5 things to do if your child swallows a foreign object

Recently, a doctor in New Zealand prescribed four cans of Coke instead of medicine to a woman who had a chicken bone in her throat, and the woman reportedly resolved the problem the day after drinking Coke. What role did Coke play in solving the problem?

How was this possible?

The carbon dioxide gas in the cola can be separated and inserted into the gap between the food stuck in the esophagus and shaken between them to help unload the food, but in the case of a large one-piece foreign body such as a chicken bone, this cannot be solved by such a principle, so it is presumed that this is a solution that happened to be helpful.

Are there any similar experimental studies?

There is a study that showed that cola dissolved the gastric stones in the stomach and helped expel them. 'Gastric stones' refer to food or foreign objects that stay in the stomach for a long time and clump together and become hard like stones. Because bezoarites press on the stomach lining, they can cause ulcers or even perforations, so they must be treated. In the past, it was either surgically removed or split by endoscope. This study was the first to observe the phenomenon of cola softening foreign objects to aid endoscopic treatment, or even the phenomenon of foreign substances melting and moving down.

In addition, it has been reported in the academic community that the removal of foreign bodies is more effective when cola is injected into the nasal tube, also known as a nasal tube or L-tube, or when it is injected directly into the problem area with an endoscope

However, for this to be successful, the foreign substance must stay with the cola for a long time. In the actual esophagus, cola passes from the mouth to the stomach in 1.5 seconds, so the contact time is too short to be of much help.

Can I get off by eating?

Therefore, when food gets stuck in the esophagus, the quality of the food is very important. If the food is soft and not shapely, in most cases it will pass through the esophagus and into the gastrointestinal tract over time.

However, if a sharp object is jammed, it can only be removed with an endoscope, and even if it is removed with an endoscope, complications such as perforation may appear. It's really dangerous to eat if you're caught in a sharp object. This is because the foreign body pushes the thorn further into the mucous membrane rather than going down , making it difficult to remove it, and if food remains in the stomach, it becomes difficult to perform an endoscopy.

If the pain gets worse or radiates to your surroundings, it could be serious and you should see a doctor right away.