Windshield Wiper Fluid Safety

I have no idea why windshield wiper fluid is dyed blue. Perhaps it is the blue color that is supposed to be indicative of a poisonous element to deter people from drinking them. Or, perhaps the cool blue color is to indicate the action of freezing, which it will not do as it has a mixture of anti-freeze in it.

In some cases, there is a mistakable observation that the color of windshield wiper fluid looks just like blueberry Kool-Aid.

It was written all over the internet last year that a day care staff member had mistakenly poured cups of the anti-freeze combo for less than a dozen of the day care children to drink.

With a question of how she didn’t notice the smell of the methanol, or the labeling of the bottle, she could have caused a lot more damage to the children with her mistake.

What are the effects of ingesting windshield wiper fluid? In fatal cases, the heart could go into respiratory distress, and may stop completely (a cardiac arrhythmia). In extreme cases, the heavily toxic methanol can cause coma and blindness. The acidic nature somehow kills the cells in the retina of the eye, and in the brain.

What the methanol does in your body once it reaches the liver, is it starts breaking down the existing ethanol in your system. The byproducts from the ethanol metabolism are what becomes very toxic.

The toxic byproduct from the ethanol breakdown is called acetaldehyde. This causes extreme kidney and liver damage after a certain amount passes through.

Carbon dioxide starts building up from the formation of this formic acid.

In moderate cases, the chemical element causes headaches, pain, nausea, throwing up, sleepiness, and staggering around. It is very important that all precautions be taken so that no one ends up dealing with these after effects.

You should take quick action to call the poison control center and/or 911. While they guide you and what you should do before the EMT arrives, the EMT will arrive and most likely inject into the IV a dose of ethanol to counteract the methanol.

The main lesson out of all of this is to always store household and automotive maintenance products completely separate from food and beverage products. Pay attention to the packaging and labeling. Windshield Wiper Fluid is not the same thing as Kool-Aid. Kool-Aid would not have child-safety/child-proof caps on.

Before deciding which antifreeze and windshield wiper fluid concentrate to buy, check out Ryland Jing’s blog for tips.

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