How to avoid trips and falls in the home? Here are 5 tips!
Image by Klaus Hausmann from Pixabay
When you think of a fall, you instantly think of a dramatic slip from a tall building or a mountain peak. The worst nightmare for those afraid of height! However, you may be surprised to know that over 60% of total falls aren’t from heights but from a flat surface; like the one right below your feet. Scared? you should be, for 60% falls and trips can be avoided with simple alterations to your home and your own bodily movements.
Every time we run into or collide with an object, we are at risk of tripping down. A cluttered surrounding, bad lighting, loose cables or carpeting, left open bottom drawers, uneven walking surfaces, and sharp-edged furniture turns – they all plead guilty to the agony they have caused you.
But, the guiltiest of them all would be slippery bathroom floors and poorly wrinkled carpet areas, for these are the riskiest places. The kitchen isn’t too far behind, considering banana peels and spilled over juice reduce friction, the main thing that stops us from slipping. Someone struggling with body balance may even find balconies and ladders risky.
Loss of balance can also lead to us tripping. So, the main question we should be asking now is: How do we avoid the fall?
Apart from the selection of proper footwear and an appropriate walking pace, listed below are 5 other ways to avoid trips and falls in the home:
Get the clutter off
Heaps of pointy, sharp, and wasteful material may pose an indirect threat to your health. Untidy arrangements inside the house can cause one to trip. Decluttering is important. Bringing in utilities to organize the clutter can also help. For instance, if you are faced with the problem of bundles of unclean clothes lying around, a laundry bag is what you need. To organize your washed clothes, more hangers would be needed. Not only does a neat structure make the place look great, but it wards off the danger of tripping over something too.
Tap the wires and secure the floor accessories
Houses, where floor taping and floor securing aren’t done properly, are always more vulnerable to hazards. Any rugs, floor mats or carpets, whose edges and sides are not secured well can lead to tripping and falling. You could make use of items such as cable covers, carpets, cable wraps to get your floor issues out of the picture. However, we recommend that you don’t settle for just about any supplier, only go for trusted portals such as TripSafe.
Lighting the room
You can trip and fall in the dark rooms which aren’t lit properly. In such situations when you are unable to see clearly, chances are high that you would bump into something and end up hurting your foot, if not a much worse injury to your upper body parts. Walkways that are not properly lit can also cause a trip or a fall. A well-lit room can be a lifesaver and it looks pleasant too. You could also go for sensors that detect movements and turn the lights on for the elderly or kids to navigate their way.
Do not speed fast at the stairs and hold the rails
Stairs and ladders would always be tricky. Who here can say that they have never stumbled, if not full-fledged fallen on a staircase! Thus, we recommend you always keep a grip on the handrails while going up and down the staircase. Moreover, you should always slow down while commuting on stairs and ladders, and ensure that there are no slippery fluids or sharp corners on the steps.
Perfect your housekeeping
Bad housekeeping can contribute to trips, falls and slips. Not attending to broken stair steps or broken tiles, leaving the floors wet, stuffing the walkways with goods, cluttering the house, keeping the cabinets and storage drawers open – they are all basic events of carelessness leading up to severe injuries.
We hope the above points would help you reduce the risk of getting your feet hurt. Happy feet-loving!