Burns and children in the home – what to do???

It is scary enough baby proofing your house for your children to be protected for your upcoming baby, but what about burns? As much as you try to prevent them, they can happen and do you know the common causes and what you can do to prevent those risks? Silly enough I have a burn under my forearm from trying to make the early-90s snack “Tater-Tots” where the pan seared the underneath of my arm. My cousin Shawn severely burned his hand as a child (when fireworks were legal in California in the early 90s) with a sparkler. I can still remember how upset and scary it was. Even in college, I actually grabbed a hot burner on the stove and gave myself 3rd degree burns. Terrible and more terrible. Heck, as moms we burn ourselves on the curling iron and complain! From kids washing up under a too-hot faucet to an accidental tipping of a coffee cup, burns are a potential hazard in every home. In fact, burns, especially scalds from hot water and liquids, are some of the most common childhood accidents. Kids and toddlers are curious and unknowing with sensitive skin that needs extra protection and caution.

Taking some simple precautions to make your home safer will (hopefully) prevent many burns.

Here are some shocking statistics from the latest National SAFE KIDS Campaign and the United States Fire Administration (part of the Federal Emergency Management Agency):

Injury and death rates:

• Burns are the fourth leading cause of accidental deaths and injuries to infants under age 1.
• The majority of fire-related deaths (75 percent) are caused by smoke inhalation of the toxic gases produced by fires. Actual flames and burns only account for about one-fourth of fire-related deaths and injuries.
• The majority of fires that kill or injure children are residential fires (85 percent).
• The majority of children ages 4 and under who are hospitalized for burn-related injuries suffer from scald burns (65 percent) or contact burns (20 percent).
• Fireworks-related injuries sent more than 3,800 children to hospital emergency rooms in 1997.
• Fires kill more than 600 children ages 14 and under each year and injure approximately 47,000 other children.
• Approximately 88,000 children ages 14 and under were treated at hospital emergency rooms for burn-related injuries – 62,500 were thermal burns and 25,500 were scald burns.
• Hot tap water scald burns cause more deaths and hospitalizations than any other hot liquid burns.

Common Causes
The first step in helping to prevent kids from being burned is to understand these common causes of burns:

• Scalds, the No. 1 culprit (from steam, hot bath water, tipped-over coffee cups, hot foods, cooking fluids, etc.)
• Contact with flames or hot objects (from the stove, fireplace, curling iron, etc.)
• Chemical burns (from swallowing things, like drain cleaner or watch batteries, or spilling chemicals, such as bleach, onto the skin)
• Electrical burns (from biting on electrical cords or sticking fingers or objects in electrical outlets, etc.)
• Overexposure to the sun

Types of Burns
Burns are often categorized as first-, second-, or third-degree, depending on how badly the skin is damaged.

1. First degree is limited to the outer layer of the skin, causing it to be dry, red and painful, but without blistering. A mild or moderate sunburn is an example of a first degree burn.
2. Second degree, or partial thickness burn is more serious, and involves blistering of the skin. This type of burn is also painful, but unlike a first degree burn, the affected skin will likely appear to be moist.
3. Third degree burn is where all of the skin layers have been penetrated and the burned area will be white, charred, firm and leathery. A third degree burn also destroys nerve endings, so your child may not feel pain in the burned area.

Preventing Burns
You can’t keep kids free from injuries all the time, but these simple precautions can reduce the chances of burns in your home:

In General —

• Keep matches, lighters, chemicals, and lit candles out of kids’ reach.
• Put child-safety covers on all electrical outlets.
• If you need to use a humidifier or vaporizer, use a cool-mist model rather than a hot-steam one.
• Choose sleepwear that’s labeled flame retardant (either polyester or treated cotton). Cotton sweatshirts or pants that aren’t labeled as sleepwear generally aren’t flame retardant.
• Make sure older kids and teens are especially careful when using irons, flat irons, or curling irons.
• Prevent house fires by making sure you have a smoke alarm on every level of your home and in each bedroom. Check these monthly and change the batteries twice a year.
• Replace smoke alarms that are 10 years or older.
• Don’t smoke inside, especially when you’re tired, taking medications that can make you drowsy, or in bed.
• Don’t use fireworks or sparklers.

 Kitchen/Dining Room —

• Turn pot handles toward the back of the stove every time you cook.
• Block access to the stove as much as possible.
• Never let a child use a walker in the kitchen (the American Academy of Pediatrics strongly discourages the use of walkers overall).
• Avoid using tablecloths or large placemats. Youngsters can pull on them and overturn a hot drink or plate of food.
• Keep hot drinks and foods out of reach of children.
• Never drink hot beverages or soup with a child sitting on your lap or carry hot liquids or dishes around kids. If you have to walk with hot liquid in the kitchen (like a pot of soup or cup of coffee), make sure you know where kids are so you don’t trip over them.
• Never hold a baby or small child while cooking.
• Never warm baby bottles in the microwave oven. The liquid may heat unevenly, resulting in pockets of breast milk or formula that can scald a baby’s mouth.
• Screen fireplaces and wood-burning stoves. Radiators and electric baseboard heaters may need to be screened as well.
• Teach kids never to put anything into the fireplace when it is lit. Also make sure they know the glass doors to the fireplace can be very hot and can burn them if they touch it.