Measures to prevent burns for children

Children's bodies are still very fragile, so they are susceptible to damage from external factors, especially temperature. The temperature can cause burns on a child's skin, the severity of which depends on the intensity as well as the heat of the object they are in contact with. However, children's burns are always more serious than adults. Therefore, you should take measures to prevent burns for children.

aFamilyToday Health will suggest some ways to prevent burns for children.

What is a burn?

A burn or burn is an injury to the skin or tissues caused by heat, electricity, chemicals (acids, alcohol), friction or radiation.

Burn wounds are usually divided into 4 categories: burns from fire, burns from water, burns from contact with hot objects and burns from the sun (sunburn). Regardless of the type of burns, it can lead to permanent scarring, disfigurement, or disability. In serious cases, you may need to have skin transplant surgery or prolonged treatment in the hospital to remedy this condition. A serious burn can also kill a child as their skin is often many times more sensitive than an adult's.

Causes of burns in children

1. Burns caused by fire

Fire is the biggest cause of burns, not just in children but in adults as well. To prevent burns to children, you should avoid exposing them to fire, hot surfaces or fires. Keep matches, lighters and hot objects out of the reach of children.

Children are often very active and curious about everything around. Babies are particularly fond of playing with the fire or the stove is cooking, so keep them away from the gas or stove. For homes that use gas stoves or infrared stoves for cooking, make sure they completely heat up before you take your eyes off them.

A microwave is a device that helps a lot in our busy lives. It helps to heat food quickly. However, after reheating it, it takes a certain amount of time to cool it down. Sometimes children carelessly touching the inside of the microwave oven can cause burns. So place the oven in a high place out of the reach of children and be careful when microwave food is warmed. You should always remember to close the door after using it. This should also apply to the oven as well.

Use electrical outlets with safety switches and regularly check the electrical wires in your home to avoid the risk of short-circuiting leading to fire. You should unplug when not using appliances and kitchen equipment, especially for stoves. This both helps prevent burns for children, and also helps prevent fires in the family.

After you have finished using your iron, remember to unplug it and keep it out of reach of children. Do not leave the iron on the ground as children may accidentally kick it or handle it.

Do not smoke when being with young children, there are many cases where children burn from smoking parental ash. You also absolutely must not smoke when you are tired or sleepy because sometimes the fire from a cigarette can cause a fire.

Be prepared for indoor fires and teach your baby how to put out a fire if there is a fire. Have a fire extinguisher and towel in the kitchen or in potentially explosive areas and teach your children how to use them. You should also teach your child basic fire coping skills . For example, to avoid smoke and toxic fumes, your baby should crawl low on the floor, cover his nose with a wet towel or shirt and get to the nearest exit as soon as possible.

Teach your kids what to do if their clothes catch on fire. In such situations, they should not panic, they should lie down on the floor, cover their face with their hands, and then roll on the floor to put out the fire.

2. Burns of boiling water

Boiling water is another very common cause of childhood burns. Follow the tips below to avoid burns to your child:

You should carefully check the water temperature before bathing your baby. Because young skin (especially infants) is much more fragile and sensitive than adult skin, you should only use moderately warm water (range 37 - 38 ° C) to bathe your baby. When making the water, you should put cold water in the tub first, and slowly add hot water until it feels warm. If they are able to bathe by themselves, teach them how to adjust the water temperature to avoid burning skin.

Keep hot drinks out of reach of children. Do not hold your baby if you are drinking or holding hot water. If your baby is eating with family, keep hot foods in the center of the table or away from your baby. You should not use tablecloths if you are eating with children, as they can pull the tablecloths and spill hot food over you.

When preparing baby formula, pay attention to the water temperature. According to some recommendations, water used to make infant formula must be above 70 ° C for pasteurization and not for more than 30 minutes after boiling. However, when feeding or drinking, you should rinse the bottle in cold water to allow it to cool to the right temperature. Before feeding your baby, you should test the temperature by placing a little milk on your hand or taste it. If the milk is still hot for you, it will be very hot for the baby.

Do not move hot food or drinks while children are playing on the floor. When cooking, close the safety bars to prevent children from wandering into the kitchen.

If your home uses a hot water kettle, make sure to keep them in a high position, out of reach of children, not near the edge of the table as they can pull the cord and pour the hot, clear water. people.

Turn all of the handles of the pot inwards to avoid being handled by your baby. You also use the bottom of the pot mat.

3. Burns caused by motorcycle exhaust

Tell your children not to rush when getting in and out of the car, because most of the cause of exhaust burns is their carelessness. For young children, you can prop the legs of the car and hold the baby down to prevent the baby from getting off by accident.

You should not park too close together because when stepping down, children may hit the exhaust pipes of other vehicles.

When building your car, you should turn the exhaust into the wall or other difficult-to-reach areas.

Install exhaust shields to prevent children from directly exposed to the heat of the exhaust. Although these screens can heat up, their heat is still much lower than the heat from the exhaust, so it can help prevent burns in your child.

4. Sunburn (sunburn)

The heat from the sun as well as UV rays can burn your baby's skin. However, many parents still despise and do not apply sunscreen to their children. Sunburns do not usually cause serious problems, but they can be uncomfortable with a burning pain in the skin. This usually occurs in the child's back, neck, arms, thighs, and face.

When going in the hot sun or when going to the beach, you should:

Dress your child in extra UV-protective clothing to protect their hands, back, and abdomen from the sun. Apply sunscreen evenly on skin 30 minutes before exposing your child to the sun. Be careful to apply cream all over the child's body, including parts that have been covered by clothing. Equip with a wide-brimmed hat and glasses to protect your baby's eyes and face.

Limit for children to play outdoors in the period from 10-16 hours because at this time, the sunlight is very strong and it is easy for the baby to get sunburned in just a short time.

If possible, keep the child playing under tree balls or parachute balls. This will help limit direct sunlight on the skin causing your baby to sunburn.

As soon as your child plays in the sun, apply moisturizer to him immediately. These creams are known to soothe and moisturize the skin, and can help limit or alleviate a child's sunburn.

How to deal with burns?

Although measures have been taken to prevent burns for children, but in some cases, the baby still burns, so what should you do?

In that case, flush the affected area with water for at least 20 minutes. If the burn is serious or clothing gets in the mouth of the wound, immediately go to the hospital for prompt support and treatment.

You can refer to the article  How to give first aid to a burn that you should know about.

Burns are often a very common childhood accident, and can cause serious health problems in a baby. Therefore, mothers should take simple measures suggested by aFamilyToday Health to prevent burns for children. However, for children, especially children from 0-5 years old, the thing you should do the most is to observe the baby at all times, because danger can lurking anywhere. One little thing you do can protect your child from the dangers of burns, do it now!