Affinity Enterprises gives tips on how to keep kids safe this holiday

The holidays are a fun time with gifts, food, decorations, and family trips. However, little ones caught up in the excitement may be prone to accidents that can be prevented. Affinity Enterprises has these safety tips on how you can help the littlest members of your family stay safe this holiday.

Kids in Shopping Centres

Shopping centres are always bustling ahead of Christmas, with many families making last-minute trips to the mall. Parents are often distracted, and kids are intrigued by elevators, escalators, and festive displays, increasing the risk of your child getting lost – or worse – going missing. Never let your child out of your sight (even for a split second) when shopping. It helps to shop with another adult, so you can take turns browsing and minding the children. Also, always remember to ensure that both you and your child wear masks while out and about – for your own safety and the safety of others.

Christmas Decorations

Putting up a Christmas tree is always a highlight for children. But lights, tinsel, and decorations can be dangerous for small tots. Items and objects that are small enough to fit through a toilet paper tube can obstruct a child’s airway. Keep extensions, wires, and cords out of the way or behind furniture, and insert electrical outlet covers into any unused outlets as children may be tempted to stick little fingers into the electrical holes.

Kitchen hazards

Are you cooking a family meal on Christmas Day? Keep safety in the kitchen top of mind. Never leave children alone with matches, lighters, or any other sources of flame or heat. Keep pot and pan handles turned to the back of the stove to prevent your child from grabbing the handle and pulling the pot or pan down. Always keep knives (and other sharp utensils) out of reach of little children.

Kids and Toys

Kids love unwrapping gifts left under the Christmas tree. Ensure your children’s toys are age-appropriate and that pieces and parts cannot be easily removed. Batteries shaped like disks, or button batteries, for example, pose a choking risk to young children, as do other small toys parts that can be disassembled.

Car Safety

As always, safety comes first. At home, you would never think of taking your toddler out for a drive without a car seat. When you are road tripping, the rules don’t change. For long-distance drives, a reclining booster seat can be excellent for avoiding the dreaded ‘head slump’. Look for one that has armrests, a high back, padded headwings, and removable cup holders that you can easily wash if your child spills their juice or milk. For kids who are still riding in a 5-point harness booster seat, they may find wide-set shoulder straps more comfortable than narrow ones.

Kids on the beach

Kids and babies love the ocean, and nothing beats watching a laughing toddler run on the beach and splash in the waves. There are, however, a few safety precautions that should be implemented when spending a day on the beach. Safety around water is the most important thing to consider when visiting the beach. Keeping little ones in their life jackets adds a layer of protection should a wave suddenly knock them over. Don’t forget to apply sunscreen on your child regularly, and ensure your child is well hydrated.  

About Affinity Enterprises

Affinity Enterprises Holdings is a diverse and proudly South African financial services group operating nationwide from Gauteng. Affinity Enterprises believes in holistic development. The success of the Affinity suite of insurance products comes off the back of identifying operational and client-facing gaps in the insurance market. By repositioning and repackaging our products we have been able to sustain a growth of 100% year-on-year.

Affinity Enterprises parents subsidiary companies that specialise in financial, healthcare and insurance-related services. One of which includes Affinity Health, which aims to provide premier quality, affordable medical insurance to South Africans, and strives to give clients peace of mind and the highest standard of service when they are faced with injury or illness. 

Since the establishment of Affinity Health in 2011, Affinity Enterprises Holdings has been nurturing optimal value for its stakeholders, aligning our business objectives with a client-centric approach to product design and service delivery.  The South African insurance market is highly competitive, driving innovation and value for consumers – a hallmark of this being market-changing product development; this is where Affinity Enterprises has excelled. Our Core Divisions include Health Insurance; Dental Insurance; Funeral Cover; Emergency Medical Services; and Integrated Emergency Response. Follow us on Facebook, or log onto our website.