Childhood safety tips and resources
At a time when rapid medical and technological advances are dramatically improving the treatment of a wide variety of childhood diseases, it is important to keep a very important fact in mind related to the health needs of children.
The number of kids in the United States who become sick and die of virtually every known childhood illness is dwarfed by the number of youngsters who die or are crippled by injuries — what we call "accidents." According to The Future of Children, a publication of The David and Lucile Packard Foundation, these injuries cause, on average, about 37 children's deaths each day and cost society billions of dollars annually.
Most of these injuries are the result of car crashes, residential fires, drownings and pedestrian collisions. Sometimes injuries are caused by defective products such as toys, tainted foods or other items that can occasionally be dangerous to young children.
These pages are not intended to frighten readers, but they ARE intended to alert parents and other caregivers about possible dangers in the home, on the playground, on the streets — virtually everywhere and anywhere children can be found.
Visit the U. S. Consumer Product Safety Commission's Web site often at www.cpsc.gov for the latest announcements of product recalls and other childhood safety bulletins.
For more information on childhood injuries, read the following informative articles:
The Injury Free Coalition for Kids of Chicago: A Community-Based Approach to Injury Prevention by Karen Sheehan, MD, MPH
Youth Injury in Chicago and Its Surrounding Areas: A Look at the Data by Jenifer Cartland, PhD