- Home
- Parents Home
- Allergy Center
- Asthma Center
- Cancer Center
- Diabetes Center
- A to Z Dictionary
- Emotions & Behavior
- First Aid & Safety
- Food Allergy Center
- General Health
- Growth & Development
- Flu Center
- Heart Health
- Homework Help Center
- Infections
- Diseases & Conditions
- Nutrition & Fitness Center
- Play & Learn Center
- School & Family Life
- Pregnancy Center
- Newborn Center
- Q&A
- Recipes
- Sports Medicine Center
- Doctors & Hospitals
- Videos
- Para Padres
- Home
- Kids Home
- Asthma Center
- Cancer Center
- Movies & More
- Diabetes Center
- Getting Help
- Feelings
- Puberty & Growing Up
- Health Problems of Grown-Ups
- Health Problems
- Homework Center
- How the Body Works
- Illnesses & Injuries
- Nutrition & Fitness Center
- Recipes & Cooking
- Staying Healthy
- Stay Safe Center
- Relax & Unwind Center
- Q&A
- Heart Center
- Videos
- Staying Safe
- Kids' Medical Dictionary
- Para Niños
- Home
- Teens Home
- Asthma Center
- Be Your Best Self Center
- Cancer Center
- Diabetes Center
- Diseases & Conditions
- Drugs & Alcohol
- Expert Answers (Q&A)
- Flu Center
- Homework Help Center
- Infections
- Managing Your Medical Care
- Managing Your Weight
- Nutrition & Fitness Center
- Recipes
- Safety & First Aid
- School & Work
- Sexual Health
- Sports Center
- Stress & Coping Center
- Videos
- Your Body
- Your Mind
- Para Adolescentes
Childproofing and Preventing Household Accidents
If you've never crawled around your home on your hands and knees, give it a go. Kids explore their everyday settings, and this will let you see things as they do to make sure your home is safe.
We might think of babies and toddlers when we hear the words "babyproofing" or "childproofing." And it's true that young kids have the highest risk of being injured at home because that's where they spend most of their time. But accidental injury is the leading cause of death in kids up to 14 years old — and more than a third of these injuries happen at home.
What Accidents Can Happen at Home?
Common causes of home-injury deaths are fire and burns, suffocation, drowning, choking, falls, poisoning, and guns.
Most household accidents happen in areas with:
- water: in the bathroom, kitchen, swimming pools, or hot tubs
- heat or flames: in the kitchen or at a barbecue grill
- toxic substances: under the kitchen sink, in the medicine cabinet, in the garage or garden shed, or even in a purse or other place where medicines are stored
- the potential for a fall: on stairs, slippery floors, from high windows, or from tipping furniture
- choking hazards: including an unsafe sleep environment, foods that pose a choking risk (like grapes or hot dogs), button batteries, and items inside and outside the home that could entrap or strangle a child
How Can We Prevent Accidents?
The most important safeguard is to always keep a close eye on young kids. Even if your home is childproofed, it only takes an instant for babies and toddlers to fall, run over to a hot stove, or put the wrong thing in their mouths.
Accidents will still happen, though. So it's important to be prepared. If you're expecting a baby or have kids, it's wise to:
- Learn cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) and age-appropriate abdominal thrusts (the Heimlich maneuver).
- Keep these numbers near the phone (for yourself and caregivers):
- poison control: 1-800-222-1222 (online at Poison Control)
- doctor's number
- parents' work and cellphone numbers
- neighbor's or nearby relative's number (if you need someone to watch other kids in case of an emergency)
- Make a first-aid kit and keep emergency instructions inside.
- Install smoke detectors and carbon monoxide detectors. Change the batteries regularly.