Bruises and bumps are common things in the life of your adventurous kids. But sometimes one slip can be fatal for him/her. Here are a few statistics researchers at the INSERM (National Institute of Health and Medical Research) in France have gathered concerning accidents at home:
* 15,4% in the kitchen: intoxication due to carbon monoxide, intoxication due to household products, falls from high chairs, burns, cuts are the most frequent risks.
* 14% in the living room: fire caused by lamps, candles, chimneys, and suffocations are the main risks.
* 8,7% on the staircases: Mainly falls.
* 4,8% in the bathroom: Intoxication from medications, drowning and falls.
* All kids before 15 years old have most of their bruises and bumps at home.
Kitchen
The kitchen is a convivial place but is sometimes one of the most dangerous places on earth if we are not attentive enough.
Potential Dangers:
* It is during the moments of haste like preparing foods that we sometimes lose our vigilance and we can cut ourselves.
* Defective gas plumbing can cause intoxication by carbon monoxide or a fire in case there are leaks.
* Nothing must be left within reach of children. The biggest risks for them are burns from the boiling liquids, ovens, hot plates, vapors from cookers and pans.
Safety Precautions:
* Turn off electric appliances after each use.
* Use ovens with cold or isothermal doors.
* For the chair of your baby, fix your child properly on it, place a rug underneath it and place it far away from the kitchen tabletop.
* Close your kitchen drawers with keys after each use so that children do not have access to knifes, forks and other dangerous objects.
* Always place your hot plates, hot and cutting objects far from the edge, out of reach of children.
* Always keep the handles of your pans close to the wall and away from you.
* Always have your gas pipes installed by a professional and replace them every 2 years.
* Always buy household products fitted with security caps. Close them after each use.
* Never place toxic substances in standard bottles else they can be mistaken for ordinary drinks
* Keep them in a safe place far from children.
Living Room
Potential Dangers:
* In a living room, the most frequent risks are falls, mostly for kids and old persons with failing vision.
* Other risks which threaten kids are suffocations.
* Risks of getting burnt and fires are also present in the living room.
Safety Precautions:
* Your living room must less cluttered as possible. The furniture must be spaced out and avoid somber lighting in your living room. Here is a simple guide on how to clean up your living room in 15 minutes.
* Do not let small objects litter the floor of your living room. Pick it up as soon as anything falls down.
* Do not place rugs, tapestries near lamps, candles, chimneys and other lighting.
* Install a security ramp and anti-slip covering on your stairways.
* Fixed your rugs to the floor with glue or transparent duct tapes.
* Place cushioned corner-protections on your furniture to prevent your kids from getting hurt if ever they bump into the corners of the furniture.
Bathroom
A bathroom is a room where we love to relax and forget the worries of the world in our bathtub. But nevertheless we must always be careful in the bathroom where the risks of electrocution is greatest.
Potential Dangers:
* The most frequent accidents are drowning, especially for small children. If there is no one looking after him/her, a child can drown in a few minutes in 20 cm of water!
* Burns and scalds from hot water.
* Intoxication from the ingestion of medications.
* Cuts from razors and scissors.
* Falls on slippery surfaces.
* Electrocutions from electric appliances lying around.
Safety Precautions:
* Place an anti-slip rug on the floor inside your bathtub and shower stand.
* Always keep eyes on your kids when they are in the bathtub.
* Always check that the temperature of the water in the bathtub and from your shower is below 37°C.
* Keep your medications in a cupboard locked securely with a key.
* Keep cutting objects like razors and scissors on a high shelf out of the reach of your kids.
* Turn off electric objects like a hairdryer after use and place them on a high shelf.