Child Safe Tips

Children of any age can and will become very sick from coming in contact with or ingesting household cleaning products, medicines, vitamins, chemicals, cosmetics, plants, and flowers. Children come into contact with these substances when parents are busy cooking dinner, talking on the phone, taking the shower etc. Do not assume that they will do it in front of you. All dangerous substances must be in a safe, unreachable place. Say for example you fell, hit your head, and were knocked out. Do you feel comfortable with your current precautions?

Children explore. At some point they will look under the bathroom sinks, look under the kitchen sink, or wander out to the garage. They could even use a bathroom stool to reach the medicine cabinet. You can buy a lockable box for medications or you can designate a high kitchen cabinet for all medicines, vitamins, and ointments. Children like to put things in their mouths and stick their fingers into substances. They like to spray things and pour things out. Leaving dangerous substances out in the open could cost your child their life.

You should leave all potentially dangerous substances in their original containers. You do not want someone to place the wrong container in the wrong place. The most dangerous poisons for children include the following:

• Medicines.


• Vitamins or substances with Iron- cause may life-threatening poisonings for children under 5.


• Cleaning Products.


• Anti-freeze.


• Windshield Washer Fluid.


• Pesticides- powders, fluids, and granules.


• Furniture Polishes.


• Gasoline and Kerosene.


• Lamp Oils and Scented Oils.

Poison Help Line 1-800-222-1222.

Posted by Child Safety at 05:18 PM | Permalink

1. There needs to be a Smoke Detector in every 700 square feet of your home. Make sure their batteries are working. A good idea is to check them when the time changes each Spring and Fall.
2. Make sure your home electrical outlets are in safe working order and use outlet plugs or covers. There are 300 electricity related deaths each year.
3. Use an Anti-Scalding device for your bathtubs and showers. You may think that you will not turn that hot, but if your child reaches up and turns the knob they could be burned.
4. Spring-Loaded-Lid Support Devices should be used on all toy or wooden chests. This device stops the lid from falling on the child’s neck or accidentally locking them inside the chest.
5. All children and parents need to wear Bike Helmets.
6. Every child up to 80 pounds should be in a car safety seat/booster seat.
7. There are 300 drowning deaths each year; please invest in a pool safety gate.
8. You should pull on, yank, and roughly shake any rattles, infant toys, or anything your infant/toddler may chew or suck on.
9. Your child can drown in a Bath Baby Seat if you are not there.
10. Children can strangle themselves on drapery or blind cords or any wall decorations that have strings or ribbons attached. Some wall hangings for children should be placed by their crib. Necklaces are dangerous also.
11. Trying to make your baby’s crib softer, by adding blankets or soft padding, cans suffocate them.
12. Many children are killed each year when their parents back over them with the car. MAKE SURE your child is securely inside before you back your vehicle out. If you are looking for a new car you might want to choose one that has a camera in the back and screen for you in the front.
13. All firearms and knives should be locked up and too high for children to reach.
14. Teach your children what to do if a stranger approaches them.
15. Invest in a Child ID Kit.

Posted by Child Safety at 04:59 PM | Permalink

Fire safety is a crucial area of safety parents should be educated on. Thirty percent of the children killed by fire, started the fire. Twenty percent of all fire deaths are children. 100,000 fires are set by children each year and 20,000 of those are in their own homes. Although most parents do not worry about younger children being around matches or lighters, children as young as two can light a match. Young children will do what adults do when a match starts to burn their fingers; they will drop it lighting themselves or their homes on fire. The majority of fires started by kids playing around are started with lighters and matches. It is not illegal for a child to buy a lighter, so look around and make sure your older children do not have them.

Lighters and matches need to be locked up or placed somewhere your child does not have access to. If friends or relatives come over make sure they do not leave anything lying around. Everyone needs some form of lighter or match to light a birthday candles and because of the rush or excitement lighters/matches are left out in the open. The leading cause of fire-related injuries or deaths for children 5 and under where started by matches.

You also need to store flammable materials in a safe place, preferably outside of the home. Some of these flammable materials include gasoline, kerosene, paint thinners, or cleaning supplies. If you have these items just sitting in your garage please know they can ignite at any time. All the flammable material needs is heat and your vehicle puts out heat. Many people have been burned in their garage from the heat of cars igniting substances. All flammable materials should be put in a safe place or disposed of.

Posted by Child Safety at 04:32 PM | Permalink

The bathroom can be a very dangerous place for toddlers and small children. There are many great products available today that can prevent significant injuries. One of the most basic things needed in a bathroom is a bath rug on the floor. Bath rugs do not move and they prevent many slips and falls. Many people have been injured or even killed falling and hitting their heads on the tile, toilet, or ceramic bathtub and a rug can prevent this type of accident.

Toilet Locks- Children can, and have, drowned in toilets. Today, there are a variety of toilet locks you can choose from. These locks are pretty easy to install and disengage if others need to use the restroom.

Tub Guards- Tub guards are basically a cushion that slides over the side of bathtubs. It prevents a child from hurting themselves if they should fall somehow. Read about the other types of bathtub safety items.

Lockable Box for Medicine & More- Any medicines, vitamins, or ointments you keep in your bathroom needs to be locked up. Many people think that if they put these items in a container under the sink or in the medicine cabinet their children will be fine. Maybe they will, but children explore and they climb. They like to touch, feel, and taste things they are not suppose to touch. Smart Guard offers a great product for locking up anything that might hurt your child.

Posted by Child Safety at 03:04 PM | Permalink

Many young children are injured or even killed each year by accidents parents would never think could happen. Below is a list of ways to Baby Proof your home.

• Crib Mattresses must fit tightly in the crib; there should be no gaps.


• Place the baby/toddlers bed away from windows and make sure there are no pull cords your child can reach. A window breaking over your child is something you want to avoid.


• Shorten all drapery and blind cords.


• Do not put pillows, stuffed animals, heaving blankets, added items for soft bedding, or heating pads in your child’s crib.


• Crib slats should be 2 3/8 inches apart.


• Never leave your child on a high surface. Use the safety belts on the changing table.


• Playpens should have mess sides and the holes should be less than ¾ inch apart. If you buy a used one make sure there are no tears in the mesh.


• Use Safety Gates at the top and bottom of stair cases. Make sure they are installed correctly and make sure there are no gaps. Use safety gates to prevent children from going out on patios or anywhere you do not want them to be.


• Any and all small objects should be moved, or removed, to prevent a choking accident. If any item can fit through a cardboard toilet paper roll it can choke your child.


• Avoid giving young children Grapes (unless you cut them up), raisins, hard candies, nuts, popcorn, bite size pieces of licorice, and small pieces of hotdogs. Any food that could easily lodge in your child’s throat should be avoided.


• Make sure all matches and lighters are out of your child’s reach.


• Make sure pot handles are not sticking out over the stove where children can try to grab them.


• Use an oven lock if your child can reach your oven handle or tries to play with your oven.


• Make sure no electrical cords or wires are accessible to your children. Power safety covers can help if you must have cords out.


• Never leave a child alone in the bath tub.


• Use toilet locks.


• Use a pool safety fence.


• Use window locks.


• Keep all hot liquids away from children.


• Make sure all small appliances, like deep fryers, are pushed back on your cabinet as far as possible. Make sure their cords are back also.


• Do not let your child play with items that are not hot now, but could be hot later such as radiators, stoves, space heaters, and heating vents.


• Use anti-tip furniture straps on all pieces of furniture that could tip over if your child tried to climb on it.


• Receptacle plugs or child resistant outlet covers should be used throughout the house.


• Remove plastic caps on doorstops; you can buy baby proof doorstops.


• Use padding on hard edges such as fireplaces, coffee tables, desk corners, and furniture corners.


• Buy a fireplace baby gate if you intend to use it.


• Remove the bumper pad from the crib when your child is able to get on all fours. Bumper pads can be used as a step stool to climb out of the crib.


• Remove mobiles when your child is getting tall enough to almost touch it.


• Make sure any dangerous chemicals are locked up.


• Lock up all medication and vitamins- both can kill children.


• Cleaning supplies and alcoholic beverages need to be out of the child’s reach.


• Move live household plants and flower. Many are toxic or the fertilizer used my cause toxicity.

Posted by Child Safety at 02:53 PM | Permalink