Guide
Babyproofing your home in Nigeria
Last updated: October 2026
Babyproofing means removing dangers before your baby can reach them. Start with kerosene, medicines and chemicals. Then check hot food, the generator, stored water, falls, choking risks and electricity. Use our Baby Safety and Babyproofing Checklist to check each room before your baby starts crawling. It also covers safe sleep from day one.
How do I keep kerosene, chemicals and hot things away from my child?
Start with anything your child could drink. Nigerian hospital studies repeatedly place kerosene and household chemicals among the leading causes of childhood poisoning.
In Warri, kerosene caused 56.6% of 156 childhood poisoning cases. An Enugu study found that it caused nearly 70% of accidental poisonings. Most of the poisoned children in that study were under three.
Kerosene can look like water when someone pours it into an empty water or soft drink bottle. A written label will not protect a toddler who cannot read.
When the baby complained of thirst, I mistakenly picked the one filled with kerosene.
Keep kerosene, pesticides, bleach, medicines and cleaning products in their original containers. Lock them in a cupboard, out of sight and reach and away from food and drinks. Keep medicines out of any handbag a child can open.
Never put kerosene or any chemical inside a water, juice or soft drink bottle. Close every container after use. In a Yenagoa study, half of the poison containers were unsealed.
Hot water, soup, tea and pap also cause serious injuries. An Enugu study of 198 children found that 93.9% of burns happened at home. Hot liquids caused 56.7% of them.
Turn pot handles towards the wall. Use the back burners when you can. Keep a child away from the cooking area and place hot drinks beyond the table's edge. Do not carry a baby while holding hot tea, soup or another hot liquid.
Test food before serving it. Keep the family pot, kettle and flask away from small hands. Water for a baby's bath should be below 38°C.
How should I store caustic soda and use the generator?
Caustic soda can burn a child's mouth, throat and food pipe. Dissolved caustic soda has no colour, smell or taste. It can look like drinking water.
A small Uyo study followed 16 children who swallowed corrosive substances. Caustic soda caused 93.7% of the cases. Most parents in the study made soap or detergent at home.
If anyone makes soap in your home or compound, keep caustic soda in its original container. Lock it away before, during and after use. Clear leftover soda as soon as the work finishes. Never leave a bowl, cup or bottle of the mixture where a child can reach it.
The generator belongs outside. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says it should stand more than 20 feet, about 6 metres, from windows, doors and vents.
Do not run a generator in the sitting room, kitchen, passage, corridor, garage or enclosed balcony. Open windows do not make indoor generator use safe. Carbon monoxide has no colour or smell, so a sleeping family may receive no warning.
A Yenagoa childhood poisoning study recorded inhaled poisons in 14.5% of cases. In January 2026, six members of one family in Rivers State, including children aged 14 and 7, were found dead after a generator was left running in the sitting room.
If you suspect generator fumes, take everyone into fresh air immediately and go to the nearest hospital now.
How do I prevent drowning and falls at home?
There is no Nigerian under-five study showing how often children drown in buckets, tubs or wells. The World Health Organization says drowning is the fourth leading cause of death worldwide among children aged one to four.
A young child can drown quickly and silently in a small amount of water. Empty every bucket after use. Turn it upside down and keep the bathroom door closed. Drain bath water as soon as bathing ends.
Cover wells securely and control access to every water source in the compound. Stay beside a baby or toddler around water. A two-year-old boy was pulled unconscious from an open well in Kano State in January 2026.
Falls were the most common injury reported by mothers in an Ogbomoso study. They made up 55% of the injuries. Most falls in a large Ibadan hospital study happened at home.
Move beds, chairs and tables away from windows. A mosquito net or window screen keeps insects out, but it cannot hold a child. Use a window stop where possible, so the window cannot open more than about 10 centimetres.
Block stairs and keep balconies closed. Anchor tall cupboards and televisions to the wall. Remove unstable furniture that a toddler may pull up on.
The Milestone Tracker shows what movement to expect by age. It can help you prepare before rolling becomes crawling and climbing.
What can cause choking, electric shock and other injuries?
Kano doctors describe inhaled objects as a major cause of accidental death at home among Nigerian children under five. In one Kano hospital series, groundnuts and whistles were the most commonly inhaled objects.
Keep groundnuts, seeds, whole grapes, hard food and small objects away from children under four. Cut food into small pieces. A child should sit while eating and should never run, play or lie down with food.
Older children may hand a baby a sweet, coin, whistle or small toy. Tell everyone in the home what the baby cannot have. Check the floor after visitors leave and after another child finishes playing.
Our guide to starting solids covers first foods, safe textures and common choking risks.
For electrical safety, cover sockets, replace damaged wires and keep cords out of reach. Keep electrical items away from bath water and filled buckets. Toddlers may bite cords or push metal objects into sockets.
Never touch a child who is still connected to an electrical current. Switch off the power at the plug or main switch first. Do not touch a live wire with your bare hands.
Anchor heavy furniture. Keep button batteries locked away and check toys with battery compartments. If a child swallows a button battery, go to the nearest hospital now.
What first aid should I use at home?
Advice from a mother, mother-in-law or aunty usually comes from care and past experience. Nigerian studies show that some familiar remedies can make an injury worse.
In Warri, 76.1% of poisoned children received palm oil as an antidote. Palm oil was also the most common home remedy in a Yenagoa study. Nigerian doctors warn that palm oil, milk and forced vomiting can send kerosene into the lungs.
If your child swallows kerosene or caustic soda:
- Give nothing by mouth.
- Do not make the child vomit.
- Remove anything left inside the mouth.
- Take the container with you.
- Go to the nearest hospital now.
Do not wait for coughing, pain or another symptom. In Enugu, both toddlers who died after kerosene poisoning reached hospital more than 24 hours later.
For a burn or scald, hold the area under cool running water for 20 minutes. Use cool bottled water or a cool wet towel if there is no running tap. Do not use ice-cold water.
Remove clothing near the burn, unless it is stuck to the skin. Do not apply raw egg, pap, palm oil, engine oil, cream or powder.
Raw egg was the most common substance placed on children's burns in an Enugu study. A Lagos study also recorded the use of raw egg and pap. Cool running water is the first aid the guidance recommends. In that Lagos burns ward, patients who received no water first aid had more complications.
If a baby under one is choking, the National Health Service advises up to five back blows. If these fail, give up to five chest thrusts. Children over one receive abdominal thrusts. Get medical help even when the object comes out.
When to see a doctor
Go to the nearest hospital now if your child:
- Swallows kerosene, caustic soda, a pesticide or a button battery.
- Has a large or deep burn.
- Has a burn on the face, hands, mouth, bottom or genitals.
- Has a chemical or electrical burn.
- Is unconscious, cannot breathe or has a fit after possible poisoning.
- Has breathing trouble, confusion, weakness or loss of consciousness after possible generator fumes.
- Cannot stay awake after a head injury.
- Has changed behaviour after hitting their head.
- Falls more than 1 metre or about five stairs.
- Is under one and has a bruise, swelling or large cut on the head.
Seek medical advice soon after any choking episode, even when the object comes out. Ask for advice after a head injury if you remain worried about your child's behaviour or symptoms.
Common questions
Where should I start babyproofing?
Can I keep kerosene in a drink bottle if I label it?
My child drank kerosene. Should I give palm oil?
What should I put on a burn?
Can I run the generator in the passage if the window is open?
Do I need to empty a bucket after every use?
Does a mosquito net stop a child falling through a window?
When will my baby start reaching, crawling or climbing?
Sources
- Childhood poisoning patterns in Warri, African Journal of Primary Health Care & Family Medicine, 2012
- Accidental childhood poisoning in Enugu, Annals of Medical and Health Sciences Research, 2016
- Childhood poisoning in Yenagoa, BMJ Paediatrics Open, 2024
- Kerosene poisoning and home remedies in Nigerian toddlers, Journal of Family Medicine and Primary Care, 2023
- Paediatric burns in Enugu, Burns, 2022
- Burn first aid practices in Lagos, Burns, 2015
- Caustic soda injuries in Uyo, ISRN Pediatrics, 2012
- Inhaled objects among children in Kano, Nigerian Medical Journal, 2014
- Maternal knowledge of under-five injuries in Ogbomoso, African Journal of Disability, 2025
- Poisoning, choking, electrical and home safety guidance, American Academy of Pediatrics
- Burns, choking, head injuries and carbon monoxide guidance, National Health Service
- Carbon monoxide safety, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
- Drowning prevention, World Health Organization
- Baby dies after drinking kerosene for water, Daily Trust, 2017
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