10 Tips For Keeping Your Child Safe At Home

 
Your child's safety should always be your primary concern. While it's impossible to keep your children safe from all possible dangers, there are some common sense things that you can do to help ensure that your child is safe in your home. And ensuring child safety is everyone's responsibility, even those who have no children of their own.

Accidents in the home continue to be a major cause of unplanned visits to hospital emergency rooms. Homeowners with young children must take extra care to guard against possible accidents.

Here 10 things that safety experts recommend for child-proofing your home:

1. Make sure that all unused electrical outlets have plastic safety guards installed to keep out little fingers.
    
2. Wind window blind cords around a fixture fairly high on the wall. This will keep your child safe from one of the most common causes of household accidents since cord loops can choke a small child (or even worse). 
    
3. Make sure that all bookcases are firmly attached to the wall with brackets to prevent them from falling over onto a child.
    
4. Install child safety gates at the top and bottom of staircases and keep them closed at all times.
    
5. Railings on decks and balconies should be close enough together so that a child cannot squeeze through them or get the head stuck. Alternatively, plastic mesh at least 3 feet high should be firmly attached to the vertical railings and the floor.
    
6. Chemical cleaners and medicines need to be stored in closed, locked cabinets, well out of reach of any climbable furniture. Chemicals are a very serious (and all too common) threat to child safety.
    
7. Make sure that pot and pan handles do not extend past the edge of the stove. And of course don't not leave a chair or stool near the stove.
    
8. Use a non-slip mat or adhesive strips on the bottom of the bathtub or shower stall to keep your children safe from falls.
    
9. If your home has sliding glass doors, place stickers or decorative decals on them to ensure that the doors can easily be seen when closed.
    
10. Don't allow children to go into your garage without close supervision. Keep your car doors locked with the windows rolled up. Be sure to store dangerous  chemicals, paint, etc. in a locked cabinet. And finally, keep the automated door switch and remote controls out of easy reach of children.

Berry Everitt is a Real Estate professional in South Africa. Visit him at chaseveritt.com.

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