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Choking First Aid for Adults, Children and Infants

Recognize choking and learn the back-blow and abdominal-thrust sequence.

Last reviewed October 3, 2026 · Spiral Search editorial team

Call 911 if someone is choking and cannot cough, speak or breathe. If you are with others, have one person call while you help.

General information, not medical advice. Reading a guide is not a substitute for a hands-on first aid or CPR class (American Red Cross, American Heart Association, and local fire-rescue departments offer them). If someone may be in danger, call 911 and follow the dispatcher.

Signs of choking

Cannot talk, cough or breathe, or only makes high-pitched sounds.
Hands clutched to the throat.
Skin turning blue or gray.
Loss of consciousness.

If the person can cough forcefully or speak, encourage them to keep coughing. Do not slap their back yet.

Conscious adult or child (age 1 and older)

The American Red Cross teaches the "five and five" method:

Stand behind the person (kneel for a child). Lean them forward and give 5 firm back blows between the shoulder blades with the heel of your hand.
Then give 5 abdominal thrusts: place a fist just above the navel, grasp it with your other hand, and press inward and upward with a quick thrust.
Alternate 5 back blows and 5 thrusts until the object comes out or the person becomes unresponsive.

Infant (under 1 year)

Place the baby face down along your forearm, supporting the head and jaw, with the head lower than the chest.
Give up to 5 gentle back blows between the shoulder blades.
Turn the baby face up and give 5 chest compressions with two fingers at the center of the chest.
Repeat until the object comes out or the baby becomes unresponsive.

Never do abdominal thrusts on an infant.

If the person becomes unresponsive

Lower them to the ground, call 911 and begin CPR. Check the mouth before each set of breaths and remove an object only if you can see it. See how and when to do CPR.

If you are choking alone

Call 911 if you can. Place a fist slightly above your navel and shove inward and upward, or press your upper abdomen firmly against a hard edge such as the back of a chair or a countertop.

After choking

Anyone who needed abdominal thrusts or back blows should be checked by a medical professional.