In Australia, one child a month is seriously injured after swallowing or inserting a button battery, with some of them sustaining lifelong injuries.

Parents and carers need to be aware of the big danger these little batteries pose so they can take steps to keep children safe.

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Button batteries are deadly. This is the damage it causes in just 4 hours. ・ Gorgeous little Brittney, a 3-year-old girl from Brisbane, sadly passed this week from swallowing a button battery. ・ The issue is that often we don't realise they have swallowed the battery, and once we do, it's too late. ・ It took 9 days for an x-ray to reveal that Brittney had swallowed one. The damage to her internal organs had already been done. ・ Button batteries are in so many products—toys, remotes, calculators, cameras, musical cards, watches and hearing aids. I urge you to look around your house, if it has a button battery in it make sure it's screwed shut and if it isn't, throw it out. ・ Please, please tag everyone you know with Christmas around the corner this is a life-saving reminder to all 👇

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Button batteries are flat, round batteries with diameters up to 32 mm and heights ranging from 1–11 mm. They are found in a surprising number of common household items such as toys, birthday cards, remote controls, watches, digital kitchen scales, thermometers and hearing aids.

The ACCC have released a video on how to keep children safe from button batteries. See below.

When a button battery is swallowed, it can get stuck, and the chemical reaction can burn small children from the inside. Within a matter of hours, severe damage can be done. Some small children die.

How to protect children from the danger of button batteries

  • Check products for button batteries before you buy
  • Secure button batteries
  • Store them out of the reach of children
  • Safely dispose of them immediately
  • If you suspect a child has swallowed or inserted a button battery, call the Poisons Information Centre immediately on 13 11 26 for 24/7 fast, expert advice.

Find out more about the campaign and ways to secure, store and dispose of button batteries safely.