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How-To Booklet: Child Safety |
| Drowning |
| Open, liquid
filled buckets can be lethal. Especially dangerous are five gallon,
straight sided, industrial buckets. The child bends over for a look,
perhaps reaching into a liquid, and falls in. After falling in
headfirst, the child's upper body weight keeps the bucket from
tipping over. The child cannot get free and drowns. It can literally take just a minute (Figure 1).
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| Electrical Safety |
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Cover electric outlets. To prevent shock or burn injuries if a child sticks a hairpin, key, or other metal item into an outlet, install safety outlet plates or guards on accessible outlets (Figure 2). Children may learn to pull out plastic outlet plugs; consider changing to an outlet with a cover. You can also position immovable furniture so children can't reach outlets. When inserting electrical plus into outlets, make sure no part of the prongs are left exposed.
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| Falls |
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Safety straps prevent falls. Many infants have fallen from a stroller, babycarrier, highchair, changing table, or similar device when the safety strap was not in use (Figure 3). 
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| Furniture |
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Fasten cabinets, bookshelves, china closets, and similar pieces securely to the wall with angle braces or spreading drywall anchors (Figure 5).
Some latches not only keep children from opening; they also require an adult to do the closing. These types prevent small fingers from being pinched (Figure 6).
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| Scalds and Burns |
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Prevent water scalding. Keep your water heater set at 110 to 120 degrees (Figure 7), and bathe children at 102 degrees.
Dishwasher steam can burn too; put an appliance latch on the dishwasher (as well as the oven door and other appliances) (Figure 8).
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| Hidden Hazards |
Secure or eliminate
strangling hazards (Figure 9).These consist of window
blind or drapery cords, wall decorations with ribbons or streamers,
laundry bag strings, bibs, loose clothing (especially on backyard
play equipment), playground cargo nets, and similar
items. |
