How to Reduce a Baby's Risk of Choking on Household Objects

Babies are very curious and excited about exploring their world. One of the most common ways for a baby to learn about her environment is by putting objects in her mouth. You can reduce your baby's risk of choking on household objects by being aware of high-risk items and by baby-proofing your home.

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Empty toilet paper roll
• Choke tube or small-parts tester

How to Reduce a Baby's Risk of Choking on Household Objects

1. Watch over your baby while she's eating, playing or crawling around.

2. Consider putting your baby into a playpen or child-restraining seat to reduce his risk of finding and choking on household objects.

3. Get into the habit of doing a room sweep a few times every day. Look for marbles, buttons, bottle caps, coins, safety or straight pins, lighters, balloons and anything else that might draw your baby's eye.

4. Keep dog and cat food up on a shelf or in a protected area where your pet can access it but your baby cannot.

5. Prepare an outside play area for your baby by removing any rocks, pebbles or dirt clumps.

6. Carry a blanket or collapsible playpen for an instant safety zone for your baby while she plays outside.

7. Stay with your baby while he plays in a sandbox, or keep him away from sandboxes altogether to reduce his risk of choking on handfuls of sand.

8. Hang houseplants from the ceiling or set them on high shelves to prevent baby's choking on leaves or dirt.

9. Buy a "choke tube," a small tube open on both ends that is approximately the size of a baby's airway, or use a toilet paper roll to check the size of toy parts.

10. Purchase baby gates and use them to keep your baby out of potentially dangerous areas.

11. Remind guests of the importance of keeping small objects out of your baby's hands.

12. Encourage older children to put away their toys when leaving a room and when finished playing.

Tips & Warnings

• Create a space that is beyond baby's reach for your purse, wallet, keys and coins, and then make it a habit to put those items in that space consistently.
• Put baby-proof locks on lower cabinets, toy chests and drawers to prevent your baby's accidentally getting into them and their contents.
• Make an effort to think like a baby, even getting down onto the floor and seeing what catches your eye--then removing that object if it poses a hazard.
• Even innocuous items such as coins, dog food and dice can cause your baby to choke.
• Never leave an infant unattended.

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