How to Survive Choking

it's been a hectic week but you finally have a night to yourself you settle in front of your tv with your favorite meal you swallowed the first bite but something's wrong your food is stuck in your throat and it's not budging you try to cough but nothing happens you try crying out but no sound escapes your mouth you're choking if you don't act fast this situation could kill you this is how to survive choking choking occurs when an object gets lodged in your throat if it completely blocks your throat you can't get oxygen in your lungs when you breathe in oxygen your lungs move that oxygen to the blood cells that make it around the rest of your body you're in danger of asphyxiating or not getting enough oxygen to keep you from passing out and if you lose consciousness while you're asphyxiating your brain might not get enough oxygen to function it's called cerebral hypoxia you can have severe brain injury or death choking is the fourth cause of unintentional death it results in about 5 000 deaths each year as of 2018 the odds of dying from choking were one in two thousand seven hundred so it's crucial to know what to do if you or someone else is choking why can your fists help you breathe again how can a chair save your life and how long can you survive without oxygen choking can be terrifying it's not as if you can reach down your throat and pull out the blockage so what can you do step one read the room choking occurs in every age group so how can you tell if it's happening to someone else look for their two hands to be clasped around their throat and if you're choking try coughing while holding your throat this signals to other people that you're in trouble other signs are wheezing gagging or not being able to speak laugh or cough look for a very red face or blue lips these are easy signs to see in adults but you'll need to watch children carefully they might not know how to signal that they are choking watching for color change in the face or the lips could be the early sign you need to save their life step 2 give yourself the chair but what if you're alone and you're choking this is a scary situation but there are three things that you can do to clear the blockage first try to cough up the blockage but if you can't get rid of it that way make a fist place the thumb side of your fist between your belly button and your rib cage place your other hand on top of your fist then push as hard as you can on your hand this will push the bottom of your diaphragm forcing air up through your throat hopefully this will clear the blockage if that doesn't work keep your hands in the same position and find a large sturdy chair lean quickly over the back of the chair if there is no chair use a countertop this should give your diaphragm a stronger push and hopefully dislodge the blockage step 3 rapid response if you are the one choking or you see someone else choking then you will need to act very fast your brain can function with the oxygen that's in your lungs when you begin choking but this only lasts for four to six minutes after that your brain will start to be damaged by cerebral hypoxia after 10 minutes without oxygen there will be irreversible brain damage spotting or giving the signs that you are choking as early as possible may very well be the key to saving your life step 4 use these methods here's how you can help another person who's choking first there's the 5 and 5 method stand beside and just behind the person who's choking put one hand between their shoulder blades and your other hand on their chest to brace them bend over at the waist so they're parallel to the ground then hit them on the back with the heel of your palm five times then stand behind them and wrap your arms around their waist make a fist and place it between their belly button and rib cage put your other hand on top of your fist then push your fist inward and upward do it hard and fast this is the heimlich maneuver the five and five method and the heimlich maneuver may dislodge the blockage and keep these points in mind depending on the person you are trying to save if the victim is obese or pregnant don't put your fist between their belly button and their rib cage instead place your fist at the base of their breastbone if a child is choking the 5-5 method is best sit down and place the child over your forearm so they're facing the floor firmly but gently give them five hits on the back turn the child around and place two fingers in the middle of their breastbone give them five compressions step 5 remove risks it's best not to choke at all so clean up your home to protect young children put away things like marbles rocks coins pen caps and safety pins sitting at the table to eat and cutting food into small manageable pieces can also reduce the risk of choking everyone needs to chew their food well too don't eat quickly and don't eat facing down avoid choking and make sure your brain has enough oxygen to keep you alive but what if choking wasn't cutting off your oxygen supply what if it was something more sinister like being buried alive there's no need to hold your breath for the answer we have that video right here on another how to survive you

Channel: How to Survive

Views: 253,639

Keywords: survive, how to survive, survival, what if, science, can you survive, could you survive, Top 10 survival, survival guide, survival tips, survival documentary, choking, child choking, choking child, cpr, first aid choking, choking first aid, infant choking, adult choking, choking victim, baby choking, heimlich maneuver, conscious infant choking, what to do when someone is choking, choke, infant, emergency, health, abdominal thrusts, survival skills, survival tactics, life hacks

Id: BhzjcmK0ik8

Length: 5min 41sec (341 seconds)

Published: Tue Feb 23 2021