A child who has started walking can easily get into trouble. Kitchen cabinets, outlets, small objects – there are many hazards that parents should be aware of. How do you secure your home or apartment to make it safe for a child who has started walking?
When a child starts walking, the house becomes a real playground for him. Unfortunately, the toddler does not realize that there are many dangers waiting for him in this space. When the little man discovers that he can now reach places that were once inaccessible, he will certainly want to penetrate every corner. Stairs, oven, household goods will be extremely attractive to the child. How to arrange the space so that the child can move around safely?
Just because your child is young doesn’t mean that he won’t understand anything. You can start slowly explaining to him what is dangerous. Of course, you should adapt your speech to his knowledge and understanding of the world. Your child must be aware of the dangers that surround him so that he gradually becomes independent. After all, you will not always be there for him.
Note that your child does not see the world from your perspective. So if you want to find every danger that may stand in your child’s way, bend down and check how the world looks through your child’s eyes. Remove all fragile and small objects – usually toddlers love to put them in their mouths.
It’s a good idea to secure all the corners and angles of the furniture in your home. Children often trip over things and what’s worse, they can hurt themselves when they bump into a corner of a bench, for example. For this purpose, you can buy specially designed silicone protectors and place them on the corners.
Your child can grab hard on furniture and cabinets, pulling them down on himself. This can be very dangerous for him! To prevent furniture from falling over, secure it to the wall with special mounting rails.
Keep all dangerous objects and products well out of your child’s reach. Remember that prevention is better than cure, e.g. accidental poisoning with installation foam. Medications, cleaning products, dishwashing detergent, bleach, and some plants and products containing alcohol or other dangerous substances should be kept out of your child’s reach.
If your home has stairs, secure them by installing safety gates at the top and bottom. This way, you will avoid mishaps. You can also set up barriers to make it difficult to enter rooms or parts of rooms that you think might be dangerous for your child.
Children love to climb on furniture by themselves. To minimize the possibility of your child climbing to a dangerous height, move some furniture away from windows, just in case.
If electrical outlets are not high up, secure them with special plugs. This will eliminate the risk of electrocution. This is a simple, inexpensive and effective solution.
Anyone who has ever stuck their finger in a door knows that it hurts a lot. If you don’t want your child to experience this pain, install door stops.
To avoid accidents, remember to lock all doors from furniture and appliances (this can include kitchen furniture, dishwasher, washing machine, etc.). If your child can open them independently, you can install some type of lock.
Main Photo: Henley Design Studio, source: unsplash.com
