What's dangerous for your child right now?

Select your child's age group. We'll show you the biggest risks — physical and emotional — based on Australian data. Then walk through your home in 3D.

Infant
0 – 12 months
Toddler
1 – 4 years
School Age
5 – 12 years
Adolescent
13 – 17 years
Toddlers — 1 to 4 years

The 5 biggest dangers for toddlers at home

3 in 4 injuries to children aged 1–4 happen at home. Most are preventable.

Critical risk

Drowning & Near-Drowning

Drowning happens in silence, in just a few centimetres of water. In 2024–25, 15 children under 5 drowned in Australia, half of them in home pools. Toddlers are 14 times more likely than adults to be hospitalised for drowning: pools, bathtubs, buckets, pet bowls.

15
Under-5 deaths, 2024–25
179
Hospitalised a year, ages 1–4
Half
Of those deaths in home pools
14×
Toddlers vs adults, hospitalised
What you can do
  • Fence your pool with compliant (AS 1926) barrier + self-closing gate
  • Never leave a toddler alone in the bath — not even for a moment
  • Empty buckets, wading pools, and pet water bowls after use
  • Learn infant CPR — courses available through Royal Life Saving
DANGER
Critical risk

Poisoning

Toddlers explore the world mouth-first. Medications (especially grandparents' blister packs), cleaning products, dishwasher pods, and button batteries are the usual culprits. About 2,100 children a year are hospitalised for accidental poisoning, and 1,185 of them are aged 1–4. A swallowed button battery is an emergency: go straight to hospital.

1,185
Hospitalised a year, ages 1–4
~2,100
Hospitalised a year, ages 0–18
36%
Of Poisons Info exposures are toddlers
20/wk
Children to emergency, button battery
What you can do
  • Store all medications and cleaning products above 1.5m or in locked cabinets
  • Secure or discard all devices with button batteries (remotes, key finders, toys)
  • Keep dishwasher pods in a locked container — they look like lollies to toddlers
  • Save Poisons Information: 13 11 26 (24hr Australia-wide)
High risk

Falls

Falls are the most common cause of child injury hospitalisation: 1 in 3, about 29,000 a year. For toddlers: furniture (especially bunk beds and change tables), stairs, and windows. Head injuries are disproportionately common due to toddlers' centre of gravity.

1 in 3
Child injury hospitalisations are falls
~7,400
Hospitalised for falls a year, ages 1–4
29%
Of child injury hospitalisations are head and neck
What you can do
  • Install stair gates at top and bottom of all staircases
  • Anchor heavy furniture (TVs, bookshelves, dressers) to the wall
  • Window locks or guards on all windows above ground floor
  • Never leave a child on a change table, bed, or couch unattended
High risk

Burns & Scalds

Scalds cause 52% of child burns, and the typical child burned is 3. A cup of tea at serving temperature can burn a toddler's thin skin deeply. In the kitchen, the risks are stove-top pulls, oven doors and hot water taps.

~2,000
Hospitalised with burns a year
979
Of them aged 1–4 (about half)
52%
Of child burns are scalds
What you can do
  • Keep hot drinks away from edges and never hold a child while drinking one
  • Set hot water system to max 50°C (Australian Standard AS 3498)
  • Use back burners and turn pot handles inward on the stove
  • Install a stove guard or barrier if you have a toddler
!
Moderate risk

Choking & Suffocation

Small objects, food (grapes, nuts, sausage rounds), and blind cords. A toddler's airway is very narrow, and items that pass through a toilet paper roll can block it. Babies under 1 are 7.5 times more likely than adults to be hospitalised for choking or suffocation.

~460
Hospitalised a year, ages 0–18
114
Hospitalised a year, babies under 1
7.5×
Babies vs adults, hospitalised
What you can do
  • Cut grapes, cherry tomatoes, and sausages lengthwise (never round)
  • Use the toilet roll test: if it fits through, it's a choking hazard
  • Replace all corded blinds with cordless alternatives
  • Learn back blows and chest thrusts for choking infants/toddlers

The invisible dangers

Physical hazards get the headlines. But emotional harm at home is equally documented — and often longer-lasting.

Witnessing Domestic Violence

Even toddlers show measurable cortisol elevation and behavioural changes when exposed to parental conflict and DV at home.

39.6% of Australians — Child Maltreatment Study

Emotional Abuse

Emotional abuse is 60% of the child protection cases that are confirmed, and nearly 1 in 3 Australians (30.9%) experienced it as children.

60% of substantiated cases — AIHW

Screen Exposure (<5)

Heavy daily screen time in the under-5s is linked with language delays and weaker social and emotional development. The effects compound through childhood.

WHO advises no screen time for under-2s

Coming next: School Age (5–12)

As your toddler grows, the risks shift. Falls from trampolines replace bathtub drowning. Cyberbullying emerges. See what's ahead.

See School Age risks

Now walk through the home

See these dangers in 3D. Click on objects to learn. Room by room.

Enter the 3D Home