KANSAS
DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH & ENVIRONMENT
BILL GRAVES, GOVERNOR
Gary R. Mitchell, Secretary

September 1, 1998

Contact: Jan Stegelman

785-296-1223

Is Your Home Childproof?

The many dangers that threaten our children's safety can be easily forgotten when we're behind the doors of our own home. Yet within the place we feel most comfortable lie countless safety hazards that pose serious threats to your child. This September, as part of Baby Safety Month, take the opportunity to ensure the safety of your child and prevent tragedy from occurring in your home by following some simple and often common sense measures.

"Though tempting to let your guard down when at home, it's essential to be vigilant about the potential for your child to be unintentionally injured," says Jan Stegelman, Coordinator of the Kansas SAFE KIDS Coalition. "It only takes the blink of an eye for a curious child to fall down the stairs, swallow a coin or ingest a sip of a poisonous household cleaner. While no child should be left unsupervised, child proofing every room in the home minimizes the risk of serious or even fatal injury."

Every year, approximately 2,700 children ages 14 and under die in the home from unintentional injuries. More than 70 percent of these deaths are among children ages 4 and under. Home injury deaths are caused primarily by fire and burns, drowning, suffocation, choking, unintentional firearm injury, falls and poisoning. Young children are at the greatest risk because they spend most of their time at home.

To help reduce the risk of tragedy at home, and in observance of Baby Safety Month in September, the Kansas SAFE KIDS Coalition offers the following tips to parents and care givers.

CHILD PROOFING STEPS

Safety, not convenience, comes first when child-proofing the home. Busy parents and individuals without children in the home are more likely to store household items with convenience, rather than safety, as the top priority. Curious kids can be very determined, so all potentially harmful products should be stored locked out of reach.

Parents need to examine everything in the home from the vantage point of a very young child. Get down on the floor on all fours and crawl through the home the way a curious young child might. You may feel silly, but taking this precaution is far better than any tragic alternative for your child or loved one. Cover every room in the home. During your inspection, ask yourself, what looks tempting? What is within reach? Look for potential dangers between the floor and about 40 inches above the floor. Also, check floors and carpet for buried dangers like pins or coins. Remove or correct any potential hazards.

THE KITCHEN

Keep children out of the kitchen while preparing meals. In fact, play in the kitchen should be discourage at all times in all homes. Children should never be in the kitchen without an adult. Each year, nearly 31,500 children ages 14 and under are treated in emergency rooms for scald burns-- a common kitchen hazard. Keep hot foods and liquids away from your children. In addition, make sure to supervise children around stoves and microwaves.

Store dangerous items out of reach. It goes without saying that parents with children in their homes should follow this safety precaution. If your child is visiting someone else's home, ensure dangerous items are stored out of reach location during your child's stay, and offer to get safety locks for the kitchen cabinets.

Keep hot food and beverages, glassware and knives away from the edge of counters and tables. Use the back burners on the stove and turn pot handles toward the back of the stove.

Keep appliance cords, place mats and table cloths out of reach.

Children are naturally curious and may pull on cords, unintentionally pulling the appliance and its scalding contents on themselves. Easily pulled from the table, place mats and tablecloths do not provide a secure place for hot food and/or beverages, which can cause serious burns.

THE BATHROOM

Set hot water heaters no higher than 120F. A lower water temperature will reduce the chance of scald burns. It takes just three seconds for a child to sustain a third degree burn from water at 140F, which would require hospitalization and skin grafts.

Lock medicine cabinets. Anything that a child can swallow should remain locked out of reach in the cabinet at all times. Even items as seemingly harmless as iron pills can poison children and drinking mouthwash can cause a young child to fall into an alcohol-induced coma.

Install toilet locks. Unlike adults, children's weight is concentrated in the top half of their bodies. When they lean into a toilet bowl, they may lose their balance, fall forward and drown in as little as one inch of water. These locks will prevent the toilet lid from being lifted by young children.

Request child-resistant packaging. Whenever possible, purchase medications in senior friendly, child-resistant containers. Child-resistant containers may take a moment longer to open, but are much safer when young children are around. But keep in mind that child-resistant does not mean childproof. These medicines still need to be locked away.

Keep Ipecac Syrup in the medicine cabinet. If a child is unintentionally poisoned, treatment may include vomiting induced by Ipecac Syrup. Have a one-ounce bottle on-hand for each of your children, but use only on the advice of the poison control center or a physician. Keep these and other emergency numbers by every phone in the home.

Remove sharp utensils and appliances from the bathroom. Razors, scissors and blow dryers are better kept in an adult's bedroom and locked out of children's reach.

THE BEDROOM

Beware of old cribs. Baby furniture that was designed when you were a child may be unsafe. Even baby furniture built just a decade ago might not meet some of today's safety standards. Sharp edges, corner post protrusions and dangerously spaced slats can be deadly to small children. When visiting friends or family, bring portable playpens or cribs with you.

Keep beds and cribs away from windows and drapery.

Children can unwittingly strangle from drapery cords or fall from windows that are accessible from the bed or crib. Tie up drapery cords out of reach, or better yet, cut the ends and retrofit them with safety tassels.

Remove matches, lighters, medication and breakable knickknacks from your child's reach.

Children may turn a nap into an opportunity to inventory the bedroom. High closet shelves or locked cabinets are the best storage areas for potentially harmful items.

THE LIVING ROOM AND AROUND THE HOUSE

Use safety gates. Each year, more than 2.5 million children are treated in emergency rooms for fall-related injuries. Stairs are particularly dangerous and stair falls tend to result in more severe injuries. Use safety gates at the top and bottom of stairs to keep infants and toddlers out of harm's way.

Never use baby walkers on wheels. Use walker alternatives or stationary activity centers.

Make sure children play with age-appropriate toys.

Not all toys are safe for all age groups. When selecting toys, consider the child's age, interest and skill level; look for quality design and construction; and follow age and safety recommendations on labels. Children may choke on any toy or toy part that is small enough to be swallowed. Use a small parts tester "choke tube" to determine if small toy parts present a choking hazard. Let family and friends know which toys are appropriate for your children. Cover all unused electrical outlets. Plastic outlet covers help reduce the chance of unintentional shocks and are easy for adults but not children to install and remove.

Check the house for fire hazards. Look for obvious fire hazards such as frayed electrical wires or combustible materials near heat sources such as space heaters. Never run electrical cords under rugs. Make sure that your home, and any home your child visits, has working smoke alarms in every bedroom and on every level. Make sure to check the batteries on each alarm monthly and replace annually. It's also important to install carbon monoxide alarms in your home.

Comb the house for items that can be swallowed.

Small children use their mouth to explore the world. Potentially poisonous plants, coins or cigarette butts may all end up in a child's mouth if left within reach. If planning a visit to someone else's home, remind them to check for hidden choking hazards.

If firearms are kept in the house, keep them locked away, unloaded and stored out of reach. Secure ammunition in a separate, locked location.

Post emergency numbers by telephones. Post phone numbers for the poison control center, pediatrician, police, fire department, medical services and a neighbor by every telephone. Make sure babysitters and other care givers know how to respond in an emergency.

Though it's impossible to remove all of the dangers from your child's environment, with the proper precautions, your home can still be your haven.

The Kansas SAFE KIDS Coalition, Inc. is a nonprofit group of 60 statewide organizations and businesses that have joined to protect Kansas children from unintentional injury--the leading killer of Kansas kids. Local coalitions and chapters are located in Wichita, Lawrence, Johnson County, Salina, Barber County, Topeka, Ford County, Manhattan, Pottawatomie County and Clay County. Kansas SAFE KIDS is part of the National SAFE KIDS campaign.

For more information, call Jan Stegelman at (785) 296-1223.

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