This week is National Inhalants and Poisons Awareness Week. It's designed to increase understanding about the use and risks of toxic substances.

About 8 million Americans are poisoned each year. Most of these poisonings happen at home and very often, the victims are children. Emergency Room Physician Larry Hobbs says, "Poisonings occur within the pediatric age or with young children who are able to get access to a cleaning cabinet and ingest cleaning fluids because of their bright colors."

Cleaning products should always be locked up or kept out of children's reach. Lee County EMS Captain Dave Wheaton says you have to remember that children are naturally curious and can get in trouble very quickly. "The worst part about some of these things like bleach for instance is it burns going down and then if they vomit it burns going back up and so it can cause a lot of problems."

Captain Wheaton also says that if you suspect your child has ingested or inhaled a toxic substance call 9-1-1 immediately. "And then the next thing that is going to happen is you call poison control. You should have the poison control number handy and it's in the front of the phonebook and you should have it handy or a way to get your hands on it as quickly as possible."

Poison Control will be able to tell you exactly what to do for your child over the phone.

If you have additional questions about keeping your kids safe from toxic substances you should contact your family doctor. Another excellent source for information about poisons is the Food and Drug Administration. The toll free number is 888-INFO-FDA (888-463-6332).