Household Safety: Poisons and Other Hazards

Young children do not understand the harmful effects of medication and other dangerous substances, so parents must be cautious. This website provides safety tips and a list of dangerous products that caregivers should keep out of reach of children.

This page contains information on choosing safe toys, toy guidelines, and keeping toys safe at home, including how to select the right toys for the age of the child.

In this report, practitioners discuss how Head Start is addressing the opioid crisis within communities. The report also includes recommendations for intervention based on Head Start’s successful models.

This page provides links for information regarding a variety of home safety issues.

The Illinois Poison Center offers advice and information regarding encounters with harmful substances.

This website provides general information and safety information, along with resources regarding the use of pesticides.

Medication poisoning is one of the leading causes for emergency room visits for children under five years. This five-minute podcast discusses the dangers of drug poisonings and ways to prevent them in young children.

In this video series, explore the 10 health and safety training topics required by the Child Care and Development Block Grant (CCDBG) Act. Narrated by pediatricians, these videos can help a busy early care and education workforce reinforce health and safety practices. Each video provides rationale on the importance of the topic for early childhood education settings, common issues related to that topic, and the importance of having plans, strategies, and procedures in place. With each video, find a set of reflective questions staff can use to improve their practices in these areas.

This article explains the risks of lead poisoning for young children, and offers strategies for prevention.

Children between one and five years old are at risk of death due to exposure to liquid nicotine. This article stresses the importance of keeping these products out of reach of children.

This page provides links for information regarding a variety of home safety issues.

This documents provides tips to ensure a child doesn’t mistakenly get left in a car alone.

This resource for families describes what opioids are, how opioid use can lead to addiction, the opioid epidemic’s effect on children, and what parents can do.

This pamphlet is designed to help caregivers talk to their children about how to protect themselves against abduction and exploitation.

This provides information information regarding pesticide poisoning and how to poison-proof your home.

This 90-minute webinar focuses on the impact of prenatal exposure to opiates. The presenter talks about early childhood learning and behavior and intervention strategies that can promote long-term growth and development for children exposed to opiates in the prenatal period. There is also a handout that supplements the webinar.

This is an interactive page that allows users to learn more about specific hazards in the home, in sleep items, while out and about, and in play, 

This page provides information regarding the safety of children’s products. Links to learn more about recalls, checking products for recalls and acting to keep children safe.

This document provides information to help prevent children from coming into contact with many common household products such as cleaners and pesticides that could hurt a child if not used and stored correctly.

This is a nonprofit organization that works hard to keep children safe from injury, including adverse drug events. The website provides tip-sheets, videos, infographics, research reports, and other helpful resources for parents and community members.

This page provides a link to download a resource on tips for safety and injury prevention for families.

This page provides lyrics and a link to listen to a song about how to act around an unfamiliar dog.