‘New fear unlocked’: Paramedic’s urgent mandarin warning to parents

They’re sweet tasty treats, currently in season and easy for little fingers to manage, but there are three factors that make mandarins a “high risk choking food”.

Easy to peel, a perfect size and a sweet tangy taste that we look forward to each year – what is not to love about mandarins?

According to former paramedic, Nikki Jurcutz the trusty mandarin is actually a risk to children of all ages due to a couple of very serious factors that make them a choking hazard.

Nikki Jurcutz, who worked as a paramedic for eight years with Ambulance Victoria, runs an Australian children’s safety page called Tiny Hearts Education, and is letting parents know the safest way to feed your children mandarins.

Watch former paramedic Nikki Jurcutz explain why mandarins pose a safety risk below …

Why are mandarins a high-risk for choking?

Nikki says there are three things that parents need to know make mandarins a hazard: The pith, membrane and seeds.

“The pith is chewy, spongy and can be difficult to chew,” she explained.

“The membrane is a choking hazard because it’s hard and difficult to chew and the seeds are also a choking hazard.”

You don’t need to discard mandarins altogether

“The thing that makes mandarins a choking risk is the fact that it’s hard to chew – even for adults sometimes,” Nikki explains.

“When you feel confident in your child’s chewing and swallowing abilities you can start to offer small pieces with the membranes still on.

“It also helps when their teeth come in, as this will help them to be able to break the membrane down into smaller pieces.”

By cutting a mandarin sideways, rather than peeling them, parents can access segments of the mandarin that are easier and safer for children to digest.

“I find this method much more time efficient than trying to pick off the membranes by hand,” Nikki says.

Using a knife to “cut a triangle between the membranes” Nikki was able to access the yummy fruit while the membrane and pith was “left behind”.

“My six-year-old still has a difficult time chewing mandarins …”

The video inspired others to share their own horror stories of fruit choking.

“Everleigh chocked (sic) on in the pram and scared the life out of me!” shared one parent. “Literally flipped her around and was about to do a back blow when she spat it out! 😩😩”

“I’m in my 30s and have choked on the membrane several times both as a child and as an adult,” another added.

While another parent shared that their “six-year-old still has a difficult time chewing mandarins” and “has choked on them a couple of times” so I’ve had to resort to cutting them up in small pieces and removing a lot of the membrane.”

Yet another added: “I also have a 10-year-old who has eaten them since he was a toddler and zero chewing/swallowing issues. Definitely different for every child. I tend to steer away from them and just buy oranges.”

In another horror story, one parent divulged: “Our daughter used to eat these all the time then one day she had one and it was very firm she must have assumed the texture and yep she choked on it. Was a silent choke she went red with no breathing and hubby had to back blow to get it out.”