Grieving Mom Advocates for Safer Button Batteries After Daughter's Death From Swallowing Tiny Piece

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By Lilian Scott , Parent Herald Dec 09, 09:25 pm

Texas mom Trista Hamsmith, 39, has been advocating for safer button batteries and warning parents to be aware of this risk when buying toys for their kids this Christmas season. For the second year, the grieving mother will be spending Christmas without the laughter and embrace of her daughter, who died at 17-months-old after she accidentally swallowed a tiny button battery.

In an interview with Today, Hamsmith said that button batteries ingestion is "so much more common than people realize." The mother said that her daughter's story has to be told because this incident is largely preventable.

Losing Reese

In October 2020, Reese, Hamsmiths' daughter, manifested symptoms like lethargy, wheezing, and congestion, so they saw her pediatrician, who believed she suffered from croup, an infection in her upper airway. Aside from wheezing and congestion, other symptoms of battery ingestion also include vomiting, low-grade fever, persistent drooling, gagging, rashes due to nickel allergy, and blood in the stool.

While Reese received her medications, the mother later noticed a missing button battery from one of their remote controls and realized that her toddler might have swallowed it. A button battery, which has an electric current, could easily be lodged between the esophagus and burn the tissues. An X-ray confirmed Hamsmith's fears, and Reese was immediately taken into surgery.

Unfortunately, Reese experienced more health issues as the doctors discovered that the battery burned a hole in her trachea and esophagus, allowing air, food, and liquids to go inside the body "where it didn't need to be." The baby's condition deteriorated following a couple more surgeries to repair her fistula. She never recovered and died in December 2020.

Safety Legislation to Protect Other Families

In the U.K., a two-year-old girl also lost her life in June 2021 after swallowing button batteries. Like Reese, Harper-Lee Fanthorpe had a button battery burning through her esophagus and into a major heart artery. During the surgery, Harper-Lee suffered cardiac arrhythmia and died on the table.

Meanwhile, since losing Reese, Hamsmith founded a non-profit, Reese's Purpose, to raise awareness of the dangers of button batteries. The mother has also been advocating for safety legislation for its manufacture and use.

A Reese's Law is also under deliberation at the House and Senate floors (H.R. 5313 and S.3278). If approved, the Law will require manufacturers to have more secure battery compartments and clear warning labels about ingestion in many consumer products. Hamsmith is also working harder to educate parents and medical professions about the signs of accidental button battery ingestion. Records show that 3,500 people a year experience this harrowing accident, which Hamsmith believes has been underreported.

During her testimony at the Senate, Hamsmith said that she would not be the last parent to lose a child in this kind of accident unless the laws are changed. Aside from addressing the issues at the manufacturer level, Hamsmith is also calling for better laws for online retailers who sell toys that do not ascribe to the U.S. regulations.

Meanwhile, parents also need to be aware that there is a National Button Battery Ingestion Hotline at (800) 498-8666 in case of emergencies.