Child Safety Guide

Burns account for the largest number of deaths caused by home accidents. Most burn injuries in the home happen to children under five years of age. Sources of these burns include hot water taps, open fires, electrical outlets and wires, hot liquids on the stove or table, and chemicals such as gasoline or paint thinners. Fireworks and sparklers can also be extremely harmful to children.

It is important that children not be left unattended at home, especially in bathrooms and kitchens. Screens should be placed in front of fireplaces. Electrical outlets should be capped and care should be taken not to overload circuits. One of the most frequently seen burns is in a toddler who reaches up and spills coffee, either from a pot or cup, down his face and arm. Care should be taken to keep hot liquid containers away from the edge of stoves and tables. Use the back burners on stoves when possible and always turn pot handles inward. Never carry hot drinks when you are carrying your baby. Use flame-retardant sleepwear for children and have a home fire escape plan in place. Most importantly, make sure smoke and carbon monoxide detectors are in working order (check the batteries monthly and make a habit of replacing them during daylight savings time).

We cannot be more emphatic: make every ride a safe ride! Over 90 percent of Connecticut's children are sitting in improperly installed car seats. This incorrect installation can result in needless death and injuries in children involved in motor vehicle accidents. Purchase a car seat prior to the birth of your baby and learn how to use it (Consumer Reports rates car seats periodically and serves as a good guide for which model to buy.).

All infants and toddlers should ride in rear-facing car seats until two years of age or until they reach the highest weight or height allowed by their car seat's manufacturer. They should then use a forward-facing car seat for as long as possible, up to the highest weight or height allowed by their car seat's manufacturer. All children whose weight or height is above the forward-facing limit for their car seat should use a belt-positioning booster seat until the vehicle seat belt fits properly--typically when they have reached four feet nine inches in height and are between eight and 12 years of age.

When children are old enough and large enough to use the vehicle seat belt alone, they should always use lap and shoulder seat belts for optimal protection. All children younger than 13 years old should be restrained in the rear seats of vehicles for optimal protection.

To contact the state police, call 860-685-8190 or visit Safe Kids Connecticut to find a car seat clinic.

There have been cases of burns in infants from contact with the metal on the buckle of the seatbelt. To prevent this, try to park your car in the shade.

Tragedies involving children and guns kept at home are completely preventable. Children are impulsive and inquisitive. Keeping a gun in your house, even if you think that your child can't get to it, is leaving open the possibility of tragedy. The best advice is to keep guns out of the home, period! Don't be shy: ask about the presence of guns in the homes your children visit.

If you choose to keep a gun at home, keep it locked up, inaccessible and unloaded. Store the bullets in a separate place (also locked) and use a trigger lock.

Air rifles and BB guns are not toys. They have caused fatal injuries in children and should not be used without direct adult supervision.

Accidental poisoning accounts for more than 3,000 deaths per year in the United States alone. Beyond that, there are over 1 million non-fatal ingestions per year, many requiring hospitalization and resulting in permanent damage. Remember that poisonings are accidents that can be avoided if proper attention is paid to locking up chemicals, medications and other harmful substances.

Most poisonings occur in children under the age of five years, with the highest percentage being in the one- to two-year age range. Small children tend to get into substances located under sinks or in low cabinets. Therefore, it is important to keep these substances locked up and out of your child's reach. Older children, who can get around easier, are more likely to get into prescription drugs, cosmetics, etc.

It is important never to remove a toxic substance from its original, labeled container or to store them in glasses, soda bottles, or another containers that a child may mistake for a drink. All medications not currently being used should be disposed of, and all others locked up, either in a locked medicine chest or a safe. The top shelf of a cabinet is just as accessible to a curious five-year-old as the kitchen table.

Other places that young children can readily find medications are in purses carried by relatives, especially grandparents, who may require drugs that could be very dangerous to a child if taken.

Poisons can be swallowed, inhaled, injected or absorbed through the skin. Examples of inhaled toxins are carbon monoxide, solvents, methyl and propyl alcohols, acetone, turpentine, chlorinated hydrocarbons such as DDT or chlordane, pyrethrum and nicotine. Those substances causing toxicity by skin or mucous membrane absorption include boric acid, topical anesthetics, mercury and organophosphates.

In the event of a poison emergency, call the American Association of Position Control Centers at 1-800-222-1222.

Water is one of the most ominous hazards your child will encounter. Young children can drown in only a few inches of water. If you do enroll a child under three in a swimming program, think of it primarily as an opportunity to enjoy being in the water together. Be sure the class you choose adheres to guidelines established by the national YMCA and the American Academy of Pediatrics.

An adult, preferably one who knows CPR, should always watch children who are swimming. A phone should be available at the swim site. Prohibit your child from diving unless someone has already determined the depth of the water and checked for underwater hazards. Do not allow your child to swim in areas where there are boats or swim at beaches where there are large waves, a powerful undertow or no lifeguards. When riding in a boat, you and your child should always wear life jackets. If you have a backyard swimming pool, it should be enclosed with high and locked fences on all sides.

A few more tips to ensure your family is putting safety first:

• Rehearse and practice fire drills.
• Tell children never to give out information over the telephone or computer to someone they don't know.
• Never leave your child alone in the car.
• Never allow your child to stand in grocery carts and always use proper restraints.
• Never allow children near an operating lawn mower or heavy machinery.
• Children, especially infants, put small object in their mouths. Periodically inspect infant and toddler play areas for small and sharp objects. Avoid exposure to balloons, packing peanuts, plastic bags and small objects and provide only appropriate, non-chokable foods to infants and young children.