KDHE Home - News 1999 - News Release

Kansas
Department of Health & Environment
Bill Graves, Governor
Clyde D. Graeber, Secretary

November 22, 1999

Contact: Jan Stegelman, 785-296-1223

Keep Children Safe in the Kitchen During the Busy Holiday Season

The holidays are here and with this festive time of year comes plenty of traveling, plenty of shopping, and for many, plenty of cooking and kitchen activity. Children are particularly excited and may want to help parents and caregivers prepare holiday goodies. Whether decorating cookies or mixing salad dressing, children need close adult supervision at all times whether they are in or around the kitchen.

"It's very easy to become caught up in the holiday festivities and the idea of doing things as a family," said Jan Stegelman of the Kansas SAFE KIDS Coalition. "Helping out with cooking can be a wonderful learning experience for children, but it also can be dangerous. It's crucial for parents to keep a close eye on the kids and set strict rules for kitchen safety."

The Kansas SAFE KIDS Coalition recommends the following tips for keeping children safe as they learn to help out in the kitchen:

• Be sure you've taken essential safety steps before introducing a child to cooking, such as having a fire extinguisher nearby and posting emergency numbers near the phone.

• Never leave a child unattended in the kitchen. Close supervision is essential, whether children are helping an adult cook or are simply watching.
• Never hold a child while cooking.
• Put pans on back burners and turn all pot handles toward the back of the stove.
• Use caution when heating food and liquids in the microwave. Supervise your child when he or she is near or using a microwave and ever let a young child (under ages 10 to 12) remove heated items from the microwave.
• Make sure you and your children wear close-fitting clothing when cooking.
• Never leave cooking food unattended -- it is the number one cause of house fires.
• Place hot foods and liquids away from the edges of counters and tables.
• Pay particular attention to items sitting on tablecloths or placemats so that children cannot pull hot food or liquid down and scald themselves.
• Unplug appliance cords and keep them tied up and out of children's reach.

Age-Appropriate Tasks for Children

Since each child is different, it is important for parents and caregivers to consider the developmental level and abilities of their children when it comes to assigning kitchen duties.

Generally, children under age 10 don't fully understand what danger means and therefore should not use the stove, electrical appliances, sharp utensils or handle hot dishes. Younger children can begin helping in the kitchen with basics like washing vegetables and fruits, or mixing foods that don't require sharp knives, appliances or heat.

Following are a few suggested activities and age guidelines the Kansas SAFE KIDS Coalition recommends parents review to help keep the kitchen a fun, safe place for the family. With close adult supervision children:

Over age 5 can:

• Stir ingredients together in a bowl.
• Rinse foods under cold water.
• Use a cookie cutter to cut out shapes in dough
• Use a butter knife or plastic knife to spread peanut butter, or slice soft cheese.
• Squeeze garlic from a garlic press.

Over age 10 can:

• Use electrical kitchen appliances such as a blender, food processor, electric mixer, microwave or toaster oven.

Ages 12 and up can:

• Chop or slice with a paring knife.
• Use the stovetop to turn burners on and off and select oven temperature.
• Flip pancakes on a hot griddle.
• Place a tray of cookies in the oven.
• Peel vegetables.
• Use an electric can opener.
• Shred cheese with a hand grater.

Children over age 14 can take on more responsibility in the kitchen and can handle tasks such as:

• Operating the stovetop without adult supervision.
• Draining cooked spaghetti into a colander.
• Removing a tray of cookies from the oven.

The Kansas SAFE KIDS Coalition, Inc. is a nonprofit group of 67 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, Johnson County, Lawrence, Salina, Barber County, Topeka, Ford County, Manhattan, Hutchinson, Pottawatomie County, Clay County, Osage County, and Leavenworth. Kansas SAFE KIDS is part of the National SAFE KIDS Campaign.

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