Bath time is a fun and playful time for your child or toddler, but it is important to keep their safety in mind. The bathroom has many unsafe substances and surfaces that can be harmful to your little one. The easiest way to prevent injuries is to make the bathroom inaccessible to them without adult supervision, which can be done by using a child lock. However, even while under adult supervision, you should take the necessary precautions to avoid injuries from happening to your child.
Bathroom Safety Tips
- Your child should be under adult supervision at all times while in the bathroom. If you must leave the bathroom for any reason, always take your child with you. Children can drown in only a few inches of water and bath seats and rings will not prevent drowning. Make sure you gather all the bath time necessities such as towels, shampoo, soap, rubber duckies, etc., before starting the bath to avoid having to leave the room. Also, never leave water in the bathtub when it is not in use.
- Slips and falls can easily happen in a bathroom. To prevent this, you can install no-slip strips on the bottom of the bathtub. You can also put a soft cover on the water faucet so that your child does not hurt their head if they bump into it. Curious children may be fascinated by the toilet and want to play in it. Not only is this unsanitary, but your child could slip and fall into it which makes this also a drowning hazard. To avoid this from happening, you can install a toilet lid lock.
- Make sure your water temperature is not set over 120°F to prevent scalding. Always test the water temperature before putting your child in the tub. It is also important to teach your child to turn the cold water on first when they are old enough to use the faucets alone.
- Medicines should also have child-resistant caps to prevent your child from opening the bottles. However, just because a medicine bottle has a child-resistant cap doesn’t mean it is childproof. Make sure medicine and toiletries are always locked away and out of reach of children when they are not in use.
- Just like medicine and toiletries, electrical appliances used in a bathroom, such as hair dryers and razors, should also be locked away and out of reach of children. If they are not in use, be sure to unplug them and put them away properly. To avoid electric injury resulting from electrical items falling in a sink or tub, it’s better to use electrical items in a room where there is no water.
Source: Healthy Children