Toddler dies from choking on a hot dog

BARGERSVILLE, Ind. (WISH) - A three-year-old Bargersville, Ind. girl died after choking to death on a hot dog Monday. 

Police said the woman and her 17-year-old-daughter were watching several children when Young Anna Hendley began choking. The sitter tried to get the hot dog out of Hendley’s mouth, but couldn’t.

According to the American Academy of Pediatrics, hot dogs are the food most linked with choking in children because of their small sized wind pipes.

A child Anna’s age has a windpipe about the size of a drinking straw.

A hot dog is round, airway sized, and compressible, which allows it to wedge tightly in the small air passageway.

Pediatricians are calling for a choke proof hot dog that’s redesigned so their size, shape and texture won’t lodge in a child’s throat.

Other high-risk foods include hard candy, peanuts/nuts, seeds, whole grapes, raw carrots, apples, popcorn, chunks of peanut butter, marshmallows, chewing gum, and sausages.

Similar to latex balloons, peanut butter can conform to the airway and form a seal.

Children three to four years old have molars but are still learning to chew effectively. More than 10,000 children under 14 will go to the ER this year from choking on food.

One child dies in the US every five days from choking on food.