Being a new parent is one of the scariest things in the world. There are hundreds, if not thousands of potential dangers in and around your house you’ll need to be aware of, and as you’ll soon find out, your curious baby will find all manners of getting at them. The good news is that it isn’t all that difficult to keep your new child safe, as long as you take the time to keep them away from the various hazards. With this in mind, we’ll now take a look at some simple outdoor safety tips all new parents need to be aware of.
Keep Hazardous Chemicals Out of Reach
If your home is like the vast majority, you likely have numerous potentially hazardous chemicals lying around your home and yard. Just as it is essential that you keep any hazardous chemicals inside your home locked away or out of reach, it is just as important to make sure your child can’t get to any dangerous chemicals outside. This definitely includes chemical pesticides, fertilizers and weed killers, but you should also make sure that even organic compost and fertilizer is kept out of reach. All pesticides pose some level of danger, even organic products, so it is essential that you keep them out of reach.
Beware of Potential Pest Problems
If you’re going to let your child play in the yard or even spend much time outside, it is always a good idea to regularly monitor and inspect your yard for any potential pest problems. Bees, wasps and biting ants are all things you’ll definitely want to keep away from your child. This means that if you do identify any potential pest problems, its best to seek professional help to fully eliminate them. In this sense, fire ant control and other forms of professional pest control are definitely something every new parent needs to consider when necessary.
Watch Out for Water Hazards
Ponds, fountains and other outdoor water features pose one of the greatest threats to young children due to the risk for drowning. Similarly, even a bucket with a small amount of water in it can pose a serious threat. Drowning is the third-leading cause of unintentional injury deaths among children aged 1 to 4, and it is imperative that parents take extra precaution to protect their children from this serious hazard. This means making sure your child is never around water unsupervised and also keeping buckets and any other containers free of water.
Keep Tools and Garden Equipment Locked Away
When your child is extremely small, the lawnmower and other garden equipment usually doesn’t pose that much of a risk. After all, it is highly unlikely that you’ll ever allow your child anywhere near these pieces of equipment when they are running. Nonetheless, this doesn’t mean that your child is fully in the clear. Garden shears, hedge trimmers, rakes, shovels, saws and other tools and garden equipment can easily cause your child great injury or harm if you’re not careful. For this reason, you should also make sure that you keep all of these items locked away or out of your child’s reach. This way you should be able to prevent cuts, scratches, scrapes and other injuries that could result if your child attempts to play with your tools or equipment.
Be on the Lookout for Poisonous or Toxic Plants
One final thing that you’ll need to do before you let your new child out into your yard is to ensure that there are no toxic or poisonous plants present. Your local Poison Control should be able to provide you with more information about any dangerous plants present in your area, and there are also various signs that can help identify most poisonous plants. If you do find that you have any of these plants on your property, it is important that you either remove the plants or fence them off in such a way as your baby can’t get to them and possibly ingest or play with them.
As you can see, baby proofing your yard is nearly as complicated and time-consuming as baby proofing the interior of your home. Of course, it is all well worth the effort if it means your child will stay safe and out of harm’s way. Therefore, it is important that all new parents follow these steps closely to ensure their outdoor environment is fully conducive for their family’s new addition.
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