Show your loved ones just how much you care by taking safety precautions in your home to keep them safe! Burn and scald injuries happen quickly, and can result in serious injuries that often require medical attention. Burns are painful and can result in injuries ranging from blisters to serious wounds needing multiple medical procedures and extensive recoveries. Ensure that you and anyone caring for your children take precautions to reduce the risk of burn injuries in your home.
Here are some tips to prevent burn injuries in your home:
- Keep a 3-foot, child-free zone around your stove while it’s being used.
- Avoid dangerous balancing acts:
- Never carry a child while cooking at the stove
- Don’t carry a child while also carrying hot foods.
- Avoid holding a child while drinking hot liquids.
- Use oven mitts when removing food from the oven AND the microwave and open lids covering hot foods or liquids away from your body.
- Ensure all lids on travel mugs are secured safely in place to avoid accidental spills of hot liquids resulting in scalds.
- Be sure that any mugs containing hot liquids, like coffee or hot tea, are pushed back from the edge of counters or tables and kept out of reach of small children.
- Adjust your water heater so that the temperature of the water at the faucet is no more than 120 degrees Fahrenheit to prevent scalding.
- Always run your hand through your child’s bath water before placing your child into the water to be sure it isn’t too hot.
It is important that parents and caregivers take these simple precautions to keep their children safe from burn and scald injuries. The most effective injury prevention strategy is always preparation and education. A big thanks to the wonderful team at MUSC Health and MUSC Kids, for sharing their burn prevention expertise with us! For more information about burn and scald prevention and how you can keep your family safe, visit these wonder resources:
