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Show Volume I , Issue IX Page 5 The Ogden Valley News June 1999 Safety First for Children Every family has a story about how their child was injured in an accident. Most will tell you, they only turned their back for a second. We all know it is impossible to watch a child every second of every day, and still take care of the rest of the family. To help protect children, make sure your home is baby proof to the utmost extent possible – before your child starts to crawl. Become aware of potential dangers in your home, and never leave your child with someone who does not know about, or understand, potential household hazards. Facts to consider: • Accidents, not disease, are the leading cause of death and disability in children ages one through four. • For every one child who dies in a specific accident, 45 others are hospitalized for similar occurrences, and 1,300 are rushed to emergency rooms. • Baby walkers injure over 20,000 babies each year. • Ten thousand, five hundred (10,500) preventable accidents occur in U.S. homes weekly. • Coffee tables send over 70,000 babies and children to emergency rooms each year. • More than 1 million calls are made to poison control centers yearly. • Every thirty seconds a child is poisoned in the U.S., 60% of poisonings occurr in children under the age of six. • Ten percent (10%) of poisonings occur away from the home. • Two babies and toddlers drown in toilets each week on average. • A baby or child can drown in one inch of water. • Latex balloons are the leading cause of choking deaths. • One in four children under the age of seven choke on hot dogs. • Eight hundred, seventy (870) children die from window falls each year. • Over 25,000 babies and children are rushed to emergency rooms each year due to accidents involving stairs. • Eighty- eight percent (88%) of hot water heaters put out water hotter than 120 degrees Fahrenheit, the temperature that human skin burns can occur. • Over 30% of all burns to children come from hot liquids, foods, and water from faucets and tub spouts. • Hot water scalds represent over 36% of all burn injuries, and 20% of burn deaths. • House fires are the second leading cause of death for young children. • One hundred thousand (100,000) critical fires are started by children each year. • One thousand (1,000) children and 2,500 adults die in U.S. house fires yearly–ten per day. Other accidents that often injure or cause death in children are caused by furniture or large appliances tipping over and crushing children. Items that are often overlooked include set in and free standing ovens, refrigerators, entertainment centers, televisions, large stereo equipment and other heavy items that are placed up high, and can fall or tip forward, or be pulled off of shelves. Glass coffee or end tables can also shatter, causing physical trauma to a child. With the advent of computer systems and other office equipment in many homes today, a rise in strangulations and electrical shocks has been seen, with children getting caught up in the myriad of wires and cords that accompany the complex equipment systems. Fortunately, today there are many products available to help child proof homes. Consider one piece base board door stops that can replace traditional two piece door stops with the rubber stoppers on the end. The rubber stoppers easily slide off, providing a ready object for small children to pull off, put in their mouth and choke on. You can also purchase tubing that the web of wiring, that accompanies office equipment, can easily fit together in to prevent wire and cord strangulation, and power strip covers that will protect from electrocution. There are simple furniture brackets to hold appliances in place, magnetic cabinet locks to make sure small children stay out of cupboards that contain hazardous products, and door and toilet locks. Familiarize yourself with the products that are available on the market today, and consider consulting with a professional in this area. It is important that all family members are educated about child safety, and that everyone is made alert to the potential hazards in the home environment, and in other environments that you may visit with your children. Even very young siblings can be educated and taught to help protect the younger children, and to watch for situations that may harm them. Note: Statistics used in this article were taken from Consumer Reports Guide to Baby Products, 5 th edition, Jones/ Freitag, New York, 1996. Utah Poison Control Center’s toll free number: 1-800-4567707. Picture of the Month Photograph taken by Rod Hirschi - Sunrise Over Pineview The Ogden Valley News would like to print a winning “Picture of the Month” in each month’s newspaper edition. At the end of the following year, we would like to print a Valley calendar using the winning pictures. The calendar will be made available for sale. So get your cameras ready and start shooting! Or, if you already have a favorite photo, send it in. Your pictures may be black & white or color, and should depict a Valley theme. The pictures may also be historical photos of the Valley. Send your picture to: THE OGDEN VALLEY NEWS P.O. BOX 130 EDEN UTAH 84310 Be sure to include your name, address, telephone number, and the name of the person – if known – who took the picture. Also, we would like to know something about the picture, possibly the approximate date, and the who, what and when about it. Please note, collected pictures will become the property of The Ogden Valley News, so be sure to keep a copy for yourself! |
