From the minute you find out that you or you’re pregnant are pregnant your mind can go into overdrive about all of the things you might need to do both before and after the baby is born. Obviously, it’s important to make your house as safe as possible and today we’re talking about ways to baby proof your kitchen.
1. Child locks
One of the first measures that you can take to make sure your kitchen is safe for your baby or child is to install child locks. These are not expensive and there are a few different kinds available to ensure children can’t get into places that could be dangerous.
Cupboards containing cleaning materials are especially dangerous, as are drawers that contain knives. If you have a large kitchen you may need a fair few child locks but they definitely be worth putting on.
2. Install a baby gate
Depending on the style and layout of your house, you might want to think about installing a baby gate. As soon as babies can crawl, and then walk, they will try to get absolutely everywhere and that’s not ideal when you’re trying to cook dinner. A baby gate can be a great way to ensure there are no accidents.
Unfortunately, baby gates don’t work as well with open plan rooms unless you get a large, extendable rail.
3. Move things out of the way
You’ll be surprised at how much babies are able to reach, even when you think it’s not possible. Anything within reaching distance in the kitchen could end up being a threat so now is a good time to get used to moving things out of the way. Don’t leave dishes to dry on then rack, move small appliances to a cupboard and make sure cutlery and cooking utensils aren’t left on the counter tops.
4. Add a cooker guard
Very often children won’t be able to resist the temptation to twist and pull any button or dial they can see in the kitchen. The cooker is a prime example of this but usually this is an area forgotten about. You can get guards that go over the dial area of your cooker to help stop children being able to get to them so easily.
5. Create a distraction
Unfortunately, it’s not always possible to have your child in another room while you’re busy in the kitchen. As well as trying to think of all of the ways to keep the kitchen safe it might also be an idea to create a ‘safe’ space for your child. You might have a corner or area you don’t use as much where you could keep a fun and interesting box of things to keep your child occupied while you get on with what you need to.
The steps you need to take to baby proof a kitchen really depend on the size and design but hopefully these ideas give you somewhere to start.