Infant Safety
Falls
Leaving infants on changing tables can often lead to falls. People don’t realize that a lot of baby injuries are from falls.
In addition, don’t leave your child up on a table or counter. Sometimes it’s tempting to put them up high in a car seat that you set down on a table or chair. What sometimes happens is the car seat will fall and the baby can then be injured.
Shaking the Baby
If the baby is crying too much and you can’t handle it, remove yourself from the situation and call for help. Don’t ever shake a baby!! Babies are much more fragile than people realize. Many babies are injured because people aren’t careful enough with them. You may even damage the baby slightly and not notice the effects for a long time or not at all. Don’t let this happen to your baby.
Choking
Adults experience their world with their hands, but babies experience things through their mouth. Any small items left around the house will be a choking hazard. Don’t leave items out that the baby can crawl over to and put in their mouth.
Poison
Household cleaners can kill. Keep them locked up. Babies can open lower cabinets and will try to eat the cleaner since they love to put stuff in their mouth. For additional precautions, keep cleaners up high and out of reach. That way, if you forget to lock a cabinet, you have a secondary backup.
Electrical Outlets
Electrical outlets should be plugged up with plastic receptacles. That way a baby can’t put a fork into the outlet and die.
Car Seats
Infants should be in a rear facing car seat up until the time they are two years old. This is one of those things that requires diligent effort. Some people, out of convenience, may not buckle up their children. This is a big mistake. You can’t determine when accidents will happen.
Food Sources
The safest food is mother’s breast milk. It is less likely to be allergenic and has a lot of nutritional benefits that formula can’t provide. If possible, breast feed your child for at least one full year.
Be especially careful of giving your child nuts, chocolate, eggs, or honey. These are all potentially life threatening. Talk to your doctor before introducing these items to the diet. They are potential allergens.
If you child seems have a cold all the time and a dry cough, consider taking them off cow’s milk. Cow’s milk is also a top allergen for children. For strong allergies, you will need to carry an Epinephrine Pen (shot) for emergency situations.
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