When curiosity turns to poison

What you need to know:

  • Reducing environment risks that also include hazardous chemicals and wastes could prevent 1 in 4 child deaths.
  • Here’s a story of Johari Jotham, who has already undergone 39 surgeries to repair her throat that was corroded when she drank caustic soda at home.

The old adage, “curiosity killed the cat” has often been said to warn people not to ask too many questions on issues that don’t concern them, however, if applied in growing children who are eager to explore the world, the saying could be life-saving.

As they go about discovering the world, children use all their senses, including taste. This, according to medical scientists, poses danger in case they bump into and inadvertently consume poisonous substances found in homes and surroundings.

The rate of death for children who ingest poisonous substances is highest for those under 1 year of age, with another slight peak at around 15 years, says the United Nations International Children’s Emergency Fund (UNICEF).

At 14, Johari Jotham, a school girl in Kigoma Region, Tanzania, had explored much of the world but it’s her thirst for drinking water that put her life in danger.

She has until now undergone 39 surgeries at local hospitals in an attempt to repair her throat which was corroded as she drunk Caustic Soda at home by mistake.

Johari’s story of agony

It was at around 2:30 pm on Thursday, March 3rd 2014 when she had just arrived from school, she recalls, as she speaks to Your Health at Bugando Medical Centre (BMC) where she had gone—in the company of her aunt—for a clinic follow up. “I was so hungry and thirsty that day. I needed drinking water,’’ says Johari who was a form two student at Rubuga Secondary school by then.

Now aged 18, she narrates how she went to her aunt’s place to quench her thirst; not knowing what would befall her.

Her aunt, Safi Ali, a petty trader who used to make washing soap in Kigoma, usually kept buckets of water in a store room where she also kept a substance known as caustic soda in similar buckets.

“So, I immediately grabbed a jug that was around, drew whatever was in the bucket and drunk. I thought it was water. Few minutes later, I felt something hot in my mouth. I thought I had drunk hot water,’’ says Johari.

“The feeling in my mouth was so weird. My stomach was already aching. I poured the remaining water after the first sip. But the liquid I poured touched my cloth and the cloth melted away,’’ she says.

“I started yelling for help,’’ Johari tells Your Health.

At another corner of the house, Johari’s aunt, Safi Ally, was busy winnowing millet-not knowing there could be an emergency in the house. But, as time went, the emergency was apparent.

“As I shouted more and more, my aunt noticed that I was in pain. At first I heard her asking me if I had been involved in an accident at school. But, that was far from the reality.” “Later, she looked around and that’s when she noticed I had drunk a dangerous liquid that she had been using for making soap. I was already in pain, but I believed everything would be fine,” says Johari.

Johari’s aunt, Safi Ally tells Your Health that she saw Johari’s mouth bleeding. “It was a terrible experience. She was crying excessively,” says Safi Ally.

“The only option I had, was to rush her to the nearby health centre. I took her to Kigoma Baptist Hospital for first aid and other services.”

What’s up with caustic soda?

Studies show that caustic substances, which are widely used for household cleaning products, are frequently swallowed by children.

“Most ingestions are due to parent’s lack of knowledge of the hazards of corrosive substances kept in the house, crowded living conditions in slums and the availability of chemicals in and around the houses,’’ says a World Health Organisation’s report titled: Oesophageal corrosive injuries in children: a forgotten social and health challenge in developing countries.

“Combined with the natural curiosity of children. The widespread lack of any preventive measures is the strongest risk factor for these injuries,’’ the WHO report says further.

Dr William Mahalu, a medic at Bugando Medical Centre (BMC) says caustic soda is harmful and can lead to death.

He says, parents and guardians have the power to control their children but also, it’s high time they avoided keeping dangerous chemicals in bottles or buckets used for storing edible things.

He believes, corrosive injuries caused by these agents is worldwide paediatric emergency problem and many children suffer from corrosive oesophageal (throat/gullet) burns. Such as, was the case with Johari.

Dr Mahalu, who has been attending Johari, says she would only be fine if her throat is replaced. He says normal surgeries have been conducted with very little improvements.

Poor storage of chemicals

A chemical expert in Mwanza City, Mr Asimwe Muttashobya, says most people have little knowledge of the consequences of using chemicals, such as caustic soda, with precautions.

“It’s important that the government now ensures that people who use chemicals for domestic or business, seek relevant licenses and must be made aware of the precautions to take. This may reduce the risks to the users,” suggests Muttashobya.

Revealing the bad news

Safi Ally says it took her more than four hours to contemplate how she would reveal the news to Johari’s mother, Zuwena, a petty trader in Kigoma.

But, she says, by the time the mother arrived, Johari’s condition was already deteriorating. Doctors were doing all they could to save her life.

“My daughter Johari was in a comma, bleeding from the mouth and I could see blood stains on the chest,” says Zuwena, recalling the incident, four years ago since her journey to heal her daughter began.

“We have until now taken her to many hospitals in Kigoma and beyond. She has undergone a series of surgeries to repair her throat. But there has been no hope of complete recovery,’’ she tells Your Health during an interview last week.

“Her [Johari’s] challenge now is that she can’t feed normally. Her throat was badly damaged by the caustic soda. We were referred to Bugando Medical Centre where she is now receiving treatment. She now feeds on soft things like porridge. ”

“I am a single mother. It has been a tough 4-year journey. I have sold everything to take care of my daughter at Bungando where she was admitted for about three years. Doctors have told me Johari needs an artificial throat to help her feed normally. But I was told it’s too expensive and can only be obtained from abroad. I am asking for help from any concerned Tanzanian,’’ says Zuwena, as she sheds tears.