When you have a baby, you should immerse yourself in classes and books on how to protect the baby in your home. The following guidelines will give you an overview on childproofing your home.

Physical Dangers

Electrical outlets tend to fascinate children. Many are down at eye level and they have small inviting holes for curious fingers, thus causing many injuries and even deaths every year by electrocution. Plastic outlet covers and plugs will prevent injuries, and ideally, childproof receptacles can also be installed in place of ordinary outlets.

If you have upper-story windows, you need to install safety bars on them that are childproof but simple for adults to open in case of fire or other emergencies. At the very least, keep windows closed and locked when children are present and never leave small children unattended around open windows. Don't place furniture near windows, potentially allowing children to climb onto sills, and never assume that a screen will protect a child from falling out of any window. Most houses have many items, including furniture, that have a potential to topple, injure, and even cause fatal injuries when pulled or climbed on. You can purchase anti-tip devices for items such as dressers, bookcases, entertainment centers, TVs, appliances, and tall floor lamps. Appliance locks are inexpensive and easy to install and keep doors to ovens and refrigerators safely locked to help protect your child from accidents.

Make sure to buy a crib that meets federal safety standards and keep the crib mattress tidy. To avoid Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS), never place an infant face down on any sort of plastic-covered mattress or table. Always keep your crib side-rails up, and strap children securely in anything that has a safety belt, such as a high chair, stroller, or changing table. In order to prevent falls, don't ever leave your baby lying on a bed or couch or changing table; instead, pick the baby up if you need to answer the phone or the door or you forgot something.

When you have babies and toddlers in the house, all of your coffee tables, furniture, and countertops with sharp edges should have protective padding or other specially designed covers attached to the corners. Install hardware-mounted safety gates at the top of every stairway and in between doors that you want to secure. Avoid using pressure-mounted gates because they are not secure enough, and do not use accordion gates because they can trap a child's head.

Thin plastics are suffocation hazards around babies and children and should be disposed of promptly after tying them in knots. Keep all of your plastic garbage bags and other plastic bags including sandwich bags out of the reach of children. Take the following steps for choking and strangulation prevention:

• Don't give foods such as nuts of any type, hard candy, fruit with seeds, grapes, raw carrots, raw peas, raw celery, cherries with pits, or popcorn to children under age four.

• Avoid garments with drawstrings for small children and babies; cut drawstrings out of hoods, jackets, and waist bands, and cut the strings off of mittens or other items (mobiles and crib toys).

• When your baby has outgrown the stage of just lying and looking at the mobile, take it down and store it securely.

• Tie up window-blind cords out of reach, or use specially designed cord clips.

• Be careful with necklaces and headbands on babies and anything that has the potential to wrap around a baby's neck, such as long telephone cords, pacifiers tied around the neck, and hanging purses or diaper bags.

• Never place your baby face down on soft surfaces such as waterbeds, sheepskin rugs, quilts, mattress covers, soft pillows, beanbags or bead-filled pillows, or near large stuffed animals.

Drowning is a leading cause of death in children under five. All pools and Jacuzzis need to have layers of protection including a pool fence with a self-closing, self-latching gate that prevents access to the water; pool alarms; and close adult supervision when children are present. Child flotation devices are never a replacement for adult supervision. Dump out all water from a wading pool when kids are finished playing every single time you use it. In fact, never leave any body of water sitting around, including pails of water or any other liquid, because toddlers can drown in a matter of minutes in unattended buckets. Babies should never be left unattended in a bath or wading pool even for a second for you to answer the door or phone. Pick up the baby and take him with you! Always stay in the bathroom when you are filling a tub with water.

Firearms need to be stored securely in a locked case, out of the reach of children. They must be stored unloaded and uncocked, and padlocks that prevent the cylinder from locking into place should be attached to all revolvers. Teach and emphasize to your children that guns are not toys and should never be touched or played with.

Children and Toxic Dangers

Every year thousands of children go to emergency rooms due to accidental poisoning. There are many safety latches and locks for cabinets and drawers on the market today that are designed to keep out tiny hands and that you can buy at any home store or general retail outlet.

According to EPA guidelines, all homes built before 1978 that are being remodeled should be tested for lead paint. Any baby items, furniture, or toys that were made before 1978 may have a finish or paint that contains dangerously high levels of lead.

Medicines, including over-the-counter medicine and vitamins, are all potentially hazardous household products. Never try to get your children to take a vitamin or medication by calling it candy.

Keep all medications, vitamins, supplements, and over-the-counter medication securely locked away, never sitting on a counter. Even if a label states it is child resistant that does not guarantee it is childproof. Make sure that grandparents and all other child caretakers understand the potential hazards of medications and vitamins and the necessary safety measures, because 20 percent of accidental poisonings of children happen when they are in the care of their grandparents.