Poison Prevention for Big Kids At Home
Big kids may spend more time without adult supervision. You can best protect your children by keeping harmful substances out of their sight and reach, and by testing for lead and carbon monoxide.
Although household cleaners are a frequent cause of poisoning, kids can also be fatally poisoned by iron, alcohol and carbon monoxide. Because no prevention method is 100 percent effective, learn how to keep poison exposure from turning into tragedy for you and your family.
 Top Tips
In the kitchen:
- Keep cleaning products in their original containers. Never put a potentially poisonous product in something other than its original container (like a plastic soda bottle), where it could be mistaken for something harmless.
- Know which household products are poisonous.
- Lock up poisons out of children’s sight and reach.
In the bathroom:
- Always read labels and follow the exact directions. Give children medicines based on their weights and ages, and only use the dispensers that come packaged with children’s medications.
- Never refer to medicine or vitamins as “candy.”
- Do not have children help you take medication.
Around the house:
- Be aware of medications that may be in your handbag. Store handbags out of the reach of young children.
- Install carbon monoxide (CO) detectors in your home.
- Prevent CO buildup in the first place — make sure heating appliances are in good working order and used only in well-ventilated areas.
- Don’t run a car engine in the garage, even to warm it up; move the car outside first.
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Safety Tools
There are many tools that parents can use to help to keep their big kids safe from injuries. Many of them are affordable and can be found at many stores.
What you'll need:
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Carbon monoxide detector |
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