How to Babyproof Your House
 Baby's first step! It's one of the most exciting – and most joyful – moments a proud parent will ever experience.
But with that ever-increasing mobility comes increased responsibility and vigilance on the part of parents to protect their roving tots from hazards in the home.
The key strategy is adult supervision, says Joel Bass, M.D., a member of the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) and former chairman of the AAP's injury and poison prevention committee. "With preschoolers, there should always be an adult looking on," he says.
Beyond that, parents should take steps to "babyproof" their house. The average home contains lots of safety hazards, and experts say the greatest dangers are burns, falls on stairways or furniture, and accidental poisonings.
Heather Paul, executive director of the National SAFE KIDS Campaign, suggests that the best approach to "babyproofing" the home is to list potential dangers in each room, and then take steps to eliminate them.
"Keep thinking about safety and surveying the environment for potential hazards," adds pediatrician Mark Widome, M.D., also a member of the AAP.
Here’s a list of potential dangers and strategies for mitigating those dangers around the house. Be sure to add potential dangers and strategies that are unique to your home.
Kitchen
Dangers: Fire and scaldings, along with poisons, choking, and cuts
Strategy: Store sharp knives behind child-safety locks, cook with pot handles turned toward the back of the stove, lock all medicines and toxic substances away on high shelves, keep the fire extinguisher handy and in good working order, and prominently post emergency phone numbers.
Bathroom
Dangers: Drowning, poisoning, scalding, and falls
Strategy: Test your water heater to make sure bath water is no hotter than 120°F, lock medicines away on high shelves (even those in "child-resistant" packaging), use non-skid mats or decals, and never leave toddlers unattended in the tub – small children can drown in an inch of water, and within a few moments.
Living Room
Dangers: Burns, falls, and poisonings
Strategy: Maintain a working smoke detector, secure furniture that might tip over (such as a bookcase) to walls by using screws in the studs or by using a toggle bolt, tie up loose electrical cords and cover unused plugs, install safety gates at tops and bottoms of stairways, cushion sharp furniture edges, and do not use a baby walker.
Nursery
Dangers: Strangulation, suffocation, choking, and falls
Strategy: Remove all toys, stuffed animals, etc., from crib, use the "choking tube" (available at toy stores) to test toys (if an object fits through, it's too small and is a choking hazard), install a working smoke detector, remove blinds and drapery cords, and use cribs without corner posts to avoid accidental strangulation.
Source
Wellness Library Health Ink and Vitality Communications ©2010
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