I had a pretty eventful childhood, and most of the time the reason behind it was me swallowing anything I had access to. One when I was around 3, I drank an entire small bottle of Vitamin C drops which mum used to give us. Thankfully nothing happened to me, but medicines can be really dangerous for kids. Now Zoe is at an age that she loves exploring things and has a habit of keeping things in her mouth. So we as parents have to be extra cautious.
Have a look at statistics that are based on a research conducted in the USA on 'The Facts about Kids and Medicine Safety'. Though this was not conducted in India, but kids across the globe are similar... the numbers might vary but look at the way children access medicines and whose medicines they swallowed.
As a child I did have several instances where I swallowed medicines but thankfully nothing serious happened. This has made me become extra carefull about keeping medicines in the house with Zoe exploring the place.
Keeping medicines away from children is not really your answer. You as a parent need to be more careful, if you have a guardian/caregiver at home make sure s/he understands how to keep medicines away and how to keep a constant watch on the child. They should also be aware about the exact dose your child needs and the exact time they need to be given medicines. Only medicines aren't always the culprit; lotion, diaper rash cream, toothpaste, powder everything your baby uses should be kept out of reach.
Here are a few things you can keep in mind:
Keeping medicines away from children is not really your answer. You as a parent need to be more careful, if you have a guardian/caregiver at home make sure s/he understands how to keep medicines away and how to keep a constant watch on the child. They should also be aware about the exact dose your child needs and the exact time they need to be given medicines. Only medicines aren't always the culprit; lotion, diaper rash cream, toothpaste, powder everything your baby uses should be kept out of reach.
Here are a few things you can keep in mind:
- Keep medicines at a place which is out of reach and not visible to your child's eye (out of sight is out of mind)
- Think like your child and avoid storing medicines in places, your child generally ventures in
- As mentioned above, do not ignore products which are not medicines but can be extremely harmful.
- When you have visitors/guests staying at home make sure you tell them to store their medicines properly
- Store medicines in containers which are tight and which can not be opened easily.
When you/caregiver gives medicines to your child make sure:
- You instruct them about the exact dose to be given
- Make sure you check the expiry date of the medicine while purchasing it.
- Keep the emergency numbers handy
You can get more tips from http://www.safekids.org/safety-basics/
No comments:
Post a Comment