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THE WINNER IS #40: JULIE!!! You have been emailed and have until 11:59 pm CT Monday to contact me with your shipping information or Random.org will be used to select another winner!

As parents we all know that we are supposed to cut food for into small pieces for our infants and toddlers to prevent choking. Do you know enough about choking prevention to pass this short Choking Safety quiz?

True or False:

1) The American Academy of Pediatricians recommends that firm foods be cut into bite sized pieces no larger than 1/2 inch in all directions to reduce the risk of choking in young children.

2) Firm foods should be cut to a safe size until age 4, or longer for some Special Needs children.

3) If a choking child stops coughing, it means that they have coughed up whatever they were choking on.

4) Brain damage does not occur until after the brain has had no oxygen for 10 minutes.

5) Food causes the majority of choking accidents in young children.

Answers:

1) True. Half inch in all directions, not just cutting a wide or deep piece of food 1/2 inch long.

2) True. Children under the age of 4 do not have all of their molars, so they cannot properly "grind" food. Special Needs children can have unique reasons for having a high risk of choking longer than their Typically Developing peers.

3) False. A child might stop coughing because the food or object has been inhaled deeper into the lung, where it can lead to pneumonia or more serious complications.

4) False. It only takes 4 minutes without oxygen for brain damage to occur. How long would it take paramedics to reach your home if you called 911 for a choking child?

5) True. While small toys, small objects, and pieces of balloons can all cause choking, food causes the majority of choking in young children.

The good people at Midwest Monkeys had the same question many first time parents have. They wanted to know "how small is small" when it comes to cutting food for a toddler:

We had no idea about the existence of this guideline and nobody we knew did either. But we thought they should, so we invented the Safe Sizer™ plate. It's a permanent reminder and food test gauge for parents, grandparents, babysitters, daycare providers, or any caregiver, to cut up firm foods within the 1/2 inch bite size.

My Clara-Bear did not start consistently chewing her food until she was almost 3 1/2 years old. We've had the occasional choking episode, one of which came close to a 911 call and one where I did call 911 (in a grocery store no less, the only time she tried a food sample). After years of feeding therapy, my darling girl is still hit or miss with the chewing and would rather cram a large piece of food into her mouth than take a bite off something.

Because of her low muscle tone (hypotonia), Clara-Bear seemed to sense larger pieces of food better than the pea-sized pieces I cut for her when she was an infant. She had more lateral tongue movement and would chew more if the pieces were a little larger. I was really interested in seeing how the bite sizes I was cutting compared to the 1/2 inch size recommended for choking prevention.



Here's how I did (it's a ham and cheese strata, that's why it looks kind of unappetizing cut up):





Not so hot, Nurse Mommy, especially when you consider that the 1/2" size limit is for all directions. This is where Safe Sizer plates are such a help. Each Safe Sizer plate has a raised 1/2" ring for you to use as a gauge to make sure you are staying within the 1/2 inch size limit.



These dishwasher safe, toddler friendly plates are BPA free and exceed the U.S. government standards for phtalates and lead. I was pleased with the sturdiness of the plates and the quality of the images and packaging. We use ours 4 to 8 times a week, and mine are not showing any scratches from forks (my kids use regular forks) or fading.

Safe Sizer Choking Prevention Plates are sold in sets of 3 plates. This came in handy for this review - I kept two and sent one to Clara-Bear's school so they would feel more comfortable cutting her snacks. Did I mention the choking episode Clara-Bear had when the school Speech Therapist was evaluating her for feeding safety before returning to school 3 weeks ago? I think she liked the idea of having a way to gauge bite size.

There are two different design series - but I'm not going to tell you the names. You'll have to go to Midwest Monkeys and find that out to enter this giveaway.





One lucky able2able reader will win a set of 3 Safe Sizer Choking Prevention Plates in their choice of series design! (ARV $19.99)

To enter this giveaway, post a comment following the rules below. Scroll to the end of the comments and click on "post a comment". You have the opportunity to enter this giveaway up to 16 times!!:

All entries must have an email address if your profile is not public. If the winning entry does not contain an email address, then your entry will be discarded and a new winner selected.

Email me for directions on how to post anonymous entries without sharing your email address.

Mandatory 1st entry: Visit Midwest Monkeys and post a comment telling me which series you like best. Choose carefully - this is the series style you will receive if you win. You must give the name of the series, entries like "the one with the spaceman" or any answer that has both series will not be accepted.

The mandatory first entry must be completed before you can complete any of the following additional entries!

For an additional 1 entry: Post a comment about something you learned at the Midwest Monkeys site that I did not post in my review.

For an additional 1 entry: Enter another able2able giveaway. Post the name of the giveaway you enter in a comment here, and while you're there post the name of this giveaway for an additional entry!

For an additional 1 entry: Become a Facebook Fan of able2able... Your Special Needs Resource Directory and post a shout out comment on the fanpage wall. Current Facebook Fans may post an entry.

For an additional 1 entry: Become a Facebook Fan of Safe Sizer Choking Prevention Plates and post a comment on their fanpage wall saying that you have entered this giveaway on able2able... Your Special Needs Resource Directory. Current Facebook Fans may post an entry.

For an additional 3 entries: Become a public follower of able2able. Post 3 separate comments for your entries as a new follower. Current able2able followers may enter 3 times.

For an additional 2 entries: Post a link to this giveaway on your Facebook status. Post a comment for each entry. Click "Share" at the end of this post to quickly spread the word.

For an additional 2 entries: Tweet the link to this giveaway. Post a comment for each entry. Click on "Share" at the end of this post to quickly spread the word.

For an additional 4 entries: Blog about this giveaway! Your blog post must include links to this giveaway and to Midwest Monkeys. Include a link to your blog post in your comment. You must post a comment for each entry.

It is very important that you post a comment for each entry. Why? Because a random number generator will be used to select the winner. Each comment will be numbered by Blogger, and I will use those numbers for the drawing. So if you combine entries into one post all your entries will not be counted. There will be no do-overs!

I will verify that the winning entry has met the requirements above, so if your comment for a FB status update is the winning comment then I might ask to see that link, etc. If I cannot verify your entry, then all your entries will be removed from the list and the drawing will be repeated.

This giveaway ends at 11:59 pm (CT) on Thursday, June 3rd.

The winner's name will be posted on able2able on Friday, June 4th and I will also email you. The lucky winner will have until 11:59 pm (CT) Monday, June 7th to contact me.

I was given a set of Safe Sizer plates to review prior to this giveaway. My review is based on our experiences as a family, and was not influenced by the products I received.

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