As a parent or caregiver, keeping your kiddos safe is a top priority. We’ve all heard stories of toddlers getting into the medicine cabinets to ingest something they shouldn’t, prompting the parents to rush them to the hospital to get their stomachs pumped.
A parents’ nightmare.
As moms and dads, we need to do our part to keep dangerous products safely stowed away. But manufacturers of consumer products can also do their part.
Child-resistant packaging is the way to do this. This type of packaging is designed to be difficult for children to open or access while still allowing easy access for adults.
In this article, we will explore ten products that should be distributed with child-resistant packaging to help prevent accidental ingestion and promote the safety of children.
What is Child Resistant Packaging?
Child-resistant packaging is packaging designed to be difficult for children to open, but still easy for adults to use. They’re typically used for products that could be dangerous if kids accidentally get into them, like cleaning products, medications, certain herbal remedies, and household chemicals.
Child-resistant packaging often has special closures or mechanisms that require specific actions to open, keeping little hands from figuring it out. For example, some packages have press-to-close zipper seals, push-and-twist caps, snap-lock lids, or squeeze-and-turn mechanisms that need a certain level of strength and dexterity to open.
Products That Require Child Resistant Packaging
Without further ado, let’s get into the products that require child resistant packaging.
- Medications (such as prescription and over-the-counter pills)
Antibiotics, aspirin, cough syrup, laxatives, you name it. Your little tike should not be able to get access to medicines, period.
A special word about pills: there’s nothing more attractive than the little orange baby aspirin pills to a tiny tot looking to get into mischief. Before you know it, they could grab a handful and stuff them into their mouth thinking it’s candy.
- Cleaning products (such as bleach and other household cleaners)
Most families keep their cleaning products under the sink. Don’t do this. In addition, and for those families that insist on storing them under the sink, manufacturers should be very careful to package household cleaners like bleach, ammonia, dishwashing detergent, window cleaner and more in child resistant packaging.
- Laundry pods
Laundry pods, or ‘Tide Pods’ as they are known in popular culture, has become a loaded term.
A few years ago, the word ‘Tide Pods’ went viral because of the Tide Pod eating challenge. What was the Ted Pod challenge? Teens wanting to make a splash on social media shared videos of themselves eating laundry pods, and getting sick.
This was a very dangerous act designed to go viral on Instagram and TikTok.
Needless to say, teenagers should know better. But we need to keep laundry pods out of the way of children who don’t know any better. The Centers of Disease Control said between 2012 and 2013, 7,000 children ingested Tide Pods, and recorded six deaths by 2017
- E-cigarettes and vaping products
E-cigarettes and vapes have seen explosive growth in recent years, with vape shops springing up like mushrooms in cities across the country. And they’re also very dangerous,
The CDC said that “…children and adults have been poisoned by swallowing, breathing, or absorbing e-cigarette liquid through their skin or eyes…[and] approximately 50% of calls to poison control centers for e-cigarettes are for kids 5 years of age or younger.”
- Pesticides and insecticides
The ‘cide’ in pesticides and insecticides should be a dead giveaway (pun intended). In fact, the EPA created a certification for child-resistant packaging specifically for pesticides: the 40 CFR 157.32
- Cannabis edibles and THC products
With 37 states, including Puerto Rico, U.S. Virgin Islands and Guam legalizing cannabis, there’s been a sharp rise in commercially packaged cannabis and THC products, including edibles.
The gummy edibles provide an especially attractive target for kids who won’t hesitate to eat something that looks like their favorite candy.
But cannabis products in all forms can be dangerous to children, especially in larger quantities, and need to be packaged appropriately.
- Personal care products (such as hair dyes and nail polishes)
Shampoos, body soap, make-up, and especially hair dyes and nail polishes, are poisonous chemicals that if ingested can send children to the hospital.
Even shampoo products made for children should require packaging so only adults can administer the required hair cleaning procedure.
- Solvents and chemicals (such as paint thinners and gasoline)
Paint thinners, such as turpentine, gasoline, and other solvents are deadly chemicals for children as well as adults. Not only do they require child resistant packaging, but they need to be stowed away in high, out of reach storage containers in places like garages or sheds.
- Hand sanitizers containing alcohol
Like soaps and hair care products, hand sanitizers with alcohol should also be packaged to resist little hands due to its alcohol content.
- Vitamins and supplements (such as iron supplements and gummy vitamins)
Just as with medicines, vitamins and supplements require child resistant packaging, even for children’s supplements like melatonin products designed for children’s sleep.
Certifications That Child Resistant Packaging Must Meet
Child-resistant packaging must meet specific certifications to ensure that they provide an adequate level of protection to children. The most common certifications are:
Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) Title 16, Part 1700: This is the U.S. federal regulation that outlines the requirements for child-resistant packaging for household substances that may be hazardous to children.
ASTM D3475: This is a standard developed by the American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM) that specifies the requirements for child-resistant packaging for various products, including pharmaceuticals, pesticides, and household chemicals.
Poison Prevention Packaging Act (PPPA): This is a U.S. federal law that requires certain hazardous household products to be packaged in child-resistant packaging.
Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) Guidelines: The CPSC provides guidelines for child-resistant packaging that are used by manufacturers to design and test their packaging.
International Organization for Standardization (ISO) 8317: This is an international standard for child-resistant packaging that specifies the design and testing requirements for packaging used for various products.
It’s important to note that different products may have different requirements for child-resistant packaging, depending on their potential risks and hazards to children.
Manufacturers should consult with regulatory authorities and seek guidance from packaging experts to ensure that their products are packaged with appropriate child-resistant packaging that meets the relevant certification requirements.
Conclusion
Child-resistant packaging is an essential component in preventing unintentional harm to children caused by exposure to hazardous substances. The use of flexible packaging has become increasingly popular due to its convenience and versatility in design.
However, it is crucial to ensure that flexible packaging also meets the required CRP standards to keep our progeny safe.
You should keep up with the ever-changing CRP regulations and guidelines to ensure your products meet the necessary safety requirements. By utilizing innovative designs and testing methods, flexible packaging can provide a safe and secure way to protect children from harm while maintaining the convenience and practicality of the
ePac offers a range of child-resistant packaging options that are certified and tested to meet federal test requirements. We offer stand-up and lay-flat pouches with high-barrier films that keep odors from exiting the bag and prevent moisture from entering to maintain product freshness.
Additionally, we offer child-resistant press-to-close zippers for safe and convenient pouch resealability.
By utilizing child-resistant features, ePac ensures the safe and secure packaging of products while reducing the risk of children accessing harmful substances.
