Is your home really safe for your child-to-be?

 

Has your cute, loving baby turned into a menace once it learned how to walk? If yes, then you are one of the millions who face this problem during child-rearing. Small kids are curious. After all, who can blame them? Everything the poor things see is new to them. The world for them is like a giant amusement park, full of fun attractions at every corner. But like every amusement park, the world is also a place full of dangers at every corner. Therefore, there exists a need to childproof/babyproof your house. In simple words, it is the process of making an environment safe for children. Here’s why you absolutely need it.

 

1. According to statistics, accidental injuries is the biggest killer of children between the ages of 1-4. Every year more than 2500 children younger than four become a victim of an accidental injury.

 

2. What’s more, childproofing isn’t a one-time process. As children grow up, the childproofing in your house needs to be updated as well.

 

3. The first thing to get is a Baby Gate. It will restrict your baby’s movement and prevent it from wandering off on its own. Sure, it sounds a bit inhuman, but it will keep your kid out of harm’s way.

 

4. It is necessary to ensure that the baby gate is built using child-friendly materials. Avoid getting anything that has sharp edges or metallic.

 

5. Minimise the number of loose cords around the house. Nothing catches a baby’s attention faster than a freely-hanging thing. Wires should be properly concealed around the house. “For some reason — as many times as you tell kids not to — they love to put things around their neck,” says Meghann Wellard, a leading paediatrician.

 

6. Bathroom doors must be kept locked at all times. Leaving small children alone in a place where water and electricity “live together” is never a good idea. Accidental deaths via drowning or electrocution account for over 30% of the total number.

 

7. Take a small hollow tube, around 1-1.5 cm in diameter. Anything that fits inside the tube can also choke a small child. Keep such things out of a child’s reach.

 

8. If you have stairs in your house, try to make them as inaccessible to your children as possible. Installing a small set of gates will do the job.

 

9. Keep laundry and detergent powders out of reach. On average, around 85,000 children all over the world are brought to the emergency room because of poisoning. 

 

Yes, I agree that babyproofing is a lot of work. But, it is a small price to pay to prevent several childhood injuries. Plus, it is foolish to underestimate little kids. If you turn away for a second, 11/10 chances that they will be doing something that they should not.