Keeping Your Children Safe

Every year, thousands of children are hurt in their own homes. Many of these accidents were due to carelessness and could have been prevented. The National Safety Council estimates that there is an accident in the home every seven seconds. Whether you have small children living in your home or are a grandparent with new grandchildren you need to make your home is childproof. Here is a list of ideas to get you started.

Kitchen Safety

• Keep knives in a knife holder on a wall or in a higher drawer. Put knives in the dishwasher point down.

• Store cleaning items in a plastic bucket or a carry-all with a handle. Put it on a shelf in the garage or a hall closet that children can’t open.

• When cooking, keep the handles of the pots turned in so a child can’t pull them off the stove.

• Wrap broken glass in paper before throwing it in the garbage. Small children think garbage cans are fun.

• When wiping up broken glass off the floor. Use a wet paper towel. This will get up all the pieces.

• Teach your children how to pour hot water slowly and to aim the steam away from them so it doesn’t gush out and burn them.

• Keep all poisons locked away on a top shelf.

• Keep all medications locked away on a top shelf.

• Label all jars.

• Cover all electrical outlets with caps.

Bathroom Safety

• Never leave a child unattended in the bathtub for even a second. Let the phone or doorbell ring or take your child with you, but don’t leave them alone.

• Check the water temperature before putting your child in the bathtub.

• Never add hot water to the bathtub while the baby is in it.

• Wrap a washcloth around the faucet or get a cover for the faucet to protect your baby’s head in the event of a fall.

• If you keep medications in the bathroom, lock them up.

Door Safety

• Keep your bathroom door closed at all times if you have small children in the house. Toddlers can fall head first into the toilet and not be able to get out.

• Have a key to your bathroom doors in the event one of your children locks themselves in.

• Get doorknob covers for all of your exterior doors. These turn so your child can’t open the door and escape outside.

Miscellaneous Safety

• Post emergency numbers near your phone for yourself and your babysitters.

• Take a first-aid class that includes CPR.

• Give your children swimming lessons at an early age.

• Keep a first-aid kit in your home.

• Use side rails on children’s beds and especially bunk beds to keep your children from rolling out.

• Keep scissors, plastic bags, ice picks, and matches out of the reach of children at all times.

• Teach children about electrical safety – don’t touch an appliance with wet hands – don’t stick a knife or fork into a toaster, etc.

Go over this list of child safety ideas and make sure you are following these. It is so important to keep our children safe and it is up to the adults to do it.

Source: http://www.healthguidance.org/authors/324/Jason-Ladock