Choking

Infants put anything and everything into their mouth. Parents should keep all small objects or items that have tiny detachable parts out of a baby’s reach as they can pose a choking hazard.

Safety Measures

• Buy toys that are appropriate for your child’s age. Check the labels if you’re unsure.
• Encourage your older kids to keep their toys (that can be potentially dangerous) away from their baby brother or sister.
• Check toys frequently for loose or broken parts that could cause choking.
• Make sure that baby’s toys like rattles and teethers are large enough so that they cannot become lodged in an infants throat.
• Regularly check floors for small objects like coins, paper clips, hair pins, etc.
• If your child is under four, do not give him hard candies, popcorn, nuts, raisins or grapes.

Drowning

A baby can drown in just one inch of water in a matter of seconds.

Safety Measures

• Never leave your baby or toddler unattended in the bath while you answer the phone or the door.
• If you live in a house with a private swimming pool, install a four sided fence around it so your baby or toddler will not risk falling into the pool.

Poisoning

In an annual report by the American Association of Poison Control Centers Toxic Exposure Surveillance System, over 415,000 kids one year and below were exposed to poison in 1993.

Safety Measures

• Keep all potentially harmful products out of reach of your child. These may include medicines, pesticides or household detergents. never refer to ‘medicine’ as ‘candy’ to your child.
• Keep perfumes, cosmetics and mouthwash on high shelves.
• If you keep plants at home, make sure they are not poisonous or pose a potential threat to your child.

Burns

Babies and children have thinner skin than adults and are therefore more susceptible to burns at lower temperatures within a shorter period of time. Hot tap water, heated beverages and foods are potential causes of burns in young children.

Safety Measures

• Always test the water temperature before putting your baby in the bathtub.
• Do not warm the milk bottle in the microwave oven. Heat it with warm water instead.
• Do not hold your child and a cup of hot beverage at the same time.
• Keep hot foods and water away from the table edge.
• Never carry your child when you are cooking. He could reach out and touch the hot pan or worse, get scalded by heated oil.
• Do not let your child come near you when you are ironing. He may accidentally pull at the iron cord when you are not looking and get scalded.
• Always keep matches and lighters safe in a high cabinet. It may be a little inconvenient for you but at least it will give you peace of mind.

Suffocation and Strangulation

Young children, especially babies fall easy prey to these hazards, most often than not, due to the parent’s negligence.

Safety Measures

• Make sure the baby’s cot mattress is firm and fits the cot perfectly.
• Check that the gap between the cot railings are not wide enough for the baby to get his head stuck.
• Do not put pillows or thick comforters in the baby’s cot.
• Keep all plastic bags away from your child.
• Never tie a pacifier or anything around your child’s neck.