A Few Basics To Baby-Proofing Your Home

The days of baby window cages and other terrifying hazards are now nothing more than odd novelties of the past. It’s become much easier to turn your home into a safe space for your little one now that most products are designed to be as safe and convenient as possible. Can you make your home a little too safe and clean for your baby, though? Here are a few tidbits to ponder when changing up your home for a new addition to the family.

Be Clean, Not Sterile

A clean home is important for pretty much any resident. Nobody wants to live in a house or apartment infested with roaches and covered in choking dust. That being said, no parent wants to raise up their babies in a dirty and unhealthy home.

It’s perfectly okay to keep your home clean and dirt-free. However, you might not want to keep your home too hygienic or sterile for your baby. Studies have shown that babies and kids aren’t able to build up sufficient resistance to most bacteria, germs, and allergens when their homes are too clean. In contrast, little kids and babies with enough exposure to these nasties have been found to become much healthier and stronger later on.

So what does this mean? Let the dust pile up and pray for good results? Get a dog and hope your kids like fur? Not exactly.

All this means is that you shouldn’t go completely overboard when it comes to cleanliness. Keep up general cleaning practices, such as sweeping dusty floors and washing dirty dishes, but don’t obsessively scrub every corner of your house with cleaning products. Wipe up spills and clean toilets, but don’t vacuum your carpets and couches every few hours.

Most importantly, don’t aim to be as hygienic as a hospital. As long as you keep your baby products sterilized, and as long as you clean your house at a pace you’re comfortable with, you won’t have too much to worry about.

Cover Corners And Outlets

Though not as bad as scary germs or bad food, table corners still rank up high on a parent’s list of worst enemies. It might sound pretty ridiculous, but it’s always better to be safe than sorry. After all, what would you rather have? A baby fussing over some food they don’t like, or a baby crying because they cut their head open on the glass table?

In short, do cover the corners of low tables, cabinets, and other furniture when you can. Cabinets, dressers, and tables that are too high for a baby to reach don’t need to be covered. On the other hand, glass and metal furniture that’s low enough to reach your baby’s head should definitely be baby-proofed.

Covering electric outlets should also be on top of your baby-proofing list. Babies that are strong enough to wander around the house on their own can and will poke around any outlet that they can reach. Though most outlets these days are designed to avoid sparking or burning up due to short circuits, they can still cause a lethal amount of damage to tiny prying fingers. If you’ve got any outlets built near the floor, do remember to cover them when they’re not in use.

Keep Things Out Of Reach

What do we do when we’re curious about something? Do we just leave it alone, or do we grab and examine it even further? For most babies, the answer is always to grab and hold.

It can be pretty cute to see your little one with a pillow or stuffed bear in their hands. It isn’t so cute to see them carrying an extension cord or spade, though. Any item with blades, glass, small choking hazards, or other dangerous features should always be safely locked away. If you’ve got young kids in the house, make sure to keep their bags and other personal items out of your baby’s reach. A pair of safety scissors might be pretty harmless to a 3^rd grader, but it can be pretty dangerous to a fragile and delicate baby.

Secure Loose And Wobbly Items

Dangers come in all shapes and sizes. House plants, end tables, and other pieces of furniture light enough to be shaken by a curious baby can cause lots of trouble.  If possible, you might want to do some DIY work and fix up any wobbly furniture around your home. Loose and light decorative items should also be kept out of reach. I know it isn’t easy to keep your ceramic vase in the closet, but you and your child can both appreciate its beauty in just a few years.

Set Up Baby Gates

Kitchens, basements, and stairs can be incredibly dangerous for a curious baby. Your child can easily grab any dangerous cooking implements and fall off the stairs when you aren’t looking. Other areas, such as your home office or craft station, should also be considered strict no-go zones for your child.

Baby gates should always be set up in any unsafe areas. You can’t really substitute them with chairs, tables, or pet gates as they aren’t strong or safe enough to keep out wandering babies. Do set these gates up at the top and bottom of stairs, as well as the entrances of adults-only rooms.

Check For Carbon Monoxide And Lead Paint

Carbon monoxide poisoning is one of the deadliest silent killers out there. When carbon monoxide from gas or propane enters our respiratory system, it usually leads to major tissue and cell death. Fitting your home with a good-quality carbon monoxide detector is the best way to prevent this serious catastrophe. You should also allow a healthy amount of ventilation at home in order to keep any harmful gases away.

If you’ve got an older home built before 1978, you might want to inspect it for lead paint. Lead is a seriously toxic and poisonous material that can harm or even kill you much in the same way as carbon monoxide. Do inspect your home with a lead paint test kit and have any toxic substances removed as soon as you can.

Stock Up On First Aid

A First Aid kit is always a great investment to make at any age. Here are some good items to include in your own first-aid arsenal:

• Hygienic baby items like toothbrushes, combs, and nail clippers
• A baby thermometer
• Medicine droppers
• Gauze and cotton balls
• Creams and emergency medicines (Consult your pediatrician for this one!)

A baby nasal aspirator is also another essential item to have. Since a baby’s tiny nose fills up with snot and mucus every so often, you’ll need to clear it up in a safe and harmless way. Our nasal aspirator sucks up sticky snot without scratching up your baby’s nasal canal. Why not grab yours from our online store, today?