Make the home safe for children

Kids will soon be home for the year’s longest holiday. While it is a fun period, it is also a time when accidents happen. PHOTO | FILE | NATION MEDIA GROUP 

In Summary

• Schools will be closing soon and the kids will be home. Their friends will come calling and the risk of accidents will be higher than usual. Inside are tips to help you keep them out of harm’s way.

By IMMACULATE WAIRIMU
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Many parents probably believe that home is the safest place for young children. After all, the kids have their nannies with them all the time. However, with schools set to close around mid November, the kids will be home soon – and for a pretty long holiday.

Besides, the festive season is just round the corner, and many families will start preparing for it, so even the nannies will be involved. As a result, they will not be able to give the kids, and especially inquisitive toddlers, undivided attention.

This time of the year also sees young children visiting, and as one might expect, they are likely to touch things that arouse their curiosity, which could lead to nasty accidents. So it is important to take precaution to protect them.

Particular attention should be given to the very young who are just learning about their surroundings as they are likely to grab and taste anything, or even support themselves on furniture that might not be sturdy, such as plastic chairs.

Although this is an exciting time, it is also be quite stressful for parents, since it will be impossible to constantly watch the young ones as they roam around the house.

Toddlers who are just beginning to enjoying freedom of movement are particularly dangerous, as they might find fun in opening kitchen cabinets, climbing up and down stairs, and playing with things in the toilet.

But protecting your child from harm means more than just keeping poisonous substances out of their reach and putting locks on everything in a home. It also calls for making small changes to the home and installing safety gadgets.

To effectively childproof your home, you should identify the potential danger in every room, as no room is completely safe. We take a look at factors you might wish to consider in the process.

THE LIVING ROOM
Childproofing the living room should reduce the dangers to toddlers such as plants, electrical cords, freestanding lamps, shelves and other furniture, breakable items and the fireplace. Many accidents occur in the living or dining area.

These spaces might seemsafer than, say the kitchen, but there are numerous dangers lurking, including couches the kids bounce on, the TV and other electronic equipment that are turned on and off, drawers and tables, the entertainment unit where there is chinaware, or even hot food that has been served.

Electrical outlets and cords: These fascinate children and represent one of the greatest threats in the home. The living room is full of sockets for plugging in all sort of gadgets, so the risk of an electric shock is very real. And given children’s curiosity, they can easily stick something into a socket and get electrocuted.

To reduce the possibility of such a thing happening, it is advisable to switch off and cover all sockets that are not in use with hard-to-remove covers that completely prevent a child from accessing the outlet. In addition, tuck all electrical cords or insert them into a protective tube. Also, unplug any appliances not in use in the living room and store them beyond kids’ reach.

Furniture: Have child-friendly furniture and secure any furniture that can tip over, such as a bookcase, to the wall. Ensure that the couches are firmly in place such that even if the child bounces on it, it does not move and make the child fall, as what seems like a minor incident can have major consequences.

Small objects: Another danger is small objects in the living room, which can be removed and swallowed. When you have toddlers in the house, it is advisable to have small objects such as decorative souvenirs in a lockable drawer.

To prevent heavy objects such as the television from toppling over, place them on an entertainment unit and push them as close to the wall as possible. It is also advisable not to place a tablecloth that overhangs under the television as a toddler might reach out for the table cloth for support and bring the television crashing down on him or her.

Glasswork and fireplaces: If you have framed artwork or photographs or other glass decorations, secure them tightly as a tiny sliver of glass from a broken photo frame can harm them. Cover fireplaces and install a fire extinguisher or have a fire blanket nearby. Fireplaces are an added danger, especially when there’s a fire going. As far as possible, have an adult around when there is fire.

As for furniture, ensure that those with hard, edgesdo not cause harm by padding them. Further, avoid placing furniture near windows, where young children can climb them because they could easily lean out and topple over.

Drawers: Another thing to be wary about are drawers. Keep all drawers and filing cabinets locked, and do not leave the key hanging as this arouses children’s curiosity. Also ensure that the drawer handles don’t have parts that are so small that children might remove them and put them in their mouth, nor so big that they can stand on them to reach higher surfaces.

THE KITCHEN

This has to be the most dangerous room in the house for young children be left unattended during the holidays, as a lot of cooking is likely to be going on here. The risk of burns and scalding, poisoning, chocking, cuts and bruises, and even electrocution will be particularly high at this time of the year.

The surest way to keep them safe is to keep them out of the kitchen, so find activities that they enjoy that will keep them occupied outside the kitchen, but where you can also keep an eye on them.

Open fires and hot food: Since it is not possible to monitor little children constantly, ensure that when cooking, the hands of the pans on the stove are placed in such a way kids cannot easily grab their handles.

Safety latches or locks: Use these for drawers and cupboards. Knives and all other sharp and dangerous items should be kept out of reach and safely stored. Lock the cupboards or place latches on all cabinets, pantry doors and rooms where you store cleaning products. Also, keep all heavy objects and those with sharp edges out of children’s reach.

Stove and oven knob covers: Many parents often teach their children from a young age that the kitchen is not a play area, and that the appliances found inside it are not toys.

However, when a child’s minders is busy doing other things, his or her curiosity can easily get the better of him or her. It is difficult to prevent a curious toddler from roaming around the home, so even if they are aware that the kitchen is out of bounds, some safety equipment, like stove and oven knob covers, will keep little fingers from getting burnt.

When using the cooker, as much as possible use the back burners since they are more difficult for a child to reach. Turn all pots and pan towards the back side of the stove when they are hot.

And granted, there may be times when everyone is doing something such that you are forced to cook and mind the child, but it is extremely dangerous to hold your child while cooking; the child might reach out for something such as a container of spices unexpectedly and send it crashing to the ground, or some hot liquid from the food on the cooker can burn them when you lift the lid to monitor its progress. So, if possible, sit your child in a high chair, and out of reach of anything dangerous.

Appliances: Make sure that young children cannot access any appliance such as a mixer, blender, mincer or dishwasher. And even if the older children can use say, the microwave, always ensure that there is an adult around to supervise them. If you can, invest in equipment that can be locked as, thanks to children’s curiosity, they might attempt to get into the bigger ones and get trapped, and possibly, suffocate.

BATHROOM

It can be difficult to discourage child from playing in the bathroom, especially in the lead up to, and during, potty training. Children, and especially the very young ones, love playing with water and when they learn that they can access water here, they will try as much as possible to spend time the bathroom.

However, there is danger in the bathroom in the form of toothpaste, mouthwash, medicines, razor blades and ear buds, among other items. Lock or put a latch on all cupboards and keep their little hands from playing in the toilet bowl by using a toilet lock to keep the lid firmly down. Alternatively, ensure that the toilet door is locked when there is no one using it.

Whenever a guest uses the rest room, remind them to lock the door. And if you store water in open containers in the bathroom, make sure the bathroom door is always locked as even a small amount of water can be disastrous to a curios toddler.