Toddler Accidentally Swallowed Live Sand I was Seeding with MB7

[Newtybar]

I left the play gate open and my toddler got into the restroom where i had my bucket that I had some new live sand and ceramic block that I was seeding with my existing saltwater and microbacter 7....by the time i realized and ran in there he had his wet hand in his mouth and I was able to pull out a few grains of sand...

Should I be signifcantly concerned?

...Disclaimer I understand this is not a medical board and all advice is not medical guidance...but just want some thoughts as to the level of concern I should have.

 

[rock_lobster]

doubtful but make sure he doesnt have a fever or anything or rampant diarrhea.. Its highly unlikely that there are any virulent strains in there.

 

[Mike_J]

There are probably worse things that have gone into your toddler's mouth. I would not be too concerned. Just monitor as stated ^.

 

[Lionfish Lair]

I honestly wouldn't even think twice about it. I worked a pediatric triage after hours hotline and I can't even begin to tell you some of the "interesting" things a toddler can get into.

 

[Newtybar]

Great, thanks everyone!

 

[jason2459]

Well, when you say live sand, where did you get that live sand? Yes, there can be highly toxic organisms at a microscopic level. Keep an eye out for fever, rashes, vomiting, diarrhea, etc.

No, I'm not a medical doctor and unfortunately many medical doctors don't know what to do with marine born pathogens either.

 

[JaimeAdams]

Good roughage! I wonder if it works the same as a high fiber diet.
I think that you should be fine although watching out for symptoms is obviously smart.

 

[Elementalj]

Well, I'm sure is not like eating the dirt in the back yard AT ALL. Amoebic dysentery all of a sudden is in the forefront of my mind.

 

[Ineedhelp]

How is the little one doing?

 

[ahiggins]

Im so sorry but Im laughing my butt off in my office this morning!
How would you even explain that to a doctor?!

 

[Eric19]

Hello - I'm am a pediatric hospitalist (a physician who specializes in the care of hospitalized children). I'm generally pretty bad at managing my reef tank, so I don't post much, but this is sort of more in my area. It's obviously not the best idea to dispense medical advice in this setting and the caveat here is that I don't know anything more than what you've stated in your post so that's all I have to go on and it really isn't enough information to make any sort of strong recommendation. So what I'm providing here is very general medical advice and if you are seriously concerned you should call your doctor. If your son is exhibiting any concerning symptoms you should also call your doctor rather than reading posts on this message board. But I will say that GI tracts are generally okay with bacteria. You probably wouldn't worry much if your son drank a bit of tank water (not sure how that would actually happen but...) and these are the same bacteria as in your microbacter 7. I scanned the website and couldn't find the specific bacteria in the product, but they've got the word non-pathogenic which reassures me. I highly doubt that they are using bacteria in there that are known to cause enteric infections. Kids get into things all the time and this really isn't any different. If he begins to have diarrhea, fevers, bloody stools, or abdominal pain I would call your doctor.

 

[Cory]

What a healthy dose of calcium and silica lol

I agree with everyone else

 

[Untamedrose]

Lol kids

 

[Christiangates]

Just think about all the kids at the beach with mouthfuls of sand. I grew up at a beach and always had sand in my mouth. I turned out alright.

 

[Drakonis]

I had a water bottle of tank water in the car to have the LFS test. wife and kids in car 3 year old says he is thirsty so we stop at the gas station and wife goes in. we always give him juice type drinks dilluted 50 50 with water and she came out with water and juice etc. she mixed his cup and on we went. short while later my son says its salty, at this point it didnt register as i thought she used the water she bought. the wife tasted the original juice and rold him its not salty and a few minutes later he says its salty again. finally the wife tasted his cup and promptly rolled her window down and spit it out and asked me what i used his cup for. i proceeded to say i didnt do anything to his cup (you know the usual objects used for fish tank bit) then the light came on and i said what water did you use, of course you know which bottle she held up and i couldnt help but laugh and said what hes not good enough for the water you just bought and told her what was in the bottle she used. needless to say she doesnt use bottles of water anymore unless she knows its not tank water lol.

 

[jason2459]

Hello - I'm am a pediatric hospitalist (a physician who specializes in the care of hospitalized children). I'm generally pretty bad at managing my reef tank, so I don't post much, but this is sort of more in my area. It's obviously not the best idea to dispense medical advice in this setting and the caveat here is that I don't know anything more than what you've stated in your post so that's all I have to go on and it really isn't enough information to make any sort of strong recommendation. So what I'm providing here is very general medical advice and if you are seriously concerned you should call your doctor. If your son is exhibiting any concerning symptoms you should also call your doctor rather than reading posts on this message board. But I will say that GI tracts are generally okay with bacteria. You probably wouldn't worry much if your son drank a bit of tank water (not sure how that would actually happen but...) and these are the same bacteria as in your microbacter 7. I scanned the website and couldn't find the specific bacteria in the product, but they've got the word non-pathogenic which reassures me. I highly doubt that they are using bacteria in there that are known to cause enteric infections. Kids get into things all the time and this really isn't any different. If he begins to have diarrhea, fevers, bloody stools, or abdominal pain I would call your doctor.

MB7 would be the least of my worries.

I do not think the OP has answered what "live sand" means here.

There's some extremely serious health risks with certain marine pathogens that at worse includes death. Marine Vibro and Palytoxin (other organisms like dinoflagelets can create this not just palythoas) are just a couple to mention.

Not to be an extremist here but having children myself I'm a very concerned parent.

 

[Jizu Puentes]

They say farm kids have healthier immune systems than city kids. Maybe they need to throw kids of reefers into the mix too haha.
Im sure your kid didnt ingest that much and will be completely fine.

 

[SciGuy2]

This too shall pass.

 

[brandon429]

I vote no increased risk above normal nondirect exposure due to already being inoculated with the same bacteria. as soon as a reef is in our home, the sprays aerosols and spills and cross contaminations mix bac and salts and chems everywhere. agreed on species-specific pathogen risks and the worst ones are associated with sinked up aged aquariums, this particular sampling wouldn't phase me much.

 

[jason2459]

I would not assume some of the worse pathogens are only associated to old established tanks.

Those pathogens came from somewhere and very likely from when adding corals, live rock, live sand, digestive systems of fish, snails, etc

So, pretty much any system.