child injury attorney bellingham Tag

Kids Hit Getting on School Bus Every Year

Graco High Chairs Recalled After Multiple Child Injuries

On March 1, 2018, Graco – a popular child products manufacturer – announced a recall of about 36,000 highchairs in the U.S. market due to fall hazard (an additional 3,200 were sold in Canada). The high chairs were sold between October 2016 and December 2017 at Walmart, and have the model number: 1969721. Specifically, the recall was issued because the affected model’s legs can pivot out of position, making the chair unstable and causing it to tip over. Graco had received 38 reports of the highchair legs pivoting out of position along with five children injured with bumps and bruises as a result of the seats tipping over at the time the recall was issued.

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Child Gun Injury Statistics show that Shootings are the Third Leading Cause of Death for U.S. Children

More than 7,000 children are killed or injured by guns every year in the United States; making shootings the third leading cause of death for U.S. children behind illnesses and unintentional accidents like car crashes. While a significant portion of child shootings are unintentional, it doesn’t take away from the tragedy of losing a child.

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Prevent a Child Injury with Spring Lawn Care Safety Tips

Happy first day of spring! With temperatures warming up in the Pacific Northwest, the hum of lawnmowers cutting grass will become a common sound. There are several safety factors to consider before getting outside to care for your lawn.

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Pumpkin Patch Safety Tips

One of the best parts about living in the Pacific Northwest are the weeks of early fall when the sun still shines most days and pumpkins are ready for picking. For those of us who grew up in the region we know the pumpkin patch experience has gone from simple to full throttle family entertainment that often includes pony/wagon rides, petting zoos, cider pressing, corn mazes and bouncy houses.

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Sports Eye Safety Month: Youth Sports-Related Eye Injuries

September is sports eye safety month. Every parent wants to keep their young children safe in whatever activities they do. Since children do not necessarily understand the risks and consequences associated with certain actions, it is up to adults to protect kids through common sense safety instructions and care. Sports coaches have an amplified responsibility to keep children safe because of the increased risk of injury associated with any sport. September is a great time to talk about sports-related eye injuries as children start new school years and after school sports programs.

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Child Safety Tips for Travel and Play

Keeping young children safe is a primary concern for most parents and caregivers. Since children do not necessarily understand the risks and consequences associated with certain actions, it is up to adults to protect kids through common sense child safety rules. The following child safety tips are helpful in a variety of common situations.

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Back to School Driving Safety Tips

School is back in session and that means heavy traffic congestion in and around schools, kids rushing to walk or bike to school on time and harried parents dropping and picking kids up before rushing to work. Especially in the first couple of weeks of school – but really all year during drop off and pick up times – it is very important for drivers to slow down and use extra caution when passing a school or school zone. School driving safety tips are essential to reducing the number of car accidents in and around schools.

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The Dangers of Children and Screen Time

Today’s parents are faced with decisions to make over how much time their children spend in front of a screen. “Screen time” is a term used for activities done in front of a screen like watching videos on a tablet, working on a computer, watching TV or playing video games. Computers can help kids with their schoolwork because of easy access to research and the ability to type reports and essays. Surfing the internet, spending too much time on Facebook or watching YouTube videos, however, are considered to be forms of unhealthy screen time in big doses. Parents should also understand that videos aimed at very young children do not improve their development; children need learning interaction to come from a person.

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Is Child Obesity Child Abuse?

Child obesity is an epidemic in the United States. Today, doctors are treating obese children for medical conditions once only seen in the adult population such as type 2 diabetes, high cholesterol, sleep apnea and more. In addition to health problems, child obesity can lead to depression and even lower math and reading scores (Mitgang, 2011).

Over the last couple of decades, many have wondered what can be done to mitigate the rising rates of child obesity. Some have proposed removing severely obese children from their parents’ custody (Murtagh & Ludwig, 2011). But is an obese child being abused and is removing them from their home really what is best for the children?

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