Now Reading: Experts recommend safer, adaptable rooms for growing children
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Experts recommend safer, adaptable rooms for growing children
Design choices made early in a child's room can prevent common accidents once infants begin rolling, crawling and pulling themselves upright, architects Ragini Raj Karthik of Tessera Architects and Siri Shekar told…
Design choices made early in a child's room can prevent common accidents once infants begin rolling, crawling and pulling themselves upright, architects Ragini Raj Karthik of Tessera Architects and Siri Shekar told The New Indian Express. Karthik pointed to open floor layouts, rounded furniture edges and features that discourage climbing, and warned that slippery flooring, glass cabinet shutters, unguarded bunk beds and horizontal window bars often go unnoticed in otherwise stylish homes. Shekar recommended low-VOC paints, cork or natural linoleum flooring, solid-wood furniture with rounded edges, recessed electrical outlets with safety covers and cordless window treatments.
Parenting creator Vandita Venessa Thomas said parents should get down to a child's eye level, anchor heavy furniture to the wall, cover electrical outlets, secure cords and keep choking hazards, medicines and cleaning products out of reach. Thomas said the check needs repeating every few months as a child's abilities change, and described a dedicated 'yes place' at home that cut the need to constantly restrict her child.
Indian Opinion Analysis
The recommendations come from two practising architects and a parenting creator, so they carry professional judgment rather than any established ranking of household risks. Karthik and Shekar offer built-in fixes, such as anti-skid flooring, recessed outlets with safety covers and solid-wood furniture, which Karthik argues work better than temporary add-ons because they stay in place as children grow. Thomas offers a routine rather than a purchase: she says parents need not buy every baby-proofing product on the market, and that addressing major hazards first and checking the room regularly are far more valuable. Thomas sets the recheck interval at every few months, as a child moves from rolling to crawling, standing and climbing.
Source: www.newindianexpress.com
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