Having a safe home is a priority for parents of babies and young children. A quick way to ensure that your entire house is free from major risks is by child-proofing each area.
Below are some of the best tips for baby-proofing your home, room by room.
Kitchen Child-Proofing Hacks
The kitchen may be one of the most high-traffic places in any home. It’s also where many accidents occur.
To keep infants and toddlers away from harm, put the following measures into place:
- Make sure drawers cannot be pulled out all the way.
- Keep knives away from child level. Store them in upper cabinets.
- Never allow kids in the kitchen without an adult. Watch a child at all times, especially when cooking a meal.
- Consider putting locks on the cabinet under the sink if you store chemicals and detergents there.
Living Room Child-Proofing Hacks
Another popular gathering space is the living room. There, you’ll want to be similarly cautious.
- Put plastic outlet plugs into all exposed outlets. Do this in other places of your house, too.
- Put “bumpers” around coffee table sharp corners. If you want, you can even use thick towels or fabrics for this purpose.
- Remove any objects that are breakable, such as candy dishes and vases. That way, children can’t knock them over and potentially cut themselves.
- Secure and hide all electrical cords. Be sure to teach toddlers and older children the dangers of electric shocks.
Bathroom Child-Proofing Hacks
Making your home child-proof means focusing special attention in any bathroom that is frequently used by kids.
When you’re trying to figure out how to make your home safer for toddlers, be certain to include these actions:
- Never have any electric appliances like hair dryers or flat irons plugged in around water. Store them in an area your child cannot reach. When they are in use, keep curious toddlers and little ones away from the area.
- Always stay in the bathroom with a bathing child. Drowning can occur very quickly and in shallow water.
- If you store medicines in your bathroom, keep them high up in a cabinet, or even in a locked receptacle.
- Do you keep cleaning products under the sink? Remove them until your child is old enough to understand the dangers of playing with them or tasting them.
- Remove the locks on the doors to the bathroom. Otherwise, your child could lock himself or herself in.
Bedroom Child-Proofing Hacks
A final area of your residence that should be baby-proofed is each bedroom.
Whether you’re baby-proofing your home when you’re expecting, or you’re baby-proofing it with kids already here, take these risk-minimizing ideas into consideration.
- Take all stuffed animals, pillows and loose blankets out of the baby’s crib to lessen the likelihood of suffocation.
- Keep baby creams, powders, medicines and washes on upper shelves, not where a crawling baby or walking toddler can get to them.
- If you have window coverings with long sashes, put the cords up and around the top of the window covering.
Your goal is to make your home a warm, welcoming and safe zone for your child to develop, learn, play and rest. A little baby-proofing goes a long way!
