We are currently facing a change to our normal daily routines. Many parents are now tasked not only with working from home but also homeschooling their children as well. For the foreseeable future, it looks like there will be many more children spending more time at home than previously. It goes without saying that as parents we want to limit any potential accident that could happen, although we all know even if you watch your child the whole time accidents do still happen and make our homes as safe as they possibly can be.
Children, however, are by their very nature curious. Curiosity leads to discovery and that leads to an understanding. Curiosity is not a bad thing, it can just lead to potentially dangerous things. In a home environment, this curiosity can be an accident waiting to happen.
Medicines to young children can often look like sweets. Bright red, disk-shaped iron tablets look a lot like smarties to a small child. As you begin to look at the world through a child's eyes it starts to become very clear how these seemingly ordinary and unsurprising objects can actually lead to something a lot more serious.
There are often items which we take for granted that can actually lead to injuries. Take Easter, for example, here our children receive sweets and chocolate eggs. Did you know though that mini eggs carry a choking hazard warning on them and are not suitable for under 4s? I didn’t until it came up in my news feed that a young child aged 5 ½ had tragically passed away after choking on one of the eggs. I now cut the eggs in half to try and reduce this risk.
Did you know that Marshmallows are one of the most dangerous foods for preschool-age children? This seemingly soft and harmless treat can be lethal. The gooey consistency can cause an obstruction in the windpipe which leads to choking.
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One of the best pieces of advice I was given was to get down on my hands and knees in a room so that you are on the same level as your child. This then gives you a view of what a room looks like to them. When you do this you see the room in a whole new perspective and can begin to see dangers you might not have otherwise seen.
Remember that young children and babies love to put things in their mouths. This helps them to learn about the world around them, but can also lead to accidents. In fact, it doesn’t matter what it is, they will pick it up and put it in their mouths. I remember one of my children once trying to eat the potpourri at their Grandma's house as it looked like crisps/treats to them. Something so innocent sat in the middle of the table which no one had thought to move could have potentially led to a rather nasty accident and a trip to the hospital. Thankfully everything was ok.
At the end of the day accidents by their very nature will happen, but what we can do is aim to minimise them. Supervising our children as much as possible and when we do enter a room try to think about the world from their perspective in order to minimise any risks.
