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Holiday Safety
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During the holidays, you should be extra vigilant to keep your children safe. There are many extra factors that put your children more at risk for injury during the holiday season, including gatherings at the homes of friends and family that may not be childproof, home decorations such as Christmas trees and lights, and outdoor activities such as sledding and skiing. Here are some tips to keep your child safe this autumn:
- Be careful with high risk foods and holiday treats that can pose a choking hazard to children under age four. This includes nuts, hard candy, grapes, raw carrots, popcorn, and apples.
- If decorating your house for the holidays with a Christmas tree or lights, be mindful of your child's age. Younger children are likely to play with ornaments and lights on trees. Only place unbreakable ornaments on the lower branches and make sure the tree is stable. Keep the tree's stand full of water to prevent it from drying out so that it doesn't become a fire hazard and keep lights and extension cords out of reach.
- Don't overload electrical outlets.
- Do not leave lights or candles on when you are not at home and keep them out of younger children's reach.
- When visiting others during the holidays, supervise your child extra-vigilantly until you can assure yourself that the house is childproof.
- Buy and accept as gifts, only toys that are appropriate for your child's age. If older siblings receive as gifts toys with small parts, keep them away from younger children in the house.
- Encourage your child to wear a helmet when using a snowmobile, or while skiing or sledding.
- Prevent snowmobile injuries which are a common cause of injury in children, with some being fatal. The AAP recommends that their use be restricted to children over age 16 who have received proper instruction and are wearing protective equipment, including a helmet goggles and boots. You can also keep your child safe while snowmobile riding by limiting their use to marked and maintained snowmobile trails.
- If your child has food allergies, be sure to keep this in mind when visiting others and having holiday meals. Be certain that the host knows of your child's allergies and does not offer foods to your child that he is allergic to. They should also be careful to not reuse dishes or serving utensils that come in contact with the allergic foods.
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