It’s a new parent’s worst nightmare. Your beautiful baby is showing signs of the Great Explorer she will soon become. Reaching out, grabbing things with those chubby little fists, working hard at crawling. Before you know it, she gets her tiny fist around those tempting TV cords and pulls.
The highest age risk for children getting injured with a TV or furniture tip-over injury is age 1 to 4. These young children are curious and surprisingly strong – a worrisome combination.
Sheesh! All you had to worry about Before Baby was which show or movie to watch.
“Entertainment center” meant a place to house your TV and components, not a potentially fatal attraction for your toddler. Fortunately, you can take care of those concerns almost as quickly as we brought them up.
You Can Prevent Tipovers by Baby Proofing Your TV
Once your baby is on the move, it may be too late to childproof your TV. Do that right now, before you think you need to. The time you think you have will zip past in a blur. Besides, taking proactive steps to baby proof now will make your home safer and give you precious parental peace of mind.
Baby Proofing Your TV Is Easy
Just because you have children, doesn’t mean that you have to sacrifice your style. But you do want to be sure to remove tempting items that are within their reach. Stick to softer accessories that are on or near the floor like fabric baskets, poufs and fabric ottomans. (An added benefit is that a lot of these items also have additional storage)
Then do two things to stabilize and secure that TV to prevent a tipover:
- Mount your TV on the wall. That way, it will be out of reach and fully secure. You’ll get better viewing with a wall-mounted TV, too. Or use a TV anchor system that attaches your TV to the wall behind it or the furniture it sits on/in.
- Anchor the furniture itself to the wall. (You’ll want to do this with other furniture as well.)
Baby Proofing Your Components and Accessories
It won’t take your child long to get the picture – your remote is the source of entertainment. It has colorful buttons to push, and with a little effort, it fits in her mouth. Fun, and tasty, too. Or not so much.
Did you know that saliva can actually wreck your remote? And what parent wants that dirty thing (sorry, but think about it) anywhere near their baby’s mouth? Worse, batteries represent a choking hazard, and they’re toxic.
The best plan is to hide your Bluray player, game console, streaming devices etc. inside a locked cabinet – or in a closet in another room. With an inexpensive infrared receiver unit, you’ll still be able to control everything with a single remote. Always put it out of reach when it’s not in your hand.
Conceal the Cords
Tangled cords and wires offer multiple dangers to babies and toddlers. Finish your TV childproofing project by concealing those cords, either inside a wall-mounted tunnel or with an in-wall cable management system. In-wall cable management is a quick fix taking less than 20 minutes and only requiring a pair of scissors.
The reality for parents is that you cannot control everything in your child’s life. But you can take steps to baby proof your TV. And the best time to do that is now.
