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Kitchen safety is incredibly important and needs special attention when it comes to baby proofing. The kitchen can be one of the most dangerous rooms in your home especially for young children.
There is so much activity that goes on in the kitchen. You prepare and clean up meals there, the family usually gathers there to talk, and you lovingly set out the food from the carry out bags!
Plus, there are so many things to catch a baby’s interest. The cupboards, drawers, and stove are right at the perfect level for your baby or toddler to explore.
The following kitchen safety tips will help you to make sure that all areas in your kitchen are safe for your family.
Kitchen Safety Tips
Cabinet and Door Latches
- The easiest step to begin with as you focus on kitchen safety is getting the necessary locks and latches for your drawers, cabinets, and appliances.
These are invaluable. They really help put your mind at ease, knowing that your child cannot open the knife drawer, the hot oven, or get into the chemicals you keep under the sink.
Something I did with my children and I know my daughter does with her children is leave the tupperware cabinet unlocked so your child has something that he can open and get into in the kitchen. This is a safe cabinet where there aren't any knives or breakables that can hurt him. This also gives him something to do while you are cleaning or cooking.
Cooking
- Always be prepared in case of a kitchen fire. Prevent kitchen fires by knowing the facts.
- Always try to use the back burner when cooking so the hot pot or frying pan is as far away from your child as possible.
Make sure that the handles are moved to the side.
- If you need to use the front burners, have the handles on the pot/frying pan pointed back towards the wall.
With the handles back, your child is unable to reach up and burn his hand or pull the pot down on top of himself.
- Be careful when you are frying food with your children in the kitchen.
The hot grease can spatter up and burn their skin or eyes. Keep a lid on the pan to avoid the spatter. Or, get a splatter guard for your pan. 
Be careful when you are removing the lid off of a pot or frying pan. The steam from the pot can burn your skin. Always have an adult do this.
Another aspect of kitchen safety is to remember that electric burners stay hot a while longer after the burner has been turned off. They have burner covers for both electric and gas stoves that are really great to get.  
- Consider getting a stove guard to help protect your children from access to your stove top.
If you have a stove where the knobs are in front you might want to get stove knobs to prevent your toddler from accidentally turning on the stove.
- Make sure, as your child gets older and is possibly able to use the microwave on her own, that she knows it’s dangerous to use the microwave without food in it.
- Always unplug the toaster if food has gotten stuck in it before reaching in to get the food.
As your child gets older, he might be able to begin using the toaster on his own. Teach him that he should never stick anything into the toaster to get any food that got stuck. Always have an adult do this.
HOT
Teach your child “HOT” and “DON’T TOUCH.” An important part of kitchen safety as well as bath safety is to make sure your water heater is set to 120 F or 54 C or below. This reduces the risk of scalding. This is especially important in the bathroom because a child can be burned in a mere 3 seconds. 
Don’t put hot liquids on or near the edge of the table or counter. Your child can easily knock it off and burn himself.
Never hold your baby when you are holding hot liquids, cooking over the stove, or opening the microwave or oven. Never drink hot liquids while feeding or holding your baby. Don’t pass a hot drink to someone over your baby. Be aware that food coming out of a microwave doesn’t cook evenly and there can be hot-spots that will burn your child’s mouth or fingers. Use a safety gate around your oven if it gets hot while you are using it.
Especially for Babies and Toddlers
Never leave your child alone in her high chair. And, be sure you have a safety harness on the high chair. Keep your baby’s high chair away from anything that he could push against, lose balance, and fall over.
Never leave your baby alone in the kitchen. Push in your chairs right up against the table. Those little climbing toddlers will love to get up on them. And, they can easily fall off and hurt themselves. Keep all silverware and dishes far from the edge of the table or counter. As your toddler gets older, he will get taller and can reach up and knock over the dishes onto himself. Try not to use place mats or tablecloths. A toddler can easily pull them and everything on them down on herself. Put dirty dishes in the sink so they are not on the counter or table where your toddler can reach them. Make sure your baby or toddler is far away from the oven when you open it. The heat is extremely dangerous and she will be tempted to touch what is inside. Bolt your stove to the wall so it won’t tip over onto your child if he uses it to pull himself up or stands on the open door. Get a lock on your oven door to help prevent many of the accidents that can happen with the oven. 
A idea when thinking of kitchen safety is to use a playpen to keep your baby in while you are cooking and cleaning in the kitchen. He will be safe there and placing it where he can still see you will help make him feel that he is still a part of what is going on.
You can also use a safety gate at the door of the kitchen to keep your child out of the kitchen area completely.
General Kitchen Safety Tips
Remove snacks and other food from cupboards that are above the stove. Kids know where those snacks are and you want to keep them as far from the stove as possible. Remove all the magnets on your refrigerator that have small parts. 
Keep glass jars and bottles off of the inside doors in your refrigerator. When you open the fridge, everything on the door is easy access for your child. Watch what you put there. Also, keep inedible items like batteries up high.
Point all of your knives down in the dishwasher and take them out immediately when you’re unloading. Kitchen knife safety is one of the biggest aspects of safety in the kitchen. Always use a door latch for your dishwasher as well. Move all your small appliances like toasters or coffee makers to the back of your counter. Keep them unplugged, too, if you’re not using them. Cord shorteners are really good for the cords on your appliances. You want to keep everything back and completely out of your child’s reach. 
Have all of your electrical outlets covered. Cover all of the sharp edges and corners in your kitchen.
Get rid of all of the plastic bags in your kitchen immediately. Plastic bags are a suffocation hazard to your children. A good thing to do is tie several knots in the bags before you throw them out.
 Keep your aluminum foil, plastic wrap, and wax paper in a locked drawer or cabinet. The serrated edges on the boxes are extremely sharp and can cut your child’s fingers.
The kitchen is truly the heart of the home. And, it’s a very fascinating room for your children. But, because of the potential dangers in the kitchen, safety and baby proofing your kitchen are a must.
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Basic Home SafetyBathroom Safety Cabinet Latches Chemical Poisoning Chemical Safety Poisonous House Plants Safety Door Locks Safety Gates Window Safety
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