Child Safety at Home: A Practical Guide

Don't overdo it with toys, and be careful around sharp-edged furniture. Keep away from detergents and chemical cleaning products.

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Home Accidents: How to Keep Children Safe at Home 1

CHILD SAFETY AT HOME

Child safety at home is not a given. On the one hand, there are the risks associated with household accidents (hitting a child's head on the edge of a piece of furniture, slipping while getting out of the bathtub, too many toys, etc.). On the other hand, children's safety can be jeopardized by harmful, yet highly corrosive, household cleaning products: detergents for dishes, glass, and kitchenware. Or even chlorine or oxygen-based bleaches, metal and oven cleaners, and bathroom cleaners. anti-limescale products and anti-rust.

WHEN CHILDREN'S SAFETY AT HOME IS AT RISK

Child safety at home is particularly at risk during two time slots: lunch and dinner. During these times, parents may find themselves busy preparing meals, the child is out of control, and may come into direct contact with harmful substances. Or even swallow coins. buttons, batteries, pens. All things that can cause a form of poisoning.

WARNING SIGNS

When a child has come into contact with a potentially poisonous substance, certain symptoms appear that signal the problem and require immediate intervention.
  • Threw up, with possible blood loss
  • Chest and abdominal pain
  • Very strong feeling of nausea
  • Difficulty breathing regularly
  • Oral cavity lesions
  • Excessive salivation

WHAT TO DO

The immediate intervention, without delay, is to take the child to the emergency room. Even if all the symptoms of poisoning aren't apparent, you simply know for certain that he or she has come into contact with potentially poisonous products. Try to arrive at the emergency room with precise information to give the doctors: what product the child ingested, at what time, and in what quantity. In the meantime, simply wash your hands. good face, the child's eyes and hands.

WHAT NOT TO DO

Among the things you should not do, there is inducing the child to vomit. It's useless and you risk the caustic substance, rising from the stomach to the esophagus, damaging the digestive tract. Again: don't let anyone drink water for the child, or even milk and other drinks, and not
Give him medications and food. Leave him fasting until he sees the doctor.

DOMESTIC ACCIDENTS

Quasi 600 thousand children, every year, end up in the hospital, in an emergency room, for a domestic accident. A truly enormous number. Sometimes it's pure chance, other times it's due to our own distraction and even some trivial things. The places most at risk, in particular, are kitchen and bath, where the child can come into contact with different objects and is driven by curiosity to make reckless moves.

Burns, bruises, fractures, wounds, poisonings: every age has its own accident domestic even if the phase in which our children run the most risks is the one that goes from first months ai .

HOW TO PROTECT CHILDREN FROM HOUSEHOLD ACCIDENTS

Here is a series of useful tips on How to avoid possible domestic accidents involving little ones:

  • ALWAYS LAY NEWBORNS ON THEIR BACKS. If your baby is a newborn, be careful when placing him in the crib or cot: place him correctly, always on his back and never on his side, to avoid the risk of suffocation due to possible regurgitation.
  • NEVER TOO MANY TOYS. Don't fill the crib with toys and don't make him wear necklaces, bracelets or pendants when he sleeps.
  • DON'T LEAVE YOUR LITTLE ONES ALONE. Never leave your baby alone on the changing surface or in the bathtub, not even for a single moment.
  • BE CAREFUL OF BALCONIES AND WINDOWS. As your child grows and begins to walk, supervise him constantly and never leave him in a room with a balcony or an open window, especially if there is furniture or objects that allow the child to climb.
  • WATCH OUT FOR THE CORNERS. Secure door openings with a safety system and cover furniture edges with bumpers. Also, teach your child never to put their fingers in door cracks.
  • …AND TO THE STAIRS. Never let him go down the stairs without your help, at least until he learns to stand independently.
  • AVOID KEEPING TOO SMALL OBJECTS IN THE HOUSE. Try to pay close attention to what your child touches and puts in his or her mouth. Never leave coins, buttons, sweets, batteries, pens, or other small objects lying around that he or she could accidentally swallow. Also, check toys to ensure they are always in good condition and CE-certified: swallowing foreign bodies, such as small toy parts, and the resulting choking hazard, is more common in children between the ages of 1 and 4.
  • THE SAME THING FOR POISONINGS AND INTOXICATIONS. Don't forget your medicines or household and personal hygiene products around.
  • BEWARE OF BURNS. When cooking, use the inner burners and always turn the handles of pots and pans toward the wall. Explain to your child that touching the oven door can cause burns, and never leave matches or lighters within reach.
  • KEEP THE IRON AWAY FROM CHILDREN. But also from hot water bottles and stoves used to heat the various rooms of the house.
  • PAY ATTENTION TO SCISSORS AND KNIVES. Falls, resulting in trauma and bruises, and cuts are also common up to the age of 14. So be careful where you leave scissors, knives, razor blades, glass, or porcelain objects.
  • ASSESS THE CHILD'S REACTION TO THE ACCIDENT. If he laughs immediately afterward when he falls, there's no need to worry too much. The same goes for if he starts crying and then stops at a certain point. If, however, the pain doesn't go away and the child faints or vomits, go to the nearest emergency room immediately.

And since you can never be too careful, here are three more useful tips that shouldn't be overlooked:

  • Try to avoid tablecloths hanging off the table
  • For children under seven years old, bunk beds are not recommended.
  • The oven door must be made of heat-insulating glass

A FEW BUT ESSENTIAL RULES FOR RAISING A CHILD WELL:

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