Most accidents involving little children occur in familiar environments, such as the home and its surroundings.
The types of injuries they incur change as children get older.
An infant can easily fall off its nursing table or choke on a piece of food or a small object that gets stuck in its throat.
Some may fall as they climb about.
Others get burned or poisoned when they touch or taste objects within reach.
Children are also injured when they play outdoors.
A few, especially children of school age, also get injured in traffic accidents.
The good news is that majority of accidents involving children can be prevented.
Studies have shown that with a little insight and some knowledge of your child's level of growth and development, you can help prevent most injuries or even fatal accidents.
It is important to remind you that nearly 100 per cent of the responsibility for helping your child to avoid accidents rests on you as the parent-or on other adults with whom the child stays now and then.
This is because you cannot teach a one-year, two-year, or three- year-old to avoid dangers and then count on them remembering such instructions even for ten minutes.
The onus is therefore on older ones, especially the parents to ensure the safety of little children.
The following measures haven been proven to be very helpful in this regard.
Indoors To begin with, take a look around your home.
Using the following checklist, ensure that the items listed below do not pose unnecessary risks in your home: oMedicines: Keep them out of the child's reach in a locked cupboard.
This also applies to non-prescription and natural medicines.
Ask overnight guests to keep their medicines secure.
oHousehold chemicals: These should be stored in their original containers for easy identification, and should be kept in a locked cupboard.
Maintain a strict watch over the chemicals while using them; never leave them unattended even if you are only leaving the room for a brief moment.
oHot water: If you can adjust the temperature of your hot water, put it down to about 50 degrees Celsius.
This way, your child is unlikely to get scalded if he or she turns on the tap.
oStove: Always turn the handles of pans inward on the stove.
Attach a saucepan guard, if available.
The oven door should be equipped with a locking device.
Further, if there's the danger that the child could burn himself by touching the oven door, then a guard or a grating should be attached to prevent the child from directly touching the hot door.
oSharp household utensils: Items such as knives, scissors and other dangerous appliances should be kept in cupboards with locks.
When using such utensils and you have to temporarily put them aside, place them away from the edges of a table or counter, away from a child's reach.
Matches and plastic bags are also dangerous for children.
Plastic bags must be tied in a knot when being stored.
oStairs: These should be fitted with gates of at least 70-75 centimeters in height at both ends of the stairs.
oBookshelves: If the child likes to climb and hang on things, then secure bookshelves and other tall furniture to the wall, to keep them from falling over.
o Windows and balcony doors: Equip these with childproof safety catches or chains of considerable height to prevent the child from opening them or squeezing through them when they are opened for air.
oPower outlets and electric cords: Outlets not in use must be equipped with some kind of lock.
Never leave electric iron on the ironing board, and do not let the cord hang down loose.
oToys: Toys having sharp corners or edges should be discarded.
Same goes for very small toys or even bigger toys that can be pulled into small pieces, as the child can put these into his mouth and get choked.
Older siblings should be taught to put their toys away when the baby is on the floor.
oCandy and snacks: Some snacks, especially hard sweets and peanuts can pose dangers to little children, as these can get stuck in a child's little throat.
In addition to the list above, you can think of other simple ways to prevent accidents in and around your home along this line.
You can also share experiences with friends and acquaintances who have small children.
Outdoors This time, check the areas where your child plays.
Most injuries to children over four years of age occur when they play outdoors.
Most times they fall down and hurt themselves, or they may fall off their bicycles.
But according to experts, the most common fatal outdoor accidents for children between the ages of three and seven are traffic accidents and drowning.
We'll get to that in a moment.
But first, let's examine your surroundings.
When you inspect playgrounds, check to ensure that all equipments are in good working condition so that your child will not be hurt while using them.
For example, ensure that surfaces under swings, climbing frames, and similar equipment are made of soft materials, such as loose sand, so that the child will not hurt himself if he falls on these surfaces.
Are there pools of water or streams near your home? Beware! Only a few centimeters of water is enough for a one-or two-year-old to get drowned.
Experts say that when a little child falls facedown in a pool of water, it often loses its sense of what is up and what is down.
The child simply cannot get back up on its own.
The most fundamental rule, therefore, is this: Never let a child between one and three years of age play alone outdoors without adult supervision.
If there is a quantity of water in the neighborhood, wait until the child is considerably older before allowing him to play outdoors without supervision.
In Traffic The same is true if there is traffic around your home.
Traffic poses particular challenge to children below the age of three.
Preschoolers are only capable of taking in tangible messages and concentrate on one thing at a time.
So to little children, traffic is full of abstract conceptions and double messages.
Do not let your child cross a street on his own before he is of school age.
Also, children are not considered mature enough to cycle alone in busy traffic until they are at least 12 years old.
Children should also be taught to always use a safety helmet when cycling, riding, roller-skating, or tobogganing.
Head injuries are difficult to treat and can cause permanent damage-or even be fatal! At one children's clinic, it was observed that 60 percent of those treated after bicycle accidents suffered injuries to the head and the face, but those using helmets suffered no severe head injuries.
When traveling by car, ensure that your child is buckled up in specially designed safety seats.
This is actually a requirement in many countries, and it has drastically reduced the rate of injuries and deaths among children involved in traffic accidents.
So, if safety seats are available where you live, remember that using one could be a better life insurance.
But bear in mind that safety seats for infants are different from those meant for children over the age of three.
Children are precious gifts from the creator, God.
They are a stabilizing factor in homes, as well as a source of joy to parents and other family members.
We want to take care of them in every way.
Ensuring their safety both indoors and outdoors should therefore be of serious concern to all parents.
Author: Kenneth J.
Agwu