Breath of Life, LLC

In the United States there are 5,000 choking deaths (Elflein) among the general population and 17,000 choking emergencies for children annually. The greatest victims of choking are elderly people and young children. Most choking incidents occur at home but it can happen anywhere and anytime someone is eating or whenever a young child sticks something in their mouth.

Choking is terrifying because one minute everything is fine and then, just like the shocking abruptness of a car accident, a heart attack, or a house fire, a choking incident happens so shockingly fast that it’s difficult for a choking victim and those trying to help, to think clearly to do what it takes to save a life. After only 4 short minutes, a choking victim will suffer brain damage and then death follows soon after - which is why people panic and can’t think about what to do, especially when a choking victim is a loved one. Choking can happen to anyone but the greatest victims of choking, the elderly, are not served well by current solutions - the heimlich maneuver breaks ribs and ruptures organs causing secondary injuries and death and other devices require much assistance or laying a choking victim on the ground, which is extremely uncomfortable and inaccessible for most elderly persons. We’ve found from interviewing parents of young children that if their own child starts choking, the parent panics and forgets what to do, realizing the gravity of what is happening and that if they don’t help their child soon, death is inevitable.

Choking victims need a choking rescue device that is intuitive to use, as they are in a panic and unable to think clearly; a device that is where they are - if it’s too big to fit in your jockey box, purse, diaper bag, or backpack then hoping choking will only happen at home defeats the purpose of depending on it; a device that fits any size person, because choking can happen to anyone; and a device that you can depend on as it is rigorously tested for quality and dependability.

The Breath of Life is born of Elizabeth Jeffrey, a mother of six children and grandma to one cutie. She is not a medical professional or an engineer but as she realized the gravity of a lack of good answers to terrifying choking incidents, she knew she had to follow through and find out a solution, and she did. She worked with engineering professors and students at Brigham Young University to come up with a model that matches the reality of a choking situation from listening to potential customers and medical professionals. She matched the prototype to the reality of what a choking situation feels like for actual choking victims and implemented a model that remembers the user’s experience.

The Breath of Life has a “dream team” of expert and seasoned professionals who know what it takes to enter the market quickly with a team of engineers and manufacturers that are agile and able to adapt to market demand. The Breath of Life is approved by hundreds of restaurants who are asking, “when can we buy it?”. Parents of young children are anxious to be prepared with a choking rescue device that matches the intensity of a choking situation.