How to tell if plants and spiders are poisonous

Medical Toxicologist Cyrus Rangan, MD, Poison Control, shares advice for parents on what to do if your child has been in contact with a potentially poisonous plan or spider
How To Tell If A Plan or Spider Is Poisonous
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How to tell if plants and spiders are poisonous

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When children are outdoors, whether it’d be in a park or at the school yard, or even in our own backyards, they can come into contact with a number of different substances in the form of berries, leaves, stems, seeds, even venomous creatures that may cause poisoning. In general, it can be very, very difficult to determine just by looking at one of these substances as to whether or not it’s poisonous. And we always inform parents to make sure, “Don’t try to look up information on your own to try to determine whether or not the substance may have been poisonous.” We advise that you go ahead and take a photograph of that substance, go ahead and bring that into your medical provider and we can help determine whether or not that substance was indeed poisonous. In addition, even if we don’t know whether or not it was poisonous, the most important thing is to simply call us so we can walk you through the kinds of signs and symptoms to look for in order to determine whether or not the child will need medical care.

Medical Toxicologist Cyrus Rangan, MD, Poison Control, shares advice for parents on what to do if your child has been in contact with a potentially poisonous plan or spider

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Cyrus Rangan, MD

Medical Toxicologist, Poison Control

Cyrus Rangan, MD, is a pediatrician and medical toxicologist. Cyrus serves as the Assistant Medical Director with the California Poison Control System and medical toxicology consultant for Children’s Hospital Los Angeles. Over 70% of the calls received at the center are able to stay at home and avoid a visit to the hospital, based on the over-the-phone support of the center. Cyrus is also the father of two boys, age seven and four, with whom he enjoys practicing Kung Fu. 

Poisons, Poisons, Poison, Poison
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Transcription: 
When children are outdoors, whether it’d be in a park or at the school yard, or even in our own backyards, they can come into contact with a number of different substances in the form of berries, leaves, stems, seeds, even venomous creatures that may cause poisoning. In general, it can be very, very difficult to determine just by looking at one of these substances as to whether or not it’s poisonous. And we always inform parents to make sure, “Don’t try to look up information on your own to try to determine whether or not the substance may have been poisonous.” We advise that you go ahead and take a photograph of that substance, go ahead and bring that into your medical provider and we can help determine whether or not that substance was indeed poisonous. In addition, even if we don’t know whether or not it was poisonous, the most important thing is to simply call us so we can walk you through the kinds of signs and symptoms to look for in order to determine whether or not the child will need medical care.