Choking Symptoms

If an adult is choking, you may observe the following behaviors:

• Coughing or gagging
  
  
• Hand signals and panic (sometimes pointing to the throat)
  
  
• Sudden inability to talk
  
  
• Clutching the throat: The natural response to choking is to grab the throat with one or both hands. This is the universal choking sign and a way of telling people around you that you are choking.
  
  
• Wheezing
  
  
• Passing out
  
  
• Turning blue: Cyanosis, a blue coloring to the skin, can be seen earliest around the face, lips, and fingernail beds. You may see this, but other critical choking signs would appear first.
  
  
• If an infant is choking, more attention must be paid to an infant's behavior. They cannot be taught the universal choking sign.
  
  
  • Difficulty breathing
    
    
  • Weak cry, weak cough, or both