Hidden Hazards in the Home

Falls

    There are numerous factors around the home that can lead to slips and falls. And although incidents of injury due to a fall disproportionately affect the elderly, things like loose rugs and slippery shower tiles can pose a threat to everyone in your home.

    Experts recommend using double-sided carpet tape to keep your carpet from being easily moved and causing a fall. You can also combat falls in showers or bathrooms by using non-slip mats.

The Silent Killers – carbon monoxide and bacteria in your water

    Unlike falls, most people aren’t aware of how significant of a threat seemingly invisible factors such as carbon monoxide and bacteria can pose to them within their homes. Carbon monoxide most often causes injury when an individual enters an enclosed garage in which a car or lawnmower has been running for too long, allowing for a buildup of carbon monoxide. Bacteria is another invisible threat to individual’s health that often is transported in tap water. For peace of mind, it is often helpful to install a water filter on any tap from which you get drinking water.

Crib hazards

    Unfortunately, cribs can be hazardous to the children that sleep in them and are responsible for more infant deaths than any other piece of nursery equipment. Children are most frequently injured when attempting to exit the crib. They can get stuck in the posts of the crib or catch their clothing and fall out.

    Fortunately, this can be easily avoided by choosing a crib that was made after 2011, when new safety standards were implemented. This significantly decreases the risks that your child will be injured. It is also important to strictly adhere to the manual directions in the use of the crib. Many of these instructions are instrumental to ensure child safety.

The wrong fire alarm — ionization alarms v. photoelectric

    Most homes rely on ionization alarms — a mistake that can prove to be fatal. These alarms can take 25-50 minutes longer to detect the signs of a fire. This means that they often miss subtle warning signs such as burning cigarettes or of frayed electrical wires.

    Unfortunately, people choose these alarms simply because of their lower cost without realizing that, in the future, it could cost them their home or even their lives.