Fires, floods, and home invasions are among the first things that come to mind when considering home safety. However, other hazards lurking at home could harm you or your loved ones. Home safety is crucial to everyone, so we have prepared a few helpful reminders to keep you and your home safe.

Five reminders to keep your home and loved ones safe

Remove potential fire hazards.

Fires can result from unmonitored candles, unchecked flames while cooking, faulty electrical wiring in appliances, inside walls or buildings, kerosene lamps, or malfunctioning electrical outlets. Some of these fires can devastate property and cause loss of life.

Tips:

• Talk to your family about fires and how to prevent them.
• Install smoke detectors and test them monthly to ensure functionality.
• Do not allow children into the kitchen when cooking or leave hot oil unattended.
• Have your electrical wiring tested by a qualified electrician.
• Don’t leave candles burning overnight or near flammable material.
• Put a fire safety plan in place to exit the home safely.

Put measures in place to prevent poisoning.

Poisoning accidents at home are common and typically occur in children under the age of five. Detergents, medicines, garden products, bleach, cleaning products and other household chemicals can be poisonous if ingested.

Tips:

• Store household products that might be harmful in high cupboards, out of the reach of children, and lock them away with child-resistant locks.
• Don’t store chemicals or poisonous substances in food containers. Remember to label unmarked containers.
• Store garden products, pesticides, acids, and other potentially dangerous products in your garage or a place children cannot easily access.
• Buy medication with child-resistant caps and store them out of children’s reach to prevent accidental ingestion.
• Remove houseplants from children’s reach.
• Keep the contact details for poison control in an area at home where they can be easily found and used in case of poisoning.

Be mindful of falling.

Falling at home can result in broken bones, fractures, sprains, or death. In many instances, older people are more likely to be affected. Hip fractures, broken bones, and sprains can cause extreme discomfort, especially for older people, who might take longer to heal. Most falls occur in driveways, bathrooms, bedrooms, or stairs.

Tips:

• Remove clutter from staircases or walkways and repair loose stairway boards and carpets. Secure loose rugs and wires.
• Buy a low bed for children or older folks and use fastened padded mats beside their beds.
• Arrange furniture to create clear pathways.
• Ensure the bottoms of bathtubs or showers are not slippery, and install grab bars to assist with getting out safely.
• Install night lights in areas where falls are most likely to occur. The top and bottom of the staircases must be adequately lit.

Secure sharp objects away from minors.  

Sharp objects such as razors, knives, graters, and other sharp implements can cause serious harm to children. Lawnmowers, saws, and other power tools can cause injury to minors. Sharp objects can also hurt adults when misused.  

Tips:

• If you are unsure how to use knives and graters safely, watch instructional videos and practice slicing, chopping, or dicing. Safely using sharp implements can reduce the risk of unintentionally cutting your fingers or having other serious accidents.
• Adequately sharpen cutting implements. Using a dull knife requires force and can increase the risk of cuts and accidental stabbing wounds.
• Ensure you safely use and store saws, rakes, machetes, and lawnmowers.
• Keep sharp implements out of the reach of children in locked drawers.

Pay attention to choking hazards.

Choking can be life-threatening since it prevents oxygen from getting to the lungs and brain. If the brain loses oxygen for more than four minutes, it can cause brain damage or death. Most children like to put small objects in their mouths, which could cause them to choke. Food and other small objects can cause choking when stuck in the airway.

Tips:

• Some foods and fruits, such as corn, pieces of meat, peas, grapes, small hard candy, and cherries, can be choking hazards. So, please pay attention to children when they are eating.
• Give your children quality, age-appropriate toys that won’t break easily into small pieces.
• Cut children’s food into small pieces and teach them to chew and swallow.
• Do not give children hard candy or bones to eat.
• Learn first aid for children (as a precaution) in case of a choking incident.
• Keep beads, thumbtacks, latex balloons, plastic gloves, and marbles out of children’s reach, especially those under four.
• Adults should chew food slowly, avoid laughing and talking, and limit drinking alcohol when eating.

Learn more about the areas of your home that might require attention by getting a home safety assessment (fire, flood, security, etc.) done. You can easily find what you need by using Find Yello to search for businesses that have the products or services to help you.

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Sources: Stay Safe, Hopkins Medicine, NCBI, Medical Guardian, and Emergency Physicians.