Home Safety
From infancy to the teen years, home is a haven - but it can be a danger. Just think about the risks an exposed outlet poses a crawling infant or about what unsecured medications could do to a curious child.
Baby Proofing
If you have a baby, you'll need to look at your home from their perspective. Get on the floor and crawl around. See anything tempting? Shiny? Dangerous, like stairs or cords? For some tips from Safe Kids USA about keeping your baby safe at home, please click here.
Curious Toddler
Life as a toddler and young child is all about exploration. Safe Kids USA has tips to keep your little explorer safe. Please click here for information.
Burns, Falls and Fire Prevention
Older children can still get into scrapes. For tips from Safe Kids USA on how to protect them at home, please click here.
Poison Prevention for All Children
If you have questions about a possible poisoning, call 1-800-222-1222.
If this is an emergency and someone is having trouble breathing, call 911.
When it Comes to Poison, Knowledge is Power:
- Did you know a poison is anything that can harm someone if used the wrong way, by the wrong person or in the wrong amount? This can include plants, animals, bugs, food, chemicals and medications.
- Did you know different poisons can be harmful in different ways – through your skin or eyes, by breathing it in or swallowing it?
- Did you know more than 2 million possible poisonings are reported to poison control centers every year?
- Did you know 93 percent of poisonings occur at home?
- Did you know 51 percent of possible poisonings involve children under 6?
That’s why poison control, especially around children, is so important. Here are some recommendations from the American Association of Poison Control Centers to help you protect children from poisons:
- Post the telephone number for your poison control center (1-800-222-1222) near your phone, in a place where all family members would be able to find it quickly in an emergency.
- Remove all nonessential drugs and household products from your home. Discard them according to the manufacturer's instructions.
- If you have small children, avoid keeping highly toxic products, such as drain cleaners, in the home, garage, shed, or other place children can access.
- Buy medicines and household products in child-resistant packaging and be sure that caps are always on tight. Do not remove child-safety caps. Avoid keeping medicines, vitamins, or household products in anything but their original packaging.
- Store all of your medicines and household products in a locked closet or cabinet–including products and medicines with child-resistant containers.
- Crawl around your house, including inside your closets, to inspect it from a child's point of view. You'll likely find a poisoning hazard you hadn't noticed before.
- Never refer to medicine or vitamins as "candy."
- Make sure visiting grandparents, family friends, or other care givers keep their medications away from children. For example, if Grandma keeps pills in her purse, make sure the purse is out of children's reach.
- Keep a bottle of syrup of ipecac in your home–this can be used to induce vomiting. Use it only when the poison control center tells you to.
- Avoid products such as cough syrup or mouthwash that contain alcohol – these are hazardous for young children. Look for alcohol-free alternatives.
- Keep cosmetics and beauty products out of children's reach. Remember that hair permanents and relaxers are toxins as well.
For information about poison prevention, please visit the following sites:
Additional Links:
www.take25.org/page.asp?page=50
www.doh.state.fl.us/demo/InjuryPrevention/index.html