Be On The Safe Side: How To Protect Your Kids From Pesticides

How to protect the kids from pesticides?

1. Always keep pesticides out of their reach
2. Keep them out if there’s a fumigation
3. Seal the container tightly
4. Tell your kids pesticides are not to be played with
5. Mark pesticides
6. Keep the pesticides in their containers
7. Have your kids wash their hands regularly
8. Look for pesticides with lesser toxin
9. Let it dry
10. Use bait stations as an alternative
11. Separate your kids’ toys
12. Maintain your dining area’s cleanliness
13. Avoid allowing others to do the work
14. Follow the instructions
15. Keep your personal protection clothing and equipment (PPE) clean

Imagine this: It’s a nice summer day at home. Your husband is lounging on the couch reading a newspaper, you’re in the kitchen preparing a nice late breakfast, while your eldest kid is in front of the TV playing video games.

And where is your little tot? To your surprise, he’s holding a can of Baygon in his hand and is about to spray his mouth with the pesticide. You run to him immediately and grab the can away from his hand. Clearly, your child doesn’t know anything about pest control yet.

Ingesting pesticides will poison your child. How do you avoid instances like this from happening again? Today, we’ll look at ways you can protect your kids from pesticides.

Always keep pesticides out of their reach

Don’t just store these mixtures in drawers or closets. Make sure you place them in really high areas where they can’t easily grab them. It may mean you have pulled a chair to get these chemicals on your own, but at least you don’t have to worry about your children getting poisoned. An even better idea would be to lock the storage unit where you keep the pesticides.

Keep them out if there’s a fumigation

If an exterminator orders a full house fumigation to be done, get everyone out, especially your kids. Just like the example above, don’t let your children taste or even inhale, the toxic chemical that come from pesticides.

Seal the container tightly

This is so even when the kids grab a hold of the pesticide, they don’t suddenly dunk the liquids onto themselves or drink them. If need be, place tape around the cap so kids aren’t able to open them.

Tell your kids pesticides are not to be played with

Sit your children down and show them what pesticides are, what they look like, and why they can’t touch them yet. Go over this until he/she fully understands what you’re saying.

Mark pesticides

Alternatively, you can also take a marker and write something like “DO NOT TOUCH. FOR ADULTS ONLY” or “POISON. DO NOT DRINK” on the container so that kids are often reminded that this stuff is bad for them.

Keep the pesticides in their containers

In an effort to recycle and have more space at home, most moms place detergents and pesticides in water containers. For the sake of your kids, do not do this. It could be mistaken as a drink. For their protection, keep them in the original container.

Have your kids wash their hands regularly

Even dried pesticide can still have negative effects on children. Make sure that they regularly wash their hands after a long day out or being around the house. This is so the chances of them getting poisoned are greatly reduced.

Look for pesticides with lesser toxin

Toxin is often included in pesticides, not unless if it’s an organic solution. Given that matter, always look for the pesticide that has the least amount of toxin in order to avoid harm in the event that your child gets a hold of it. You may check the cover for a non-toxic label or lesser in toxin that may be indicated in the information imprinted in the product.

Let it dry

As you spray or apply pesticides, make sure to always leave the area to dry and avoid your children or pets from occupying the area. This will help them avoid the scent produced by the product and ultimately, avoid risks that these pesticides can cause.

Use bait stations as an alternative

It can be challenging to keep your kids away from pesticides, especially during the age where they love to explore and experience numerous things. With that in mind, opting for an alternative to pesticides may help you keep them away from harm. You can try using bait stations, especially in places where kids would most likely not occupy.

Separate your kids’ toys

As pest control experts try to fumigate the whole house, do not forget to cover your children’s toys and other materials that they are fond of using. As mentioned above, even dried pesticide can harm their health.

Maintain your dining area’s cleanliness

The dining area plays a major part in the safety of your kids’ health. This is due to the fact that whenever their food fails to make it into their mouth and falls onto the surface, they are most likely to reach for it and eat it. With that said, keep every dining area possible (areas where they are fond of eating on)  in order to avoid the negative effects of pesticides.

Avoid allowing others to do the work

If you or a pest control personnel is not around to do the work, avoid allowing others to do the job. This might only result in harm not only to their selves, but also to the whole household.

Follow the instructions

In applying the pesticide, it’s always important to follow the instructions. Not only will you save the kids from getting/inhaling the toxic ingredients, but also save the whole household from the reversed effect that your work would have caused in the environment.

Keep your personal protection clothing and equipment (PPE) clean

If you’re doing the work yourself, always make sure to use and clean a PPE to keep the people around you free from harm. Basically, PPE will serve as your barrier from the pesticide products you will be using. Hence, it’s important to make sure that after usage, you clean them thoroughly to get rid of the particles that may stick to the clothing. More so, upon laundry, ensure that these are separately washed from your family’s laundries.

By maintaining a clean PPE, your kids can avoid inhaling or getting a hold of the pesticide particles.

Key Takeaway

These tips will keep your kids healthy and safe from harmful pesticides. Do you know other ways to keep your children safe from these chemicals? Let us know in the comments section below.