you act quickly and correctly while help is on the way.

Basic first aid helps you:

• Stop a small injury from becoming serious

• Keep your child safe until an ambulance or doctor takes over

• Know when an injury or illness needs a hospital

• Stay calm in a frightening moment

The 4 golden rules:

1. Stay calm and check that the area is safe for you and your child

2. Check your child: Are they awake, breathing and responding?

3. Give simple first aid for the injury

4. Call 108 or 112 if the problem is serious

How Do You Help a Choking Child?

Short answer: If your child can cough, cry or speak, let them keep coughing. If they can't breathe, cough or cry, give back blows and thrusts right away, and call 108 or 112.

Signs of choking

• Can't breathe, cry, speak or cough

• Weak, high-pitched sounds or no sound at all

• Clutching at the throat

• Lips or face turning blue

Choking first aid for babies under 1 year

1. Lay your baby face down along your forearm, with their head lower than their chest, supporting the head and jaw.

2. Give 5 firm back blows between the shoulder blades with the heel of your hand.

3. If the object doesn't come out, turn your baby face up on your thigh.

4. Give 5 chest thrusts with two fingers on the centre of the breastbone, just below the nipple line.

5. Repeat until the object comes out or your baby becomes unconscious.

Never give abdominal thrusts to a baby under 1.

Choking first aid for children over 1 year

1. Lean your child forward and give 5 firm back blows between the shoulder blades.

2. If that doesn't work, stand or kneel behind your child and give 5 abdominal thrusts: place a fist just above the belly button and pull sharply inwards and upwards.

3. Repeat back blows and abdominal thrusts until the object comes out.

If your child becomes unconscious

• Call 108 or 112 immediately

• Start CPR if you're trained

• Don't put your fingers in the mouth to search for the object unless you can clearly see it

For foods that commonly cause choking, read our guide on foods to avoid for toddlers.

What Should You Do for a Burn?

Short answer: Cool the burn under cool running water for 20 minutes, remove jewellery or clothing near the burn unless it's stuck, and cover it loosely with cling film or a clean cloth.

Step by step

1. Move your child away from the heat source.

2. Cool the burn under cool, gently running water for 20 minutes.

3. Remove clothing and jewellery near the burn, unless stuck to the skin.

4. Cover loosely with cling film or a clean, non-fluffy cloth.

5. Keep your child warm while cooling the burn.

6. Give pain relief only if your doctor advises.

Don't do this

• Don't apply toothpaste, butter, ghee, haldi, oil, ice or ointments

• Don't burst blisters

• Don't use very cold or iced water

Go to hospital if the burn:

• Is larger than your child's palm

• Is on the face, hands, feet, joints or private parts

• Looks white, charred or leathery (deep burn)

• Was caused by electricity or chemicals

• Is in a baby

What Should You Do After a Fall or Head Injury?

Short answer: Most falls cause only minor bumps. Comfort your child, apply a cold compress, and watch closely for 24 to 48 hours. Get emergency help if you see any warning signs.

First aid for a minor bump

1. Comfort your child and let them rest.

2. Apply a cold compress or ice wrapped in a cloth for 10 to 15 minutes.

3. Watch closely for the next 24 to 48 hours.

Head injury warning signs: get emergency help if your child:

• Was knocked out, even briefly

• Vomits more than once

• Has a seizure

• Has unequal pupils, blurred vision or confusion

• Has blood or clear fluid coming from the nose or ears

• Is unusually sleepy or hard to wake

• Has weakness, trouble walking or is behaving strangely

• Fell from a height, like a balcony, stairs or a high bed

If you think there's a neck or back injury, don't move your child unless they're in danger. Call 108 or 112.

What About Bleeding, Nosebleeds and Poisoning?

Short answer: Press firmly on cuts to stop bleeding, lean forward and pinch the nose for nosebleeds, and never make a child vomit after swallowing poison.

Cuts and bleeding

1. Wash your hands if you can.

2. Press firmly on the wound with a clean cloth or gauze.

3. Raise the injured part above the heart if possible.

4. Keep pressing for several minutes without lifting to check.

5. For minor cuts, clean with clean running water and cover with a sterile dressing.

Go to hospital if the cut is deep, gaping, on the face, has something stuck in it, or the bleeding won't stop.

Nosebleeds

1. Sit your child upright and lean them slightly forward.

2. Pinch the soft part of the nose firmly for 10 minutes.

3. Ask your child to breathe through their mouth.

4. Never tilt the head back. Blood can run down the throat.

See a doctor if the bleeding doesn't stop after 20 minutes, or nosebleeds happen often.

Poisoning

1. Remove anything still in your child's mouth.

2. Don't make your child vomit.

3. Call 108 or 112, or a poison centre.

4. Keep the container or packet to show the doctor.

Common poisons in Indian homes: Medicines, kerosene, phenyl, toilet cleaners, pesticides, mosquito repellents, button batteries and naphthalene balls.

Swallowed button batteries and magnets

Go to hospital immediately, even if your child seems fine. Button batteries can burn the food pipe within hours. Swallowing two or more magnets is also an emergency.

When Should You Call Emergency Help Immediately?

Short answer: Call 108 or 112 right away for any life-threatening problem.

Call 108 or 112 if your child:

• Is choking and can't breathe, or becomes unconscious

• Isn't breathing, or is breathing with great difficulty

• Has heavy bleeding that won't stop

• Has a seizure, especially a first one or one lasting more than 5 minutes

• Has a serious head, neck or spine injury

• Has a large, deep burn, or a burn on the face or hands

• Has swallowed poison, medicine, chemicals or a button battery

• Is very drowsy, unresponsive or turning blue

• Was found in water, even if they seem fine

When Should You Take Your Child to Hospital for Illness?

Short answer: Not every illness needs a hospital, but some warning signs do. Go to hospital immediately for trouble breathing, unusual sleepiness, severe dehydration, a rash that doesn't fade when pressed, or a swallowed button battery or poison.

When to go: quick guide

Illness warning signs

Bites that need a hospital

Trust your instinct: If you feel something is seriously wrong, go to hospital. Don't wait until morning.

🧰 First Aid Kit Essentials

Short answer: Keep a first aid kit at home and in the car, out of children's reach, and check it every few months.

Emergency numbers in India

• 108: Ambulance and emergency

• 112: National emergency number

• 102: Ambulance in some states

• 1098: Childline

What Does First Aid Preparedness Cost in India?

Short answer: Emergency helplines are free, and a basic first aid kit and course cost very little compared with the confidence they give.

Prices vary by city and brand.

Indian Context: What Indian Parents Should Know

Short answer: Some common home remedies in India can make injuries worse. Lock away household chemicals, avoid harmful remedies, and learn first aid from a trusted course.

• Save 108 and 112 in your phone and on the fridge

• Avoid harmful remedies: Toothpaste, ghee, haldi or ice on burns, and chilli or oil on bites

• Lock away dangerous items: Kerosene, phenyl, pesticides, cleaners, naphthalene balls and medicines

• Childproof the home: Guard stoves and hot vessels, fit stair gates, cover plug points

• Dog bites: Common in Indian streets. Every bite needs rabies vaccine, free at government hospitals

• Snake bites in villages: Go to hospital for anti-venom, not to a traditional healer

• Don't wait until morning: If your child has warning signs at night, go to hospital

• Take a first aid course: The Indian Red Cross Society and St John Ambulance offer courses

For more on preventing accidents, read our toddler safety guide and the ultimate guide to childproofing your home.

Myths vs Facts About Child First Aid

FAQs: Child First Aid

1. What should I do first in a child emergency?
Stay calm, check that the area is safe, check if your child is breathing and responding, and call 108 or 112 if it's serious.

2. How do I help a choking baby under 1?
Give 5 back blows with your baby face down on your forearm, then 5 chest thrusts with two fingers on the breastbone. Never give abdominal thrusts to a baby.

3. What is the first aid for burns in children?
Cool the burn under running water for 20 minutes, remove nearby jewellery or clothing, and cover loosely with cling film. Don't apply toothpaste, ghee or ice.

4. When should I take my child to hospital after a head injury?
If they were knocked out, vomit more than once, have a seizure, are very sleepy, confused, or have fluid coming from the nose or ears.

5. How do I stop a nosebleed?
Sit your child upright, lean them slightly forward and pinch the soft part of the nose for 10 minutes. Don't tilt the head back.

6. What should I do if my child swallows something poisonous?
Don't make them vomit. Call 108 or 112, and keep the container to show the doctor.

7. When should I take my child to hospital for fever?
If the fever comes with sleepiness, breathing trouble, a seizure, a non-fading rash, a stiff neck or dehydration. See a doctor if it lasts more than 3 days.

8. What should I do if a dog bites my child?
Wash the wound with soap and running water for 15 minutes, then go to a hospital the same day for rabies vaccine.

9. What should be in a child's first aid kit?
Gauze, bandages, antiseptic, a digital thermometer, scissors, tweezers, gloves, a crepe bandage, cling film, ORS, prescribed medicines and emergency numbers.

10. Bacche ko turant hospital kab le jayein?
Agar baccha saans lene mein takleef mein ho, bahut sust ho jaye, peshab band ho, daane glass se dabane par na mitein, ya koi battery ya zehreeli cheez nigal le, to turant hospital jaiye ya 108 par call kijiye.

11. Jalne par bacche ko kya first aid dein?
Jale hue hisse ko 20 minute tak thande behte paani ke neeche rakhiye, phir saaf kapde ya cling film se dhakiye. Toothpaste, ghee, haldi ya barf bilkul mat lagaiye.

Related Reads on Mylo

• Toddler Fever, Cold and Frequent Illness at Playschool

• Toddler Constipation, Loose Motions and Vomiting

• Toddler Skin Care: Rashes, Eczema and Mosquito Bites

• Toddler Safety Guide: Water, Balcony and Road Safety

• The Ultimate Guide to Childproofing Your Home

• Foods to Introduce and Avoid for Toddlers

• Infant Choking: Prevention and Causes

References

1. American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP). "Choking Prevention and First Aid" and "Button Battery Injuries." HealthyChildren.org. https://www.healthychildren.org

2. NHS (UK). "Burns and scalds," "Nosebleed" and "Choking." https://www.nhs.uk

3. World Health Organization (WHO). "Integrated Management of Childhood Illness (IMCI): Chart Booklet." 2014.

4. National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE). "Head injury: assessment and early management." NG232, 2023.

5. Indian Red Cross Society. "First Aid Manual." https://www.indianredcross.org

6. Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Government of India. "National Rabies Control Programme" and "Standard Treatment Guidelines: Snakebite."

Medical Disclaimer

This article is for general awareness only and does not replace hands-on first aid or CPR training or professional medical care. In an emergency, call 108 or 112 immediately. Consider taking an accredited first aid course.

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