A two-year-old boy died of an apparent opioid overdose in Milwaukee on Jan. 26. The boy's mother, who found the child and dialed 911, was reportedly arrested for neglect-causing death, according to WDJT.
The death is being investigated as a probable overdose by the Milwaukee County Medical Examiner's office.
"We've seen five [kids die from opioid overdoses] in the last 12 months, which is really unprecedented in the last 10 years," said Sara Schreiber, the forensic technical director in the medical examiner's forensic toxicology laboratory, according to WDJT.
Ms. Schreiber told WDJT parents need to ensure their opioid medications are safely stored because it does not take much of the medication to cause a child to overdose.
"A child when they pick something up will put it in their mouth and chew it, especially a young toddler," said Ms. Schreiber. "The pills and tablets that these drugs come in are meant to be swallowed whole and absorbed slowly."
All five of the deceased children Ms. Schreiber referenced were less than three years old.
More articles on population health:
New Jersey first state to launch universal baby box program
Whites, Native Americans see spike in premature deaths
Americans more engaged in preventative care under ACA, study finds