Toddler Safety

Frequently Asked Questions

What steps can I take to prevent fires and burns?
What steps can I take to prevent falls and fall‑related injuries?
What steps can I take to prevent poisoning?
How can I keep my toddler safe at the playground?

• Check your home smoke detectors or alarms every month. Press the test button to make sure that the batteries are working. If the detector is wired into the electrical system, this will test if the alarm itself is working.
• Replace the batteries of your home smoke detector or alarm. The best time to do this is when you change your clocks in the spring and fall for daylight time. If you have extended‑life batteries, check the manufacturer’s instructions and follow them.
• Fireplace glass and other hot surfaces are really dangerous and can burn your toddler’s hands very quickly. Fireplaces or inserts should be completely screened when a fire is blazing or at a low burn and even if the fire has gone out.
• Set the water temperature in your hot water tank at 49°C (120°F) to prevent burns. If you live in an apartment, it might not be easy to turn down the temperature on your hot water heater. If so, you can attach an anti‑scald guard to the tap, tub, or showerhead faucet to slow the water if it gets too hot. You can restart the flow by turning up the cold water. Most hardware stores sell anti‑scald guards. For more information on preventing scalds, see the BC Children’s Hospital website.
• The best thing you can do for your toddler is to have a smoke‑free home. Do not smoke or let anyone else smoke when your toddler is around. Also, make sure that your toddler cannot touch ashtrays, matches, lighters, or cigarettes.

• Keep gates at the bottom and the top of the stairs until your toddler shows you that she or he can use the stairs easily all the time. At about the age of 24 months, your toddler will start going up and down stairs on her or his own. Teach your toddler to go up and down facing the stairs. For more information on gates, click here.
• Keep toys off the stairs, and put away any loose carpets that are on them.
• Soften edges on furniture, countertops, and fireplaces. To do this, put homemade or store bought corner guards or cushioned strips on the corners and edges.
• Your toddler may want to reach something up high or look out the window. Your toddler could use a laundry basket or box to stand on, so be sure you’ve put them out of reach.
• Make sure that you have window locks on all windows. Always lock the doors to rooms that contain things your toddler should not have.
• Your toddler can fall easily. It is dangerous for your toddler to carry breakable things such as glass when walking. It is wise to stop your toddler from walking with a sucker or Popsicle™ in his or her mouth.
• Put decals, cut‑outs, or your toddler’s artwork on your glass doors at his eye level to help him see that there is glass.
• Your toddler probably loves to climb. Secure bookcases, TV cabinets, or other furniture to the wall with safety screws. This will prevent the furniture from falling on your toddler.

• Keep all poisons, including alcohol, drugs, medications, vitamins, home cleaning, and personal care products, in their original containers. Make sure they are well labelled. Place them on high shelves and locked up away from sleeping or play areas. Even hair shampoo can be dangerous.
• Do not tell your toddler that medicine is candy, and do not take medicine or vitamins in front of him or her.
• Never mix household chemicals together. Some mixtures can produce harmful gases.
• Remove poisonous houseplants from your home, and watch your toddler around plants in other people’s homes.
• Be careful with your recycle bin: your toddler may want to chew on the newspapers, which contain ink that may be harmful in large amounts. Your toddler may want to play with magazines or brochures and may suck on them. Keep those away from your toddler, too. The bright colours in the magazines can contain lead and be harmful.
• Children of any age should not be exposed to mothballs or their odour.
• Never leave alcohol where your toddler can get to it. Lock liquor cabinets or use the back of the highest shelf in the refrigerator to store alcohol.
• Always clear away leftover drinks in the evening. Your toddler may get up early and drink what is left in the glasses. It does not take much alcohol to make your toddler very sick.
• Secure your diaper pail with a tight‑fitting lid. Deodorant disks are poisonous.
• If you are buying something that is poisonous, make sure it has child‑resistant packaging. But remember that child‑resistant does not mean childproof. Your toddler may be able to get into a package that is supposed to be childproof. Lock it up out of reach.
• Help visitors store their handbags and briefcases in a safe place out of your toddler’s reach. Bags often contain medications.
• Protect your toddler from lead‑based paints, trinkets, mini‑blinds, or other products that have lead.
• Install carbon monoxide monitors in your home.

For more information on poisonous substances, visit the BC Drug and Poison Information Centre website.

The playground can be a lot of fun and give your toddler a place to develop and practise new physical skills. Your toddler can also learn social skills as she or he plays in the playground with other young children.

Use the following questions to check the safety of any playgrounds or parks you visit:

• Is the playground equipment in good condition, well anchored, and the right size and height for your toddler? If your toddler can’t reach it without help, it’s too big. Children younger than five should use playgrounds that are designed for preschool children. The playground equipment should be no more than 1.5 metres (5 feet) in height.
• Does the play equipment have guardrails and barriers to prevent injuries?
• Is the play equipment free of points, corners, hooks, joints, and other things that could catch clothing?
• Are the swing seats made of soft material to prevent injuries?
• Is there lots of space around the play equipment?
• Does the playground have proper surfaces? Sand, wood‑chips, and synthetic materials are best.

Playground safety tips:

• Always go with your toddler to the playground, and watch him or her closely. Playground falls are a major cause of serious injuries.
• Never dress your toddler in clothes that may become caught on equipment. Drawstrings, skipping ropes, scarves, bike helmet straps, and loose clothing can become tangled and strangle a toddler.
• Teach your toddler not to cross in front or behind a moving swing.
• Check the temperature of a metal slide with your hand. A metal slide in the sun can get hot enough to burn the skin.