We all know how inquisitive and curious little ones can be.
It’s astounding how quickly they can manage to find their way into things that
we didn’t even realize could be an issue.
If you have babies or young children in your home on a
regular basis, it’s time for a hands and knees tour around the house. Whether
your baby is becoming mobile or if you have young children who visit your home,
it’s very much worth your time to really assess how toddler and child-friendly
your home is. With two and a half million children visiting our nation’s emergency
rooms and urgent care centers with preventable injuries annually, safe spaces
are important. While we can’t prevent all accidents, we can certainly manage
the risk.
According to the National Safety Council, mechanical
suffocation and suffocation by ingested objects cause the most home-related
fatalities to children 0-4 years of age.
Here are 12 things you can do to make your home safer for
children:
1. Make sure that a crib in use in your home meets all the
current safety standards. Older cribs made before 1974 were not manufactured
with these standards. Do not use these older cribs. And, do not donate them, or
sell them on a garage sale. They are not simply not safe to use.
2. Install safety latches or locks on cabinet doors and
drawers containing items that are potentially harmful for children. Obvious
choices are places where household cleansers, medicines – both prescription and
over-the-counter, tools and sharp objects are stored. These latches can be
purchased in a hardware store or from a retailer that handles baby items. There are a variety of options to meet your needs and install easily.
3. Install a lock or a doorknob cover to prevent children
entering a room. If it is possible to simply lock up a room that you do not
want a child wandering into without adult supervision, just do so.
4. Make sure that firearms in the home are completely
inaccessible to children.
5. Install window guards. Nylon or metal screens on open
windows will not stop a child from going through if they are pushing or leaning
against the screen. It is not uncommon to hear of a child falling out a second
story window accidentally because they have leaned against the window screen.
The screen is not strong enough to hold a child in.
6. Use safety netting around a deck or a balcony.
7. Cover outlets not in use. Covers are simple to install
and help prevent children from putting their fingers or metal objects into the
outlets.
8. Use safety gates to keep children off the stairs and out
of rooms when a door cannot be locked.
9. Install an anti-scald device for your shower or bathtub.
Setting your water heater to a maximum of 120 degrees will also help avoid
accidental scalding.
10. In addition to secure fencing around pools, install safety
covers on both pools and outdoor hot tubs to keep children out. Be extra careful with small inexpensive wading pools, too.
11. Use window treatments with safety tassels and inner cord
latches to help prevent strangulation.
12. For everyone in the house, CO2 detectors and working
smoke alarms save lives. Period.
It’s not realistic to expect that you can prevent accidents
just by giving the child your full attention. You might be surprised at how
quickly a child can find themselves in harm’s way even if you are distracted
from them for just a moment. Using these simple tips can help you keep them
safe.
For more tips on childproofing your home, check out these
websites:
No comments:
Post a Comment