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View Full Version : Babyproofing Overkill!!



dweksler
05-11-2003, 10:40 AM
There are so many babyproofing products on the market I am overwhelmed! I also do not want my house to be a rubber bubble either with every possible edge padded. I think it is important to teach your child that certain things are simply a no-no. At the same time I want to keep her safe. She has just started crawling within the last 2 weeks so I am now focused on the babyproofing issues and need some guidance about what is ESSENTIAL and what is just marketing extras that I don't really need in order to keep her safe. Thanks! Mom to Bella

brubeck
05-11-2003, 11:11 AM
Essential:

Outlet covers
Plastic doorstops
Moving all dangerous items (knives, poisons, etc.) to high and/or locked places.
Locks for dangerous places such as bathrooms, the garage, etc.
Some way to prevent baby from going up/down stairs when you're not looking.

After that it depends on your house and how it is laid out, plus any item(s) your baby happens to be specifically attracted to. For example some babies LOVE CDs so the parents put extra effort into getting the CDs out of reach.

Start with a few basics and watch your child carefully. You will see what she is attracted to and where you need to pay more attention. WARNING! This is an ongoing job and as she gets more mobile and curious you will have to continue baby-proofing.

You CAN teach your child to stay away from certain things. We taught our daughter early on that the garbage and the CDs/DVDs were things that were not to be touched and to this day (30 months old) she will not play with them. But we had to put a lot of effort into that, so be prepared!

Good luck!

flagger
05-11-2003, 11:35 AM
Most of everything you see on the market is marketing overkill. Some common sense goes a long way to babyproofing your home.

Crawling around at their level will open your eyes to most of the dangers. Most of our furniture sits in front of the electrical outlets so we are not doing the outlet covers at all. We fear more a choking hazard by someone popping one off and swallowing it.

Making things inconvenient for YOU to get to (medicines, bathroom chemicals) will make it down near impossible for a toddler to get into. Keeping certain rooms off-limits with closed/locked doors and baby gates is far more effective. Take the knobs off of the stove and locking the oven (if available) would be one way to keep them from getting into trouble.

What worked for me was lime green ugly faced Mr. Yuk stickers on anything that I shouldn't touch. I wish I could still find those.

egoldber
05-11-2003, 02:53 PM
I agree about letting your child teach you what to babyproof. Follow her around and see what she is attracted to. Things that are a MUST to babyproof include:

cabinets with chemicals, cleaning supplies, medicines
outlets
obvious exposed electrical cords
stairs

We found it much easier to just restrict access to some areas rather than child proof them. Sarah does not go in the computer room without one of us. Rather than "babyproof" our electronics (DVD player, VCR, stereo reciever, etc.) we just put a lock on the cabinet they are in. We keep all bathroom doors closed.

While it is certainly possible to teach your child not to touch some things, that may depend on a) the personality of your child and b) the types of things. I would take no chances with things that could harm your child, because even the BEST behaved babies and toddlers can and WILL do things occasionally simply because you said not to.

And I would use things that are convenient for you to use. One of the moms in my playgroup once walked into her kitchen to find her baby sitting with a jar of Ajax happily trying to eat the stuff. Her DH had been cleaning and been going in and out of that cabinet and left it open rather than dealing with the child locks each time. He had then walked away and forgotten to re-lock it. (And they aren't horrible people, almost everyone I know has a story like this. And their baby was fine by the way.) So in my opinion, the best childproofing devices are ones that you will use every time.

HTH,

dweksler
05-11-2003, 03:53 PM
Any suggestions on better brands or devices for the essential list of outlet covers, doorstops, locks or babygates?

brubeck
05-11-2003, 05:44 PM
When I say outlet covers I mean the things that are full faceplates, NOT the individual plus. Flagger is right, those plugs can actually be pulled out by babies and become a big choking hazard. I believe most of these are generally the same except for appearance and whether the outlet is accessed by twisting or sliding the cover. I just bought the cheapest ones I could find.

The plastic doorstops can be purchased at Home Depot (in the door section, not the babyproofing section). When I bought these (2 years ago) they were 3 for $4. Basically the kind that are metal coils have sharp edges that can hurt baby and the caps on them are choking hazards. Anything that is smooth and all one piece is fine. You could also just consider removing all your doorstops.

Locks and babygates depend on your home and what areas/rooms/cabinets/drawers you want to lock. There is no one 'best gate' because it depends on the areas you want to close off as to what features you will like best. Most people use drawer and cabinet locks, and I think most users of these boards agree that the Tot Loks are the hardest for baby to bypass. However they are expensive, don't work with all doors and you need the key to open them. So again, your cabinet/drawer style and personal preferences would come into play. My personal choice for my home was a few Tot Loks and some of the Gerber one-piece-spring drawer locks, plus the doorknob covers for rooms we want to keep the kids out of. But as I said your home and needs may be different from mine.

sntm
05-11-2003, 06:42 PM
oooh, me too! why *don't* they make those anymore????


shannon
not-even-pregnant-yet-overachiever
trying-to-conceive :)
PREGNANT! EDD 6/9/03

zen_bliss
05-11-2003, 08:20 PM
i still can see those mr. yuk tv PSA spots that ran during sat am cartoons. i found them so scary as to be mildly traumatic. now that 'our generation' is running things, we should bring him back!!

flagger
05-11-2003, 08:21 PM
>oooh, me too! why *don't* they make those anymore????

I found this story from March of this year: http://www.wndu.com/news/contact16/contact16_3077.php It says that Mr. Yuk was being retired because "research shows children can actually be attracted to the bright stickers." I don't know about that because I was always taught by my mom that Mr. Yuk meant keep away.

And FDA listing from May of 2000 still lists Mr. Yuk sticker availability. http://www.fda.gov/opacom/lowlit/poison.html

We are going to be facing new challenges as we will probably be moving around the time she starts to get mobile. For now our home is "dog-proofed" which will be just fine for a non-mobile infant.

flagger
05-11-2003, 08:27 PM
I found the "Mr. Yuk" mp3 song at the bottom of the page on this site:

http://www.poison.org/jingle/

dueinmay
06-25-2003, 03:51 PM
Just in case you really are still pining after a Mr Yuk sticker: my fire department was handing these out at the car seat installation class & inspection I attended there last month. It is that glow-y lime green - looks like the original to me. So they are still out there . . .

Rebecca

It's a girl!
5.14.03

marie
06-30-2003, 10:44 AM
flagger-
thank you soooo much for that trip down memory lane! i had forgotten all about mr. yuk!

you can order stickers through the pittsburgh children's hospital for $1 donation.

http://www.chp.edu/mryuk/05a_mryuk.php