Camping is adventure, and adventure carries risk. Out in the woods, in an improvised kitchen, or inside a closed tent, poisoning can begin quietly: a Pathfinder who is too still, a queasiness no one pays attention to, a headache that is "just the sun." Recognizing it early is half the battle to resolving it well.
This guide is for you, Pathfinder aged 10 to 15, and also for Counselors, Directors, and parents. The idea is not to turn you into a doctor. It is to give you clarity for the first few minutes: what to watch for, what to do, who to call, and above all, what to never do, because in a panic many people do the wrong thing with good intentions.
Save these two numbers now: Poison Helpline 0800-722-6001 (free guidance from poison specialists, 24 hours) and your local emergency number (in Brazil, SAMU 192) (medical emergency). Reading this text once, calmly, is worth more than memorizing it in a rush when your heart is already racing.
What poisoning really is
Poisoning is when a toxic substance enters the body and disrupts how it works. It is not just the "movie poison." In real life, most cases come from things that are common and fine when used the right way: medicines, cleaning products, plants, food, and even fumes from a camp stove.
The substance can enter through different paths, and that changes how you help. By swallowing (a plant, a pill, a product). By breathing (smoke, gas, carbon monoxide). Through the skin or eyes (a chemical that splashes). And by sting or bite, which is the subject of another article. Here the focus is ingestion and inhalation, the most frequent types in day-to-day club life.
How serious it is depends on three things: what it was, how much, and how long ago. A sip of bleach in a moment of carelessness is different from half a glass. That is why the information you gather in the first few minutes (what, how much, when) is worth gold to whoever guides you on the phone. You do not need to guess the treatment. You need to observe well and call the right help.
The most common types at camp and at home
Toxic plants. Curiosity runs high, and not every pretty leaf is edible. Species common in gardens and on trails, such as dumb cane, oleander, and castor bean, can cause pain, vomiting, and a burning mouth. The golden rule in nature is simple: do not eat, do not suck on, and do not chew anything you do not know with 100% certainty. A wild fruit that "looks like" a familiar one does not count.
Cleaning products. Bleach, disinfectant, lye, alcohol. The biggest danger is the classic mistake of storing a product in a soda bottle or cup. Someone drinks it thinking it is water. These products are usually corrosive: they burn on the inside. Here, forcing vomiting makes everything worse, because the corrosive liquid burns again on the way back up.
Medicines. Medicine is not candy. Taking the wrong dose, or someone else's medicine, or several together, causes poisoning. At the club, take extra care with the first aid kit and with anyone who takes ongoing medication. Keep everything locked up and away from the younger ones.
Spoiled food. In the heat of camp, mayonnaise, meat, and dairy spoil fast. Food poisoning causes cramps, vomiting, diarrhea, and fever hours after the meal. It usually passes, but it causes dehydration, and children dehydrate quickly.
Carbon monoxide. The most treacherous. It is a colorless, odorless gas produced by any flame in an enclosed space: a camp stove, a gas lantern, a grill, or burning charcoal inside the tent. No one feels the gas; the person just gets a headache, dizziness, and drowsiness, falls asleep, and does not wake up. That is why the rule is absolute: no open flame inside a tent or enclosed place, ever.
Warning signs: when to raise your radar
Not every poisoning screams. Sometimes it starts slowly. Stay alert when a Pathfinder shows, with no clear explanation, one of these signs: nausea and vomiting, severe stomach pain, strange drowsiness (not the normal tiredness of the day), mental confusion, slurred speech, dizziness, or a persistent headache.
The most serious signs, which call for phoning your local emergency number (in Brazil, SAMU 192) right away, are: difficulty breathing, bluish lips or skin, seizure, fainting, or a person who does not respond properly when you call. Burns or blisters around the mouth suggest a corrosive product was swallowed. Trust your instinct: if something is very wrong, it is serious.
Pay attention to the context, because it reveals the cause. Several Pathfinders from the same tent with a headache and drowsiness at the same time? Think carbon monoxide and get everyone out into the fresh air immediately. Everyone who ate the same dish feeling ill? Likely food poisoning. An open bottle or a nibbled plant near the child? There is your clue. Gathering that context is part of the rescue.
What to do: the step-by-step that works
1. Stay calm and ensure safety. Before helping, protect. If it is gas or smoke, take the person out into the fresh air and do not enter a contaminated space unnecessarily, so you do not get poisoned too. If it is a product on the skin or in the eyes, rinse with plenty of running water for several minutes.
2. Move away from the source. Take the product, the plant, or the food out of reach. If anything is left in the person's mouth (bits of plant or a pill), ask them to spit it out carefully, without sticking fingers down the throat.
3. Gather the information. Find out what it was, how much, and how long ago. Keep the packaging, the label, the pill blister, or a piece of the plant. This helps the specialists identify the substance and advise the right antidote. If the person vomited, a sample can also help the medical team.
4. Call someone who knows. For immediate, free guidance, call the Poison Helpline 0800-722-6001. It is the Network of Poison Information and Assistance Centers, maintained by Anvisa, which serves the public and first responders 24 hours a day and connects you to the nearest center (CIATox/CEATOX). If there is any serious sign (shortness of breath, fainting, seizure), call your local emergency number (in Brazil, SAMU 192) immediately.
5. Watch and comfort. Stay by the person's side. Keep them in a comfortable position; if they are drowsy but breathing, the side position (lying on their side) helps prevent choking if they vomit. Note the time and how the signs change. Follow exactly what the professionals advise on the phone.
Read alsoBurns: first aid every Pathfinder should knowWhat NOT to do (this is where the danger lives)
The most important part of this article may be this one, because most mistakes come from "home remedies" everyone has heard of that are wrong. In a panic, good intentions can become the second problem.
Do not force vomiting. That idea of "put a finger down the throat" or give something to make them vomit is dangerous and goes against current recommendations. If the substance is corrosive (a cleaning product) or a solvent, the vomit burns everything again on the way up and can go into the lungs. Only induce vomiting if a professional tells you to, on the phone or in person.
Do not give milk, water, or any liquid on your own. The myth that "milk cuts the poison" can make things worse: in some cases, liquid speeds up the absorption of the toxin or triggers vomiting. Only offer something if the Poison Helpline or your local emergency service advises it.
Do not give medicine, charcoal, salt, or a "home antidote." There is no universal pantry antidote. Each substance has its own protocol, and the specialist is the one who decides.
Do not wait "to see if it gets better" in serious cases, and do not throw away the packaging. With carbon monoxide, a corrosive product, or an overdose of medicine, time is everything. And the label you kept is the map for the rescue.
Prevention: the best first aid is the kind you never need
The First Aid honor teaches you to act, but its heart is prevention. In the planning of every camp, poisoning prevention should go on the list right next to tents and food. Here are the basics that make a difference.
In the tent and around the fire: never light a camp stove, a combustion lantern, a large candle, or charcoal inside a tent or enclosed place. Always cook and heat in an open, ventilated area. This single rule prevents the most dangerous type of gas poisoning.
In the club kitchen: keep food refrigerated or well chilled, do not leave dishes with mayonnaise and meat sitting in the sun, and when in doubt about a food, throw it out. Wash your hands before cooking and serving.
With products and medicines: keep cleaning products and medicines in their original packaging, closed, away from the younger ones, and never in a drink bottle. The first aid kit should have someone responsible for it.
In nature: reinforce with the Unit the rule of not eating anything wild without absolute certainty. Before setting out on a trail, the Counselor can review which local plants are toxic. Preventing is a concrete way to care for others, which is what we learn to do at the club. And it is worth remembering: first aid like this is a complement to CPR and to other care every leader should know.
Caring for the body is also an act of faith
For us Pathfinders, caring for health is not just prudence: it is part of who we are. The Bible says: "Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God? You are not your own" (1 Corinthians 6:19, NIV). Treating the body with respect, our own and our neighbor's, is a way to honor the One who created us.
This is the foundation of the health message Adventists value: habits that preserve life, choices that avoid unnecessary risk, and the willingness to help competently. You do not need to share this faith to benefit from the advice. Care for life is a good that belongs to everyone, and this space is yours too.
In the end, the greatest first aid lesson is the same as the whole club's: being prepared to serve. Knowing what to do in a poisoning, staying calm, and loving your neighbor through concrete actions is living out, in practice, the motto of always being ready. Deepen this in the Temperance honor and in the first aid training at your club.