"I Swallowed A Penny"

That's a direct quote from our soon-to-be three year old son this morning. Apparently while I was upstairs getting dressed for the day, and my husband was getting sports updates online, and our daughter was watching cartoons, my son found a penny and ate it.
So when you're done laughing...I had a few reflections on the whole thing.
First, I immediately assumed he was fine and that he'd pass it eventually. But just to be safe I checked online. My suspicians were confirmed that if he didn't pass it within about 48 hours, then it would be time to take him to the pediatrician. My next thought was...how did our mothers check their assumptions when they ran into those situations...did they call their mothers, sisters, or friends for advice? The internet sure is handy...I think.
Second, as I read a few articles on the matter I learned that pennies made before 1982 are actually safer to swallow in terms of their metal composition than pennies made after 1982. Pennies made after 1982 can react toxically with chemicals in the stomach and burn holes in the penny as well as cause ulcers or other serious medical problems (especially in children). Did not know that until today. So now I'm curious...did he actually swallow a penny, and if he did, what vintage is it?
Third, I read about the importance of 'sifting' through [you guessed it] for the next few days to watch for the penny to pass. I even read one article where the parent (had to be a dad) not only found, but then cleaned and kept the penny the daughter passed for future blackmail when she went on dates. Yikes! I'm so not going there!
So what's so sacred about swallowing a penny? Well, nothing really but I did offer a prayer of thanks for how my parents kept themselves from laughing out loud in front of us when we did things like that and how they preserved our dignity when they cared for us in those types of situations. I was also thankful for the kind of technology that allows me as a parent to quickly access medical information and for the bit of wisdom I do have to not over-react to a lot of what's 'out there.' Finally I'm blessed to take care of such beautiful children...pennies and all!