Make sure each person in the house knows two ways out of each room and have a designated meeting place outside. Ms. Menelly suggested parents also install guards on their stoves and radiators and make sure all electrical outlets are covered. Do not leave cigarettes and matches within reach of children. Children can also be burned by hot water. When cooking, turn pot handles in, out of a child's reach to prevent them pulling scalding-hot fluid on themselves.
Children can also burn their esophagus by swallowing chemical cleaners.
Don't forget electrical cords. Ms. Menelly told of a woman who felt a tug on the cord while vacuuming. She turned around to see her toddler had bitten through the cord and suffered electrical burns around her mouth. There are many products on the market to help prevent against poisonings, suffocation, choking, and burns. The January 1997 issue of Consumer Reports rates items in more than a dozen categories including socket covers, window locks, toilet lid locks, bathtub products, medicine-cabinet latches, drawer locks, and gates.