News stories and friends are always warning you about children’s products that you need to watch out for. They’re right to be worried! Accidents such as burns, drowning, falls, and poisoning are the leading cause of mortality among children in the U.S. each year.
More specifically, for kids under a year old, two-thirds of injuries and deaths were due to suffocation, and in kids ages 1 to 4 years of age, drowning was the leading cause.
These incidents were all accidental, and most of them could have been prevented. Through awareness, preparedness, and proper safety, you can keep these from happening in your house and ensure your kids’ safety.
We’ve targeted the most common accidents with babies and toddlers and the best (and most underrated) products on the market that can help prevent them (and take a load off your mind).
Mesh Window Safety Guard
Studies show that 5,200 kids a year (that works out to 14 per day) get treated in emergency rooms for injuries sustained from falling out of windows. Keeping kids safe from accidental falls used to mean boarding up windows like a prison cell. This product, a mesh window screen, keeps your windows safe from inquisitive kids and still keeps your decor pretty.
Get a guard for one window here for $40.
KidCo Universal Outlet Cover
Electrocution is a real concern with kids. Each day seven kids are treated in emergency rooms for electrical shock or burns caused by messing with wall outlets. The best way to avoid this is to cover all of the outlets in your house.
The KidCo outlet cover allows you to insert plugs by safely sliding them in. When a plug is removed, a spring-loaded cover keeps open outlets (and kids) safe.
Get a 12-pack of these outlet covers for $35.
Safety 1st Blind Cord Wind-Ups
Unfortunately, accidental strangulation on the cords of window blinds and shades happens to kids all too often.
Experts recommend securing all loose, hanging cords. This product bundles all of them together and keeps them securely away from your child.
Get a pack of six cord wind-ups here for $9.
KidCo Stair Gate
Each year 35,000 kids sustain severe injuries from falling down the stairs. Most of the falls occur in kids age 2.5 years, and most of these falls could be prevented with the use of a stair gate.
The problem is that many of these gates are not well made and are hard for parents to open. Enter the KidCo stair gate! It’s made of sturdy steel, mounts easily, and adults can open it with one hand.
Get one here for $43.
KidCo HearthGate
If your house has a working fireplace, you must secure the area surrounding it. Not only do thousands of kids per year get burned by flames and the hot glass that often surrounds fire sources, but sharp, hard stone surfaces also pose a risk of injury.
The HearthGate is a great pick to help keep your kid away from the danger while still allowing for the enjoyment of a fireplace. It’s made of strong, heat-resistant steel and can adjust to fit any size fireplace (extensions are also an option). The gate door closes automatically, but it can be kept open if necessary with the touch of a button.
Get one here for $170.
Mommy’s Helper Toilet Seat Lid-Lok
Accidental drowning, along with slips and falls from an overflowing toilet, can present really dangerous situations for your toddler. Protecting them is a cinch with the Toilet Seat Lid-Lok.
It’s easy to install without tools, fits most toilets, is simple for adults to use, and most important, is nearly impossible for even the cleverest child to open.
Get one here for $5.
Prince Lionheart Corner Guards
Often-overlooked areas of danger in the home are the sharp corners of furniture and molding. Kids can bang their heads, fall on top of them while trying to stand, and also land on them during horseplay.
Protect your kids’ bodies by protecting all of the sharp corners in your house with these ingenious corner guards. They’re fire retardant, nontoxic, and stick on easily.
Get a set for one table (with four guards) here in beige, light brown, or chocolate brown for $7 to $14, depending on color.
Skip Hop Moby Bath Spout Cover
Children slipping and falling in the tub accounts for about 40,000 visits to emergency rooms every year. Studies show that kids age 4 or younger are most at risk because they’re unbalanced and uncoordinated.
Protect their precious heads and bodies from sharp, hard faucets by covering them. This product covers unsafe faucets in a fun way. It’s nontoxic and has an adjustable strap so that it can fit securely around most spouts.
Get one here for $13.
Vita Guard Medicine Safe
Of the 2.2 million exposures to poison in 2014, half of the cases involved kids under the age of 6 years. Pain medications, vitamins, and antihistamines are all included on the list of “most common substances implicated in pediatric exposures,” according to the National Capital Poison Center.
Keep all of your medication and supplements safe from curious hands with a guarded medicine safe. This one from Vita Guard locks up potentially poisonous medication with a foolproof lock system that can’t be opened by little hands. It’s durable and can be easily stored in cupboards or on countertops.
Get one here for $25.
Mudder Door Stoppers
The Consumer Product Safety Commission reports that over 40,000 injuries to the fingers, hands, and wrists of kids under the age of 14 are caused by the slamming of doors. Keep your kids safe from this risk by securing all of the doors in your house.
This ingenious little product keeps doors secure. It cleverly fits under most doors and keeps them from moving even a millimeter. It comes with a handy hook to hang the product on the back of a door when it’s not in use.
Get a four-pack here for $8.
Prince Lionheart Crib Rail Protector
Babies love to put things in their mouths, and crib rails are the perfect height and surface for curious teething mouths. Unfortunately, this surface can do a number on your baby’s teeth and gums and also cause her to possibly ingest unsafe paint or wood chips.
These crib rail protectors are made of nontoxic, soft plastic and act as the perfect teething surface for curious babies. They’re easy to install, easy to clean, and fit over most crib rails.
Get a set here for $10.
Lollaland Play Mat
Hard falls account for major injuries in toddlers and babies who are learning to walk and crawl. If only you could cushion everything around them. This play mat does the next best thing!
It’s a nontoxic, hypoallergenic protective play mat that cushions your child during their day. It’s reversible, easy to clean, waterproof, and textured so your baby won’t slip. It is oversized so that it can take the place of a rug in a play room or any other room in your house.
Get one here in one of four colors/patterns for $80.
Summer Infant In View Digital Video Monitor
Keeping your children safe involves watching them when you’re near them and also when they’re away from your eyes. A good infant monitor can help be your eyes and ears when you’re not nearby.
The Summer infant monitor is your perfect caretaker. It provides great image quality in regular and zoomed-in viewing, offers black and white night views, digital technology for privacy and security, a nice far range of 600 feet, a swivel camera design that can be mounted on a table or wall, and options to add more cameras for monitoring of multiple children and multiple rooms.
Get the full system here for $82 and an additional camera for $50.
Summer Infant Step To Open Gate
Keeping your baby safe from harm often involves keeping him or her in one area (and out of others). Room-to-room gates are a pain because they’re usually made from flimsy metal and require an engineer’s degree to open, making them ridiculously frustrating to use.
This Summer Infant gate is a cleverly designed, sturdy, and easy-to-use model. You simply step on the pedal on the bottom of the gate and the door swings open. It’s pressure mounted so it fits in most doorways.
Get one here for $92.
