Babies and toddlers are curious creatures. Something captures their attention — a stuffed animal, a shiny object or a noisy rattle — and they’re going after it.
Just make sure they aren’t chasing a teddy bear on top of a dresser, the blade of a knife or a pill bottle.
Baby-proofing is key to keeping children safe at home.
“Parents should realize that injuries are the leading cause of death in children over one year of age,” and many are preventable.
The most common injuries are burns, cuts, bruises and head and other injuries from falls, said Dr. Garry Gardner, chairman of the American Academy of Pediatrics’ Committee on Injury, Violence and Poison Prevention.
New parents have some time before they need to baby-proof, since newborns aren’t going anywhere just yet. Experts recommend staying ahead of a baby’s development by a milestone; for instance, blocking the top and bottom of the stairs before a child’s on the move.
Eventually you’ll need to lock up cleaning products, medicine and plastic bags, clear the house of choking and strangulation hazards (including the cords of drapes and blinds) and block access to dangerous areas, among other things.
Furniture or TVs that could topple should be anchored to the walls. Toddlers might use dresser drawers “like stepladders,” and an accident can happen in an instant, said Colleen Driscoll, executive director of the International Association for Child Safety, a professional organization for baby- and child-proofers that was founded in 1997.
Proofers may be called for a top-to-bottom job or just to install a single gate, she said.
The baby-proofing industry began about 20 years ago. Driscoll’s association has about 110 child-proofers as members in the United States, she said. It is launching a certification program, with the first certifications expected in 2011.
Professionals are familiar with safety products and can determine which ones are right for a home, saving parents multiple trips to the store, Driscoll said. Pros also can teach parents about dangers they might not think of.
The cost of professional baby-proofing varies. Smith charges $100 for a room-by-room consultation and product recommendation, which clients receive whether they hire the company to do the installation or not.
To baby-proof an entire 4,000-square-foot house — the average size of his clients’ homes, he said — he charges $3,000 to $4,000, while a single-story ranch smaller than 2,000 square feet would cost about $800. The prices include products and installation.
To take on the task yourself, experts recommend the age-old trick of dropping to all fours and looking for hazards from a child’s vantage. To learn what you’re looking for, check online sources such as the academy’s www.healthychildren.org, baby-proofing checklists and do-it-yourself books.
“The Safe Baby,” by Debra Holtzman, offers chapters on nursery, kitchen and bathroom safety, and preventing falls. No matter who does the safety improvements, she urges parents to pay attention.
Parents should research products, and choose those certified by the Juvenile Products Manufacturing Association, Holtzman said.
Avoiding products recalled by the government is also important. Check recalls.gov or sign up on the site to be notified when recalls are issued, Holtzman said. And send back product registration cards to be notified of company recalls.
Once the home is proofed, don’t put your feet up for long. Safety experts suggest reassessing periodically because the hazards change as a child grows.
Gates, latches and locks are no substitute for a parent’s watchful eye, Holtzman cautioned. “No child safety device is 100 percent perfect,” she said.
Resources
U.S. government’s recall site: recalls.gov
Juvenile Products Manufacturing Association: www.jpma.org
International Association for Child Safety: www.iafcs.org
American Academy of Pediatrics HealthyChildren: www.healthychildren.org
Debra Holtzman: thesafetyexpert.com
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