Take special poison precautions
Speaking of those decorations ... poinsettias are not the fatal poison that they were once believed to be, but we still need to keep small children and animals away from seasonal plants such as mistletoe and holly berries, yew plants and those poinsettias.
The Nebraska Regional Poison Center says the most common calls during the holidays concern cigarettes, batteries, food poisoning, holiday plants, bubble lights, angel hair, snow sprays, fireplace color crystals and ingestion of guests' medications by young children.
The center offers some tips for keeping your holidays happy:
* Clean up immediately after holiday parties to keep alcohol, cigarettes and cigarette butts out of reach of small children.
* Be careful with icicles or tinsel, which are choking hazards, and angel hair is finely spun glass which can cause cuts or irritation when handled or swallowed.
* Remind relatives to never leave medications on a nightstand; make sure they are out of reach.
* Button or disc batteries are choking hazards and cause serious injury or death if not removed; they come in games, watches, remotes and musical greeting cards.
Of course prevention is the best treatment for poisonings.
Call 1-800-222-1222 or visit http://www.nebraskapoison.com/ for more information.