How to Prevent Dining Room Accidents

Tuck away dangling electrical wires. In many dining rooms you'll find floor and table lamps and small kitchen appliances like coffeemakers, toasters, sandwich makers and hot plates. These electrical items will have dangling cords of varying lengths. Because the dining area gets a sufficient amount of traffic during mealtime, wayward cords can become a tripping hazard. Tuck them away or use a wire or cord strap to keep them organized and out of the way.

Wipe up spills promptly. Food spills on the floor can cause slips, trips and falls. Liquid spills on the table can make a mess and trickle onto the floor. Food messes can start a chain reaction of mishaps and accidents.

Serve food in appropriate containers. Make sure each serving plate is large enough to hold the dish, and light enough to allow easy passing around the table. Consider dividing a dish into two separate portions to be placed on each end of the table; this minimizes the passing around that could lead to spills and other accidents.

Use appropriate chairs for children. Infants and toddlers should be propped in stable and secure high chairs for easy access to the food and to prevent fall-over accidents.

Set a children's table at parties and large gatherings. Setting up a children's table will give the young ones the chance to enjoy their food and at the same time remain out of harm's way with non-breakable dishes and child-safe utensils.

Always keep the dining room floor clutter-free. Misplaced toys and other floor clutter can cause tripping, which could lead to a major disaster when you're carrying a serving plate of food to and from the dining table.

Design the dining room so that there is sufficient space and elbowroom around the dining table to minimize crowding and bumping of people and furniture.