Children this age are busy, curious, and full of energy. Around their first birthday, most babies learn to walk. During the next months, they will learn to run and climb, and to open doors, drawers, and bottles. This means that your toddler can now get into places and things that used to be out of reach.

Toddlers are too young to understand or remember about danger. Supervise your child carefully. Make your home a safe place for him or her to explore.

Toddlers need special protection from:

• poisoning
• drowning
  
• choking on small objects
  
• burns and scalds
  
• falls
  
• injuries from riding in the car

Safety check

		Make sure you have safety gates at the top and bottom of stairs.
		Lock up medicines, cleaning products, and other poisons. Many toddlers can open child-resistant containers.
		Install smoke alarms (test them every month) and a fire extinguisher.
		Lower the temperature of the hot water in your home to 49 degrees Celsius (120 degrees Fahrenheit).

In the kitchen
Many cleaning products and medicines could poison your toddler. Keep these things locked up, where your child cannot reach them. Keep your child safely out of the way when you are using poisonous products.

Keep your child safely out of the way when you are cooking or making hot drinks.

Keep the cords from electrical appliances where your child cannot reach them. Do not let them hang over the edge of the counter or table. Your child could pull on them and be scalded by the hot food or liquid in the appliance (such as a kettle).

Cut hard or solid foods such as raw fruits and vegetables into very small pieces. Cut hot dogs into long thin strips, and then into small pieces. Do not give toddlers nuts, hard candy, popcorn or gum. Feed children while they are sitting down, not when they are walking or running around. This will help prevent choking.

In the bathroom
Keep all medicine and cleaning products locked away.

Always supervise your toddler in the bathroom. Do not let older children supervise your toddler. They may not know how to keep your toddler safe.

Use a rubber bath mat or non-slip stickers in the bathtub to prevent falls.

Lower the temperature of the hot water in your home to 49 degrees Celsius (120 degrees Fahrenheit) to prevent scalds. Tap water that is too hot can burn like fire. You can lower the temperature of your hot water heater or put anti-scald devices on your taps. To learn more, call 1 888 SAFE TIPS or visit www.safekidscanada.ca

Around the house
Watch out for things that could choke your child. Your toddler loves to put things in his or her mouth. Some examples of small things to keep out of reach are:

• keys
• balloons
  
• coins
  
• toys with small parts or batteries
  

In the bedroom
Before he or she is tall enough to climb over the crib rails, move your toddler out of a crib and into a larger bed.

Keep your child’s furniture, including his or her bed, away from windows. That way, your child cannot climb on the furniture and fall out the window.

Put a window guard in front of your child’s window so he or she cannot fall out. Or fasten the window so that it does not open more than 10 centimetres (4 inches). A window screen will not keep your child from falling out.

Going out
Use a safety strap to keep your toddler sitting down in a shopping cart. Use a safety strap in the stroller as well.

Always supervise toddlers near ponds, pools, ditches, and at the beach. Never leave your young child alone near water or in water.


For more information, call Safe Kids Canada at 1 800 SAFE TIPS or visit www.safekidscanada.ca