Your parents — your children's grandparents — have seen big changes in child care since the time they were raising you. Just 30 years ago, kids generally didn't ride in car seats or wear bike helmets; most homes didn't have smoke alarms. Seat belts were a new invention, and your parents weren't required to use them. There were fewer hazards in the home and less traffic on city streets and suburban roads. Today we know more about child safety and injury prevention, and you may need to bring your parents up to date on the latest safety devices and recommendations so they can help keep your kids out of harm's way.
Accidental injury is the number one killer of children ages 14 and under in the United States, but modern safety devices such as car seats, cabinet locks and baby gates contributed to a 45 percent drop in accidental child deaths from 1987 to 2002. Just as new parents need to childproof the home when they're expecting a baby, grandparents and other relatives who don't have children living at home need to do some quick and important childproofing when they're expecting a young visitor.
Before a grandchild comes to visit, grandparents should take the following precautions:
- Make sure all potential poisons — including medicine, cleaning products and alcohol — are locked out of reach. Don't forget medicines that might be in a purse or coat pocket.
- Store matches and lighters out of reach. Although the leading cause of home fires is unattended cooking, most fatal fires in the United States are started by children playing with matches or lighters.
