- Never leave an infant unattended in the tub.baby in bath image by Pavel Losevsky from Fotolia.com
The most obvious place that a baby will come in contact with water is in the bathtub. While bath time can be a fun, enjoyable activity for infants, a distracted parent can be disastrous. Healthy Children directs parents to be within one arm's length of a young child in the bathtub at all times, and to not allow themselves to get caught up with a conversation on the phone, or household chores. Even if an infant is secured in a bath ring, parents should never leave the child unattended.
Another bathtub concern is water temperature. If possible, parents should set their hot water heater to a maximum temperature of 120 degrees F to prevent accidental burns to a baby. - The water in a toilet can be dangerous to an exploring baby.toy toilet image by Wayne Abraham from Fotolia.com
Another location in the bathroom that can be hazardous to a crawling baby is the toilet. While many parents would not consider this an issue, an adventurous baby who pulls up on the toilet and accidentally falls in head first will not be able to push himself out. Toilet locks can be found in the baby department of any retailer and are easy to install to avoid this problem. - A bucket or other container with even a little water can harm an infant.bucket close up image by Aleksandr Ugorenkov from Fotolia.com
While the bathroom is the most obvious place for a child to find water danger, other places in the household may present a danger to exploring infants because of water that is present. According to Kids Health, an infant can drown in "less than 2 inches of water." Parents need to be cautious about leaving buckets around with even a little bit of water in them that they may use for cleaning, washing the car or soaking clothes and diapers.
The American Academy of Pediatrics also warns about hot tubs, spas and even melted ice in coolers. In the yard, keep an eye on a small landscape pond or fountain and drainage ditches where little ones could get into trouble. - Parents must always supervise infants around the pool.Swimming pool and pool house image by Jim Mills from Fotolia.com
If possible, the American Academy of Pediatrics suggests delaying installing a home pool until a child is 5 years old. If a family does have a pool, it must have a 4-foot fence around it with a self-closing and self-latching gate to prevent a child's entrance into the pool area, with a gap of no more than 4 inches at the bottom of the fence.
Parents should never leave an infant unsupervised at a pool, and flotation devices are not a substitute for adult supervision. Never allow other children to supervise a baby near the pool, and make sure there are life-saving supplies nearby, such as a shepherd's hook or a ring attached to a rope.
Pool alarms are a useful and, in some states, mandatory safety device, but again, these are not a substitute for parental supervision. - CPR training will ensure that parents are ready in case of an emergency.military red cross image by superkiss from Fotolia.com
Parents can contact a local chapter of the American Red Cross or a local hospital to find out about learning CPR for infants and children. If for some reason a baby does find her way to some water, and a parent finds her not breathing, the parent will be able to respond quickly with CPR which will give the child the best chance of surviving the incident without any long-term damage.
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