Christopher Byrne, aka The Toy Guy® offered to share his baby safety tips from TimetoPlayMag.com. I remember being completely stressed out as a new mom worrying about all the trouble my little one could get into. Chris makes some very good points, and offers these helpful tips:
With all the warnings out there today, it’s possible for parents and caregivers to be scared 24/7 or see every room as a potential injury field. For the most part, this isn’t the case. However, taking precautions will help protect your baby. The goal is to balance your peace of mind with the realities of a curious baby in the home. Above all, let common sense be your guide. With proper preparation, the statistical chance of accidents is very low. However, as a parent or caregiver, you’ll want to be sure to take reasonable precautions.
1. Supervision is the most important thing you can do. We all know how fast babies can move, so being attentive is important. You should never to leave a baby alone in a room unless he or she is in a play yard or crib.
2. Child-proofing your home means covering outlets, putting baby safe latches on cabinets, taking breakables out of reach of a crawling or toddling child.
3. For children under three, everything goes in the mouth. And we mean everything—from that appealing toy to the cat’s tail. Children should be watched and supervised, and if there are older children in the house with toys that have small parts, enroll them in helping with the baby-proofing, and check areas where the baby will be to ensure nothing is within reach. Babies are naturally curious. It doesn’t hurt to get down and crawl around yourself so you see things from the baby’s perspective.
4. At bathtime, check water temperature on your wrist to feel that it’s appropriate, and remember, that what seems warm to you may be hot to your baby. Make sure there’s a non-slip mat on the bottom of the tub and, of course, never leave the baby unattended.
5. Make sure you have proper car seats and that they are installed correctly.
6. Some people insist on toilet cover latches. However, these can be very frustrating for anyone who isn’t a toddler to work. You may instead just opt to keep the bathroom door closed. Either way, if you’re attending your toddler, he or she is unlikely to be in the bathroom alone.
7. Keep toddlers away from the stove and other appliances. Depending on your toddler, you may want to put safety covers on stove knobs, and always turn pot handles into the center if you’re leaving something on the stove so that little hands can’t reach up for them.
8. When assembling items such as playards, toys, swingsets or anything a child will use, read and follow the instructions. These items have been designed and engineered with safety in mind, so proper assembly ensures that they will work as intended.
9. Keep cleaning products and medicines out of reach of children. Latches on cabinets work, but storing things on high shelves works, too. The same goes for anything you store in the garage. When in doubt out of reach is a good way to go.
10. Check toys, cribs and anything the baby handles regularly for loose or broken pieces. If you’re in doubt, throw it out.
11. Much as we all like to save money, resist the temptation to buy cribs, playards or even toys at garage sales or thrift shops. Such products do not have warranties, and there may be hidden damage that isn’t obvious but could cause a problem later. This is one situation where saving a little money isn’t always the best way to go.
12. Accidents can happen, though with care they’re nowhere near as likely as they may seem. Make sure you have all necessary phone numbers and contact information close at hand.
13. Relax. Parents cause a lot of stress and worry for themselves unnecessarily. Of course, you want to be conscious and alert, but if you’re watching your baby and understand that he or she is going to get into everything possible, you minimize the chances of anything going wrong.
Your time with your baby is precious. The goal of all of this is not to make you hyper-vigilant or frightened about what might happen but to enable you to enjoy your time with your baby, knowing that you’ve done everything in your power to make a safe, loving and welcoming world for him or her.
Thanks Chris! You can check out Chris’ toy review site at TimetoPlayMag,com
(You can buy outlet protectors like the one photographed at The Right Start.)
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