It is virtually impossible to remove all items from your home that may pose a risk to small children. Instead you should watch children closely to know what they are up to. Safety locks and latches may help your efforts to keep kids out of dangerous situations as well.
Some useful kitchen gadgets include safety knobs for stove and oven controls to keep children from turning them on. Refrigerator and cabinet locks help keep kids out of the food supply without first getting your approval. Door knob and lever locks may impede an attempt of a child to go through a doorway that may lead to the top of a dangerous stairway or outside the home.
Cabinet locks come in many styles and should be used according to the product specifications and instructions. Simenc recommends that parents keep hazardous materials that may include "cleansers or chemicals, sharp objects like cooking utensils, batteries, important papers, scissors, trash, plastic bags, or liquor" in hard to access areas such as high places or locked drawers and cabinets.
Safety devices will not work as a substitute for good supervision, but they will assist in reducing the probability of a child getting into something they shouldn't without your knowledge and may allow you added time to react to a situation. Remember that many cleaners, chemicals, soaps, and other harmful liquids may look like an enticing and colorful drink to a child, so it best to keep them out of sight if at all possible. Never store a harmful product in an old baby food jar, peanut butter jar, soda bottle, or any other food container. This may confuse your child and present a risk for the child by letting him or her think it is okay to consume that item based on the container it is in.
Keeping the bathroom safe should also be a very high priority since there are so many risks associated with things generally kept in that room. Obviously, you should keep medicines, vitamins, razors, scissors, sharp objects, chemicals, cleaners, and other immediate threats out of the reach of children. However, you shouldn't forget about the less obvious hazards as well, which include toothpaste, mouthwash, soap, shampoo, cosmetic products, perfumes, and lotions to name a few. You should keep the trash can in a locked cabinet too if there are small children in the house. This will prevent them from getting something out of the trash that may be harmful or from playing with the plastic liner. These liners can, in some instances, create a suffocation risk if they obstruct a child's air passage or if the bag becomes tangled over a child's head. Anything that could be harmful if swallowed, inhaled, or applied to the skin or eyes should be placed in a high or locked area.
Cabinet locks work well, but will not always keep little ones out. Keeping a close eye on a child in the bathroom is the best policy. Just because they are on the toilet or in the tub right now doesn't mean that they won't be into something dangerous in the next moment.
