By Renee Martinez, Founder of Raising Boys World
Photo by TBC Photo www.tbcphoto.com
Keeping your home safe may seem daunting. From the looks of this article it could be a full-time job to have a safe home! Really, as with everything, being an involved, hands-on parent is a big part of safety.
Did you know that approximately half of all non-fatal unintentional injuries to children occur in the home? According to the National SAFE KIDS Campaign, every year, nearly 4.5 million kids ages 14 and under are hurt in their homes. Almost all of these injuries are preventable therefore; parents need make home safety a priority and be vigilant about enforcing safety rules. Fire and burns, drowning, suffocation, choking, unintentional firearm injuries, falls, and poisonings account for the most common causes of fatal injuries to children in their homes. Children ages 4 and under represent 70 percent of these deaths.
First I’ll deal with a few issues that pose greater threat during the summer:
CAR ACCIDENTS
The hours just before and after sunset pose the greatest danger for children playing outside. Visibility is limited during twilight, and a driver’s depth perception is reduced by low light levels.
1. Be sure that all evening play clothes have reflective cloth strips. Including bikes, helmets, and backpacks (especially jackets, coats, and wind breakers).
2. If you’re going on an evening stroll, take a flashlight — especially if all or most of the walking is alongside roads and streets without sidewalks.
3. It is not safe to ride bikes at night unless the bike has reflectors, head lamps, and other night-riding safety features.
PLAYING IN THE STREET
City streets and country roads aren’t playgrounds and should not be used for a place for kids to play. If however, you allow your kids to play in the street or on lightly traveled roads, here are some safety tips.
1. Stop all play when a vehicle is spotted and have the children move to the side of the road. They can resume play after the vehicle has passed.
2. Buy inexpensive traffic cones marked “Play Area Ahead” to alert drivers that kids are playing in the area. Cones should be placed on the center line, not to block traffic and located a few hundred feet away from the play area. Remove cones when kids are finished playing or bike riding.
WOODED AREAS
1. Tell kids what to do if they get lost in the woods after dark. Let them know that their best survival bet, if lost, is to stay in one place and wait to be found.
2. Provide your children with a small penlight and a whistle; both attached to a key chain or clipped to the inside of a jacket. Tell them they are not toys and should only be used for emergencies.
BICYCLE SAFETY
• Do not push your child to ride a 2-wheeled bike until he or she is ready, at about age 5 or 6. Consider the child’s coordination and desire to learn to ride. Stick with coaster (foot) brakes until your child is older and more experienced for hand brakes.
• Take your child with you when you shop for the bike, so that he or she can try it out. The value of a properly fitting bike far outweighs the value of surprising your child with a new one.
• Click here for more information on finding the proper fit.
• Buy a bike that is the right size, not one your child has to “grow into.” Oversized bikes are especially dangerous.
• Your child needs to wear a helmet on every bike ride, no matter how short or how close to home. Many accidents happen in driveways, on sidewalks, and on bike paths, not just on streets. Children learn best by observing you. Whenever you ride, put on your helmet.
• When purchasing a helmet, look for a label or sticker that says the helmet meets the CPSC safety standard.
• A helmet protects your child from serious injury, and should always be worn. And remember, wearing a helmet at all times helps children develop the helmet habit.
• A helmet should be worn so that it is level on the head, not tipped forwards or backwards. The strap should be securely fastened, and you should not be able to move the helmet in any direction. If needed, the helmet’s sizing pads can help improve the fit.
SKATEBOARD, SCOOTER, IN-LINE SKATING AND HEELYS SAFETY
• Children should never ride skateboards or scooters in or near traffic.
• All skateboarders and scooter-riders should wear a helmet and other protective gear; wrist guards are particularly important.
• Communities should continue to develop skateboard parks, which are more likely to be monitored for safety than ramps and jumps constructed by children at home.
• While in-line skating or wearing Heelys, be sure to wear appropriate protective equipment and only skate on designated paths or rinks and not on the street.
LAWN MOWER SAFETY
• Try to use a mower with a control that stops the mower from moving forward if the handle is let go.
• Children younger than 16 years should not be allowed to use ride-on mowers. Children younger than 12 years should not use walk-behind mowers.
• Make sure that sturdy shoes (not sandals or sneakers) are worn while mowing.
• Prevent injuries from flying objects, such as stones or toys, by picking up objects from the lawn before mowing begins. Have anyone who uses a mower wear hearing and eye protection.
• Do not pull the mower backward or mow in reverse unless absolutely necessary, and carefully look for children behind you when you mow in reverse.
• Always turn off the mower and wait for the blades to stop completely before removing the grass catcher, unclogging the discharge chute, or crossing gravel paths, roads, or other areas.
• Do not allow children to ride as passengers on ride-on mowers.
SUMMER FOOD SAFETY
First, children should be kept away from grills, barbecues or outdoor cooking fires at all times.
Since bacteria grow faster in the warm weather, especially when humidity is high and more people cook and eat outdoors where refrigerators and sinks aren’t available, studies show that cases of food-borne illness rise in summer.
Young children and elderly are more vulnerable to food-borne bacteria, because of their immature or weakened immune systems.
• Wash your hands with hot, soapy water before handling food and after using the bathroom, changing diapers, or handling pets.
• Use disposable wipes or antibacterial gels if away from a sink.
• Dry your hands with paper towels.
• Cross-contamination during preparation, grilling, and serving food is a prime cause of food-borne illness. Be sure to pack your cooler carefully; wrap raw meats or poultry so the juices won’t come in contact with other foods.
• Wash any objects that held raw meat or fish before using them again.
• Don’t under-cook your food.
• Foods should be heated long and at a high enough temperature to kill harmful bacteria.
• Meat and poultry cooked on a grill often brown fast on the outside but may be undercooked inside. Check them with a thermometer.
• Do not partial cook foods ahead of time, this allows bacteria to survive and multiply to the point that subsequent cooking can’t destroy them.
• The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) recommends that hamburger and other ground meats are cooked to an internal temperature of 160°F and ground poultry to 165°F. You cannot determine if the meat is safe simply by the color.
• Steaks and roasts that have been tenderized, boned, rolled, etc., to 160°F for well-done.
• Whole steaks and roasts may be cooked to 145°F for medium rare.
• Whole poultry should be cooked to 180°F.
• Chicken breast meat should be cooked to 170°F.
• Refrigeration: luncheon meats, cooked meats, chicken, fish, potato or pasta salads, and other perishables should be kept in an insulated cooler with several inches of ice or ice packs. Replenish the ice when it starts to melt. Don’t put food out until your family is ready to eat it.
• Pack beverages in one cooler and perishable foods in another as the beverage will be opened more often. Also, keep the cooler on the seat of the car not in the hot trunk and put it in the shade when you unpack the car.
• Leftovers: place leftovers back in the cooler after you finish eating.
• Food left out of refrigeration for more than two hours may not be safe to eat. At 90°F or above, food left out over one hour can spoil.
Helpful Tools
“Instant read” thermometers are designed to be inserted in fast-cooking foods such as hamburgers to test for doneness. Foods such as meat and poultry require thermometers that stay in the food throughout the cooking process.
For additional food safety information, call the toll-free USDA Meat and Poultry Hotline at 800-535-4555 or visit the online at www.USDA.gov.
BARBECUE SAFETY
The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) has released a few common-sense safety tips you should keep in mind when using gas or charcoal grills.
Gas Grill Safety Tips: Liquid petroleum (LP) gas or propane, used in gas grills, is highly flammable. Each year numerous people are injured as a result of fires and explosions. Much of this is due to grills that have been left unchecked for a period of time, or just after refilling and reattaching the gas container. Here’s a list of safety checks to perform:
1. Use a pipe cleaner or wire to clear / check the tubes into the burner for any blockage from insects, spiders, or food grease.
2. Check grill hoses for cracking, brittleness, holes, and leaks or sharp bends.
3. Move gas hoses as far away as possible from hot surfaces and dripping hot grease. If you can’t move the hoses, install a heat shield to protect them.
4. Because they can leak gas, replace scratched or nicked connectors.
5. Check for gas leaks, following the manufacturer’s instructions, if you smell gas or when you reconnect or detect a leak, immediately turn off the gas and keep it off until the leak is fixed.
6. Keep lighted cigarettes, matches, or open flames away from a leaking grill.
7. Never use a grill indoors or in a garage, breezeway, carport, porch, or under a surface that can catch fire.
8. Use the grill at least 10 feet away from your house or any building.
9. Do not attempt to repair the tank valve or the appliance yourself. Contact a repair person.
10. Always follow the manufacturer’s instructions that accompany the grill.
11. Use caution when storing LP gas containers.
12. Always keep containers upright.
13. Never store a spare gas container under or near the grill or indoors.
14. Never store or use flammable liquids, like gasoline, near the grill.
15. You should transport the container in a secure, upright position. Never keep a filled container in a hot car or car trunk as the heat will cause the gas pressure to increase, which may open the relief valve and allow gas to escape.
16. Grills manufactured after October 1, 1995, are required to have three additional safety features to eliminate leak hazards. If you’re looking to purchase a grill, look for one with extra safety features.
Charcoal Grill Safety Tips: Charcoal produces carbon monoxide (CO) when it is burned. CO is a colorless, odorless gas that can accumulate to toxic levels in closed environments. Each year about people die or are injured as a result of CO fumes from charcoal grills and hibachis used inside. Follow these safety tips:
1. Never burn charcoal inside, even if ventilation is provided.
2. Do not store the grill indoors with freshly used coals.
MUST-HAVE SAFETY EQUIPMENT:
• Working smoke detectors.
• Consumer Product Safety Commission also recommends carbon monoxide detectors to protect against poisoning from this colorless, odorless gas (often caused from poorly working furnaces and stoves).
• Prevent falls by placing gates across stairways and block openings in balconies and decks.
• Use bumpers on sharp-edged furniture.
• Specially-designed window locks or window guards prevent opening a window far enough that a child could fall out. Don’t install an unmovable guard on a window that might also serve as a fire escape route.
• Cushion falls on the playground with sand, wood chips, sawdust or mulch.
• More children drown in toilets, tubs, or a bucket with just a few inches of water than people realize, not just in pools. Buy special toilet latches to prevent toddlers from opening the lids.
• Never leave your young child unsupervised in the tub, even if he is in a bath seat he could still slip under the water.
• Household cleaners, medicines, cosmetics and vitamins should be stored out of children’s reach.
• Install child locks on cabinets and drawers that contain hazards such as poisonous materials or sharp utensils.
• Keep window blind and drapery cords out of reach. You can buy cord shorteners to make it easier to prevent injury.
• Lock any guns unloaded and away from reach. Accessible with a key by adults only.
• Install safety devices on stationary bikes, but it’s best to keep children away from exercise equipment.
Check the Yellow Pages to see if your community has professional child-proofers. They will inspect your home, sell you what you need and even install it.
This is the end of summer and home safety posts for a while. I’m getting tired of how overwhelming safety is. Gosh, how did I ever survive without serious injury? How did my mom manage without worrying about the potential dangers lurking around every corner?
About the Author: Renee Martinez is the mother of 4 boys, the founder of RaisingBoysWorld.com, www.socialmediabizsummit.com, and the president of RubyMarCom (www.rubymarcom.com), a boutique marketing communications company. Her business blog (www.lisac95.sg-host.com), provides resources on everything marketing and social media related for her active audience.
Renee is an adjunct professor at Canisius College in Buffalo, NY where she teaches social media marketing in the business school. Find Renee on Twitter at @reneemmartinez.
