3 Smart Home Improvements to Prevent Accidental Falls
Written by Wilfred WeiheOf course, many of us assume accidental falls are a home injury threat associated with children and the elderly—to a great extent, that is true. However, accidental falls are a tragic occurrence that can happen to anyone of any age. In fact, it's classified as the major leading cause of home injury deaths, so taking deliberate measures to curb it will really help in ensuring the safety of your family and yours as well.
A fall can occur anywhere in your home (both indoors and outdoors) but the most common spots include the bathroom and the kitchen—which can cause serious injuries or even fatality.
However, as stated earlier, it all requires deliberate efforts from your side to ensure the minimization of such risks.
Let's take a close look at some of the smart home improvements you may consider to prevent falls in your home:
1. A walk-in shower

In case you weren't aware, a walk-in shower offers you the convenience of adapting to your needs.
In fact, you can separate the walk-in shower (through a partial wall) from the rest of the bathroom as well as use curtains for extra privacy while in the bathroom.
In addition, a walk-in shower professional will help you avoid the slip hazard always associated with wet bathtub floors.
So, when you are planning to install your walk-in shower, ask your shower company about non-slip shower floor options to prevent slips.
2. Installation of gutter guards
This is always an overlooked area by most homeowners despite the several benefits that come with gutter guards. It's undeniable that gutters without guards always require more labor and maintenance costs considering that you have to literally remove the debris from the gutters and also spend a considerable amount of money in their replacement.The installation of gutter guards will not only save you the time and costs involved in ensuring your gutters' efficiency but it will also minimize your susceptibility to accidents that always come with gutter cleaning. One major cause of these accidents entails the use of a ladder—which is a common practice among most people.
Gutter guards ensure no debris build-up and also clear your gutters of any clogging so that you won't have to clean it yourself.
3. Consider using a safety ladder
Ladder falls top the list when it comes to ladder-related injuries. Some of these injuries could be as a result of improper mounting or dismounting, a poor ladder set up, or loss of balance. Nonetheless, it all depends on the type of ladder you choose to use as various ladders exist with different safety measures.However, before mounting on any ladder, always ensure you observe the necessary precautionary measures to avoid injuring yourself. Some of these measures include placing your ladder on an even surface (for stability purposes), the use of ladder safety devices (like anti-slip gutter guards and stabilizers, and also leg levelers), and ensuring that the ladder isn't damaged in any way.
But before you get up on your safety ladder, always ensure that the spreader braces and rung locks are functioning properly and that the ladder is locked in the fully open position to prevent you from falling off.
Conclusion
Prevention is always better than cure, and smart home improvements is one of the best ways you can consider to ensure your safety as well as that of your family since the measures greatly help in deterring the common home accidents like unintended falls—which can be costly in terms of treatment, or to the extreme, lead to death.It's preventable. Take the action.