HOUSTON — The toddler son of a Houston firefighter is recovering after being burned at the family’s home a couple weeks ago.
According to the family, 16-month-old Ayden Brown grabbed the handle of a pot of boiling water that was on the stove and it spilled on him. His parents want to warn other families to keep boiling pots on the back burners with handles turned in, so they're out of reach from children.
"The pain and memory we both have of it...if you can prevent this for one parent, talking to anybody, it’s worth it," said Michael Brown, the toddler's father.
Todd Huzar, the Director of Pediatric Burns at Children's Memorial Hermann Hospital, says the majority of the burn patients he sees every year have scald burns on their hands.
Ayden had to get a skin graft and spent several days in the hospital. He was fit with compression sleeves that help him recover. The sleeves are being funded by a Houston Fire Department effort.
Compression items can protect fragile skin and reduce scars. They also help with circulation of damaged tissue and reduce pain from burns.
Cooking with care
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have tips on avoiding burns from cooking.
They say use safe cooking practices, such as never leaving food unattended on the stove. Also, supervise or restrict children’s use of stoves, ovens, and especially microwaves.
Check water heater temperature.
Set your water heater’s thermostat to 120 degrees Fahrenheit or lower. Infants and small children may not be able to get away from water that may be too hot, and maintaining a constant thermostat setting can help control the water temperature throughout your home—preventing it from getting too high. Test the water at the tap if possible.
Burn Safety: Protect your child from burns
The Mayo Clinic also has tips on keeping your infant and toddler safe while cooking.
Avoid hot spills.
Don't cook, drink, or carry hot beverages or foods while holding a child. Keep hot foods and liquids away from table and counter edges. Don't use tablecloths or place mats, which young children can pull down. Turn the handles of your pots and pans toward the rear of the stove and use back burners when possible. Don't leave the stove unattended when you're cooking.
Establish 'no' zones.
Block access to the stove, fireplace, space heaters and radiators. Don't leave a child unattended in a room when these items are in use.
Scald statistics
Finally, the American Burn Association has released data on injuries from scalding and burns related to cooking. (Editor's Note: The data was released in August 2018.)
Each day over 300 children are seen in emergency rooms and two children die from burn injuries
An estimated 376,950 scald burn injuries associated with consumer household appliances and products (e.g., stoves, coffee makers, tableware, cookware, bathtubs, etc.) were seen in hospital emergency rooms in the U.S. between 2013-2017; 78,526 (21%) of these occurred to children 4 years old and younger
Scald burns (from hot water, other liquids, and steam) comprise 35% of overall burn injuries admitted to U.S. burn centers.3 However, 61% of these occur to children less than 5 years old.
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