Baby Proofing Your Home

In the first year of life babies learn very quickly. It’s truly amazing to watch these completely helpless little bundles of joy begin to grow and explore. With this beginning of independence comes the need to make your home safe. Follow these tips to baby proofing your home.

Choking or Suffocation
Are both a big concern. Once children began to roll around you must be extremely careful. A child left on a bed can easily roll into a space between the wall and the mattress and suffocate.

Even if you are sleeping with your baby you need to be careful as your baby can suffocate while tucked against your body. Soft toys, cushions, pillows, water beds, blankets, quilts, or comforts can all pose suffocation risk so be careful and alert as to hazards.

Babies should always sleep on their backs and crib bars should be no more than 2 3/8” apart to prevent infants from getting their head stuck. In 1974 the regulations changed and stricter safety standards were placed on cribs.

The crib mattress should fit snuggly into the crib. There should be no gaps where the infant might get stuck. You should also not leave any large stuffed animals in the crib.

Make sure there are no toys with long strings or cords left in the crib or with an unsupervised child. These can very quickly cause strangulation.

Use safety gates at the top and bottom of all stairs and at all exists where a child might sneak out into danger. Make sure a child cannot fit their head through the openings on the gate.

Sadly choking is a common cause of death in children under the age of one and it is often caused by foods. Do not give your child raw vegetables, hard candies, pieces of a hot dog, nuts, raisins, or any other hard food under the age of one.

With children over the age of one make sure that they are supervised when eating these foods and always sitting up. You also need to watch other potential hazards for all children such as balloons, coins, buttons, rings, and tacks.

There’s no way you are going to stop your toddler from the occasional fall that causes a bump or bruise, but it is critical that you baby proof you home to avoid serious falls or burns.

Bath water is a bigger hazard than you might think for burns. Make sure you have a bathtub thermometer and always check the temperature of the water before placing the infant in the tub. The baby’s bath water should never be more than 100°F. You should also not let children into Jacuzzi’s or hot tubs as they are much more sensitive to the heat.

Teach young children that matches and lighters are not toys and always store out of the reach of children. Even child proof lighters are not full proof and many a coordinated child has managed to get a flame. Also be sure to keep hot beverages out of the reach of children.

Don’t forget about heat registers, fireplaces, stoves, and vents that can be sources for severe burns for children.

When it comes to falling make sure you’ve got baby gates on any stairs that could cause a serious fall for your child. Also make sure all sharp corner tables are moved out of the way. How many toddlers can you think of that have dumped on the corner of a coffee table to land up with a nasty scar on the chin.

Make sure that all electrical cords and wires are not accessible by children. Your puppy isn’t the only one that likes to chew on these. So do teething toddlers. You also need to make sure that all outlets have child plugs in them. Children love to stick things in the hole and the outcome can be devastating.

Young children are also at high risk for drowning. Never ever leave a child unsupervised in the bath tub, not even for a minute. Ignore the phone, ignore everything unless you take the child with you. Remember that toilets, buckets, and wading pools can also be a risk for a child drowning. You only need a couple of inches of water to drown.

Swimming pool drownings are often referred to as a silent death because seldom to children splash or scream to alert the parents. The average age for children drowning is between 1 and 3 and in almost all cases the child is not suppose to be in the swimming pool. Children often make no sound because they are not scared and they have no idea that they are in trouble.

Make sure all medications are stored out of reach of children. Make sure that all bottles have child proof caps and it’s even a good idea to put a latching system on the medicine cabinet. Cupboard latches are actually a great idea for any cupboard that contains items that could hazardous from cleaning products that are toxic to pots and pans where a hook may become a choking hazard.

There are many many hazards that can cause safety concerns for a young child. Make sure you go through your entire house. Get down to a child’s height, crawl around and don’t overlook anything!

You know how when you get a new puppy and you do the puppy proofing only to find your puppy with your favorite shoes in his mouth because you missed something. It’s the same with young children. As adults we tend to overlook hazards without even realizing they are a hazard. You can’t be too careful.

Baby proofing your home will keep your child safe and avoid a tragedy, a parent’s worst nightmare.

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