Written by: Kristine Dayaras

Being a parent means keeping your child safe and healthy. You may do everything you can to protect your baby, but sometimes the things you don’t even think about can be the most dangerous for your baby.

September is Baby Safety Month. This campaign promotes awareness of hidden dangers in your home and promotes baby safety. The following tips will help you keep your baby safe:

1.) Car Seat Safety

Child car seats are essential for every trip you take since bringing your newborn home. The use of car seats is mandated in all 50 states, and the federal government sets strict safety standards for their manufacture.

• Please follow the instructions for the proper use of car seats and the laws of your state.
• Don’t forget to register your car seat! The seat you’re using could be recalled for safety reasons, and if this happens, you’ll need to register it. Register your car seat by contacting the manufacturer’s customer service number or visiting the manufacturer’s website.
• There is an expiration date for car seats! It is essential to check the specific model’s labels and instructions to determine its useful life.
  It is not safe to leave a child unattended in a car for a few minutes, not even a few seconds.
• Keep car doors and trunks locked and key fobs away from children.
• You should call 911 if you see a child alone in a car.
• You should bring your child’s car seat with you when traveling by air. An aircraft seat with a harness is usually approved for use in an aircraft if it has a label that says, “This Restraint is Certified for Use in Motor Vehicles and Aircraft.”

2.)  Locks & Latches Safety

If you want to prepare the house for your new baby, it is ideal to do it early in your pregnancy before registering. What is the most effective way to baby-proof? Try thinking like a baby! Get down on your hands and knees. It is an excellent activity for mom and dad since they usually inspect different aspects of the house and safety measures.

• Ensure all cabinets in the bathroom, kitchen, garage, and laundry room are locked, and the latches are in place.
• Keep all chemicals and medicines in a location where children cannot reach them.
• Protect unsafe areas with locks and latches, safety gates, and covers.
• If you’re concerned that your child might open locked cabinets and drawers, don’t let them.
• Don’t ignore obvious items such as exposed electrical sockets and blind cords. Keep an eye out for those less obvious items, such as empty dishwashers, hanging tablecloths, and poisonous plants.
• It is crucial to consider child-proofing as an ongoing process. Always keep an eye on your child’s growth and development. For example, put up stairway gates before your baby starts crawling is a good idea. Install them in advance, so the entire family gets used to them, and the baby doesn’t associate his new-found milestone with barriers.
• Regardless of their age, babies want to touch, feel, lick, smell, and listen to everything they can get their hands on. It’s your job to make him or her feel as comfortable as possible. This new family member is not a temporary guest, so they should be able to explore each room of your house safely.

3.) Safe Sleep

To ensure the first years of a child’s life are happy and healthy, it is important that you provide a safe sleep environment for them. Hundreds of deaths yearly are associated with children sleeping in an environment not specifically designed for them.

• The safest place for a baby to sleep is in an approved, certified crib.
• Using a brand new crib that hasn’t been recalled is important.
• The crib must be assembled using only the manufacturer’s hardware. Make sure you keep the instructions for future reference.
• When your baby falls asleep, you should move them to their crib.
• Use a properly fitting mattress in your baby’s crib.
• If you want to place a monitor, bassinet, play yard, or another sleep environment in a safe area, put it at least three feet away from the crib, bassinet, play yard, or another safe place. Keep in mind that as your baby grows, so will the safe distance.
• Safely place cribs, bassinets, and toddler beds away from windows, heaters, wall lamps, drapes, and blind cords.

4.) Safe & Sustainability

• For a sustainable nursery, choose organic cotton, recycled material, or sustainably sourced products. Clothing, toys, and books are significant second-hand purchases. However, consider spending more on new baby gear such as car seats, cribs, and mattresses.
• Choose multi-purpose or convertible baby products that take up less space and grow with your child.
• You can rely on manufacturers offering buyback, repair or replacement programs, as well as retail trade-in programs where products are recycled in a sustainable way in order to recycle products.
• When using second-hand products, ensure they haven’t been recalled, meet safety standards, and have all manufacturer instructions and labels.
• Ensure you don’t store plastic or wooden baby items in humid or fluctuating areas.

Keeping safety at the top of your list all year is critical. From using car seats and helmets to putting smoke alarms and carbon monoxide detectors, there are numerous easy ways that parents can safeguard their children.

Sources:

 Juvenile Products Manufacturers.

Safe Kids Worldwide.