12 Winter Safety Tips for Families
Winter is here, yippee! It can be hard for a family to go from nice sunny weather to freezing weather. In Georgia, you can blink and it changes. I know we’re not the only family who struggles with this.
Since the weather is so different, it’s important that you take the time to keep your family safe. There are a lot more hazards during those winter months, so it seems.
Check out these winter safety tips for keeping your family safe.
1. Bundle Up
Baby, its cold outside, so keep your babies warm. However, you don’t want to make them TOO warm. They say to bundle them up in the same amount of layers that you would wear to keep warm. But, remember, no coats in carseats.
2. Keep a Car Emergency Kit in Your Vehicle
Always be prepared by keeping a car emergency kit in your vehicle. You never know when it might come in handy.
3. Get Your Tires Checked
Most of the safety on your vehicle relies on your vehicle’s tires. Make sure your tires are properly inflated and are in good condition for the winter months.
4. Beware of Carbon Monoxide
Never warm up your car with your garage closed. Always open your garage and then start your vehicle. Carbon Monoxide can be silent, but deadly.
5. Know the Wind Chill Factor
This tip is especially important if you have kiddos that go to school. Sometimes the winter months bring about negative wind chill factors. Make sure your kids are dressed appropriately for being outside playing or at the bus stop.
6. Always Tell a Friend When Traveling
If you plan on heading out in the winter months, always tell a friend where you’re going and when you are expected home or at your destination.
7. Know About Frostbite and Hypothermia
Although it may seem like these two things can only happen in the movies, frostbite and hypothermia are very real and can be deadly.
8. Keep the Bathing to a Minimum
A lot of kids cannot handle baths every day in the winter months, it simply dries out their skin. Keep the baths down to 2-3 a week to help avoid severe dried out skin during the winter months.
9. Keep Winter Activities Appropriate
Know what your child can and cannot handle during winter outdoor activities. And always keep safety first, such as wearing a helmet.
10. Wear sunscreen
It’s imperative to wear sunscreen in the winter months, even when it’s cold outside.
11. Keep Space Heaters Out of Reach
Space heaters have come a long way in the past 20 years, but they can still be dangerous, so keep them out of reach of your children.
12. Keep cleaning supplies and detergents locked up
Make sure that cleaning supplies and laundry detergent packets are safely placed in a locked cabinet or one that is out of reach of children. And, make sure to keep everything in its originally labeled containers. In 2015 alone, there have been over 10,000 exposures to liquid laundry packets in children under 5. Be sure you are taking the proper safety precautions to keep your entire family safe during the long winter months. Take the KEY Pledge to acknowledge and remember that you will safely store all of your liquid laundry packets. You can also find educational materials on ACI’s website, like their new PSA and infographic.
Staying safe this winter is important, so keep these tips in mind during the winter months. Do you have any tips to add?
Thank you to the American Cleaning Institute for Sponsoring this post. All thoughts are my own.
These are amazing tips. I never would have thought to put sunscreen on my kids in the winter time.
we bought a new car over the break, and now we have to outfit it with umbrellas, first aid and extra supplies. Supplies on the road are where we are less prepared!
I always had such a problem with no coats in the carseats. It is SO cold here all winter long. I admit I usually had big coats on the kids. I just didn’t see any other way of keeping them warm enough. I was always nervous about it though. I tried to keep the belts snug and secure to make up for the bulk. Scary.
Very good and helpful tips!
Great tips! We always try to be prepared for the winter but thigns always seem to pop up on us.
These are really great safety tips! I still need to pack emergency food supplies in my van!
Great safety tips that everyone can follow through. Thanks for sharing.