This common household item sends two kids to the ER every day
Keep this home decor out of the kids’ rooms.
A new study from the Center for Injury Research and Policy found that almost 17,000 children under 6 were taken to emergency rooms for window blind-related injuries between 1990 and 2015.
Although most kids were treated and released, on average one child died each month, usually due to strangulation from the blind cord.
“There is a misperception that if we just watch our kids carefully, they will be safe. But even the best parent in the world cannot watch their child every second of every day,” Gary Smith, author of the study and director of CIRP at Nationwide Children’s Hospital, writes in a press release. “A curious child can quickly get entangled in a window blind cord. This can lead to strangulation within minutes, and the parent may not hear a thing because the child often can’t make a sound while this is happening.”
Window blinds are especially dangerous to kids under 4 who are just starting to gain mobility, but do not understand the hazards of strangulation.
To make your home safer for your kids, Smith says you should replace all blinds that have cords with cordless blinds, blinds with inaccessible cords or alternate window coverings, such as window shutters, drapes or curtains.