How to Make Your Home Safer for Children

There are many home injuries that can occur to a child that can be easily prevented. There are so many hazards around the house that children can get into and become injured. Here are a few tips on how to make your home safer for children

∗ Cover electrical outlets. Children can easily become shocked by putting things into electrical outlets. The small holes in the outlets can be curious to a child. The best thing to do is cover the outlets. There are special outlet covers specially designed so children can not be shocked. These can be bought at hardware stores and many children's stores.

∗ Have smoke alarms installed. Smoke alarms are essential in any home, and especially ones that have children. Have smoke alarms placed around the home so the children will not stay asleep if a fire does break out.

∗ Put gates on the top and the bottom of the stairs. This is important for very young children and toddlers. If they are crawling around the house or learning to walk they may not have the balance to go up and down stairs. Make sure they cannot travel on the stairs by placing gates at the top and bottom.

∗ Lift up blind and shades cords out of children's reach. Many times the cords can become tangled with children. Make sure that they are out of reach so this does not happen.

∗ Childproof doorknobs and door stops. By using these items you can keep children from opening doors to places they should not go in. These are good for places you keep tools, the garage, and the kitchen.

∗ Find out everything about the plants in the house. Many times household plants can be toxic. Find out if there are any in your house as it may be a good idea to get rid of them. Children put everything in their mouth and if the plant is toxic it may make them very sick.

∗ Make sure to close off the garage or make it safer. You may want to close off the garage entirely to your children. You can also make sure everything is locked up so harmful chemicals and dangerous tools are out of reach of children.

∗ Keep buckets and pails closed. Buckets and pails are very dangerous for small children. This is especially the case if they are filled with water. Children can fall in and drown because they cannot get out. Make sure buckets and pails are always closed when children are around. If you are doing a project which calls for the use of buckets or pails make sure you close them off when you are not around. It is also a good idea to keep children out of the area when you are using a bucket or a pail for projects around the house.

∗ Turn down the temperature on your water heater thermostat. Many times children with touch the hot water thermostat and become burned. You can turn the thermostat to between 120 and 125 degrees so that your children will not be scalded if they touch it.

Author: Jason Green