Bringing home baby: Tips to make sure your home is safe for newborns
According to WRAL's Dr. Allen Mask, a few simple tips can put parents' minds at ease and keep little ones safe.
Posted — UpdatedAccording to WRAL's Dr. Allen Mask, a few simple tips can put parents' minds at ease and keep little ones safe.
An important safety measure that can be easily overlooked is water temperature.
"We always recommend, even when women are pregnant, to turn down their hot water heater to less than 120 degrees, so that once their baby's there, they will already have a safe water temperature available," said Dr. Eva Love of the Cleveland Children's Clinic.
According to Love, babies have thinner skin and are more susceptible to burns, so turning down water temperature will reduce the risk of accidental scalding.
Homes should also have working smoke and carbon monoxide detectors.
"Carbon monoxide is odorless, so for this reason, you're not putting your carbon monoxide detector in an area where it's convenient, but where it's important to be, which would be by the furnace and in the bedrooms," said Love.
Finally, before a new baby leaves the hospital, make sure your car seat is installed properly. "Before you even get the baby into the car seat, you should have it inspected by a car seat inspector," said Love.
Current car seat recommendations say all children should be placed in rear-facing car seats until age two.
Most importantly, don't be afraid to ask questions.
"With information at our fingertips, many parents feel like they should know all the answers," said Dr. Mask. "Don't be shy about calling your pediatrician any time you have questions, whether it's your first or fifth child."
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