What is poison?

Poison is something that makes you feel sick or even hurt your body when you eat it, touch it, or breathe it in.

Imagine you're eating your favorite candy, sweet and tasty. Now imagine the candy was replaced with something that tastes bad, but also makes your tummy feel like it's doing flips. That’s kind of what poison is like. It’s not always bad tasting, sometimes it can look or taste just fine.

Think of your body as a team of workers who keep you healthy. When you eat something poisonous, it acts like a sneaky enemy that messes up the team's work. Some poisons make your stomach hurt because they trick your tummy into thinking it’s full when it's not, or even burn it.

Some poisons are in things we see every day. For example, chocolate can be poisonous to dogs, just like how too much candy might give you a tummy ache. Or think of lemon juice: it tastes sour and makes your mouth feel funny, that’s kind of like a mini poison for humans!

Poison isn’t magic; it's just something that doesn't play fair with your body.