It’s important that everyone pays attention to safety within your home, this is especially true if you are expecting children. It can be quite a tricky topic for parents, as often they’re not quite sure how to go about doing this.
Fortunately, there are hundreds of ways in which home can be made safer. There are many children all across the globe taken to hospitals after being involved in an accident at home. This is why it is imperative to read our list, we’ve summarised some of the most popular points. Here are some of the ways to make home safer if you are expecting:
1. Prevent falls
This is probably the most basic thing you will pay attention to. A lot of accidents account for falling down stairs or steps. These falls can be prevented in a number of ways. Once the baby starts crawling, you can install safety gates to ensure additional protection at stair areas. Non slip pads can be placed as well under mats and rugs to maintain safety. Moreover, safety can further be enhanced by not leaving anything on the stairs. Stairs should be kept clear for the babies’ safety.
2. Keep the sharp objects away
One of the things that a lot of babies are fascinated with is sharp objects. For example, knife, scissors, paper clips and other instruments can attract babies. Giving them easy access to these objects can be problematic and result in potential injuries. If you want to ensure that nothing accidental happens through these projects, then you will have to lock up these instruments in lockers where the babies do not have access. It will help in minimizing any potential threats to their safety. You should look into installing child proof hooks on all your cabinets so they cannot be opened, thus they cannot gain access to any problem objects. Place problem objects out of harm’s way and on the very top shelves just incase they are able to open the child proof locks.
3. Protection against fire
This is another potential threat to babies. Therefore, it is of paramount importance to keep safety checks in place to ensure that babies are absolutely protected from fire. Smoke alarms are usually installed in hallways as per building code and regulations, however you can buy standalone smoke detectors and place them in rooms so that any fire originating in the room can have early detection. Keep a fire extinguisher at multiple points in your home, especially one nearby if you have a fireplace. You also need to ensure that babies do not have access to these type of places, any heaters or electrical equipment should be kept out of reach. It is also a legal requirement in a number of states to have a fireguard if there are children in the house. Therefore, consider these points in detail.
4. Update the window coverings
This is something that can be easily overlooked, but blinds and curtains are potentially very hazardous if they are not installed with the appropriate child safety devices. Cords & chains need to be secured. Ideally, you should always opt for cordless roller blinds or motorized blinds to reduce any threat of strangulation by the cords and chains on the window treatment. However if you aren’t able to get motorised roller blinds or spring controlled / cordless blinds then you need to make sure they are properly secured with child safety devices as mentioned. You should never be positioning blinds and cords near a cot. Certain suppliers can be used as well, like the one mentioned above, as they stock green guard certified fabrics. These special fabrics do not emit any VOC gases. This will further help with children’s asthma or allergy problems.
The bottom line
Even though this is not an exhaustive list, above are some of the major ways in which you can make the home safer.