Safety Hacks For Keeping Your KIds Safe At Home

Every year, about 100,000 kids aged 5 and below are taken to hospitals for staircase-related injuries, according to a study by the Center for Injury Research. Stairs are just one of the dangers a child can face in a home designed for adults. There are other hazards found in a typical home environment that every parent needs to be aware of, but these can all be made safer with good preparation. You can start by doing the following.

Supervise your kids

You'd be surprised at how easy it is for your child to get into trouble, especially when they are still in their formative years. As they learn to talk, walk, run and climb, they are likely to put themselves in dangerous situations. This is why you should keep tabs on them at all times. It takes just a few seconds when you're not paying attention for your child to fall from a bed or swallow a coin, so when you're unable to supervise your kids, you should make arrangements for another responsible adult to do it. Never leave your children unsupervised, even if it's 'just for an hour'.

Make your home child-friendly

Your job of protecting your kids from danger starts from the moment they're born. When you have a new baby, the first thing you should do is to ensure that your home is safe and prepared for a baby to live in. You may not realize it, but your home could have a few potential hazards for children. It is up to you to do a thorough inspection of your home environment to identify all the risks, and take the necessary steps to prevent or remove them. This could include things like installing safety gates at the top and bottom of stairs, ensuring all heat sources are inaccessible to kids, childproofing drawers, locking away sharp objects, and ensuring all electrical sockets have covers.

Educate your kids on home safety

No matter how good you are at supervising your kids, you can't be there every second. Sometimes you have to trust your child to know the right thing to do in certain situations, but this is only possible if you have taught them. Children are fast learners, so you should teach them about home safety whenever the opportunity presents itself. When you catch them doing something risky, make them stop immediately and explain to them why they should never do it again.

Every parent has a responsibility to create a safe home environment for their children. You can do a lot to prevent common home injuries like burns and falls, but if your child is injured, it's also important to know basic first aid so that you can care for your child before medical help arrives.