Keeping your baby safe at home is a parent’s first priority.
We ensure the crib is secure and up to the latest safety standards, we test baby’s bottle temperature before feeding, we even put monitors in baby’s bedroom with both video and audio to ensure they are safe. But, most don’t realize the hidden hazards in a home that can harm or injure your baby. Here are six overlooked dangers that you can remove today to keep your baby safe at home:
- Night-light.Keep night-lights away from drapes or bedding where they could start a fire. Buy only cool night-lights that do not get hot.
- Smoke alarms.Install smoke detectors outside every bedroom (or any area where someone sleeps), in furnace areas, and on every level of your home, including the basement. Buy alarms with long-life lithium batteries. Alarm batteries should be changed every year and test the alarms every month to ensure they are working properly.
- Carbon monoxide (CO) detectors. Install CO detectors on each floor of your home. CO is a toxic gas that has no taste, no color, and no odor. It emits from appliances or heaters that burn gas, oil, wood, propane, or kerosene.
- Window guards.Make sure window guards are secure to prevent a child from falling out of the window.
- Toy chest. The best toy chest is a box or basket without a lid. However, if it has a lid, make sure it has safe hinges that hold the lid open and do not pinch. The chest should also have air holes in the event your child becomes trapped inside.
- Humidifier or vaporizer. Use a cool-mist humidifier or vaporizer to avoid burns and clean it according to manufacturer instructions to avoid bacteria and mold growth.
According to the Centers for Disease Control, unintentional injuries—such as those caused by burns, drowning, falls, poisoning and road traffic—are the leading cause of morbidity and mortality among children in the United States.
The statistics from non-fatal injuries are eye-opening:
- Nonfatal suffocation rates were highest for those less than 1 year of age.
- Rates for fires or burns, and drowning were highest for children 4 years and younger.
- Children 1 to 4 years of age had the highest rates of nonfatal falls and poisoning.
Each year, among those 0 to 19 years of age, more than 12,000 people die from unintentional injuries and more than 9.2 million are treated in emergency departments for nonfatal injuries. (cdc.gov).
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