Hazardous Household Products

Do you have these products in your home? Bleach, rat poison, mothballs, charcoal lighter fluid, oven cleaner, batteries, mercury thermometers, gas, oil, wood polish, toilet and drain cleaners, shoe polish, bug spray? Household products like these are dangerous for your children! Household products are called hazardous if they can harm people when not used in the right way. Not every product is hazardous, and some are more dangerous than others.
You can use most products safely if you follow the directions on the label. Doing things not on the label is risky for your health and family. People run into trouble using too much of a product or mixing two products, for example. Children can be poisoned if products are stored or thrown away unsafely. Children’s bodies are small, so even a little bit of some chemicals can cause big problems.
Eating or drinking a hazardous product is dangerous, of course. Also, just touching or breathing some products—even a very small amount—can be harmful. They can burn your skin or eyes just by touching them. Some hazardous products can make you sick if they enter your body through your skin or when you breathe in dust or fumes. Sometimes, you know immediately if you or your child has come into contact with a hazardous product. You may feel sick to your stomach or dizzy. Your skin may itch or burn. Your eyes may water or hurt.
Other problems don’t show up until later, like cancer or harm to your lungs. Also, contact with chemicals can affect a child’s growing body. You can protect your children and yourself from illness and injury. Use hazardous products safely. Store them carefully. Dispose of them properly.