Hair straighteners, and other electrical beauty products, are seen by many as an essential. But they can be very dangerous, particularly to children.
Straighteners can reach temperatures of over 220°C and then take up to forty minutes to cool down after use. They can cause severe burns if they touch the skin, with children particularly vulnerable as their skin can be 15 times thinner than adults.
The number of hair straightener burns among children has doubled in recent years and they now account for nearly one in ten burns. The majority of these incidents are when toddlers touch, grab or tread on the hot hair straightener plates. Nearly half of all adults have also received a burn from a heated hair appliance.
Our video highlights the dangers of leaving your straighteners unattended near toddlers.
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Turn them off. Put them away.
Keep your children safe
If you use hair straighteners, follow our top tips to make sure that you, and your children, stay safe from electrical burns:
- Keep hair straighteners out of reach of children
Children’s skin can be 15 times thinner than that of adults so it’s important to keep them out of reach of little feet and hands. - Use a heat proof pouch
Hair straighteners stay hot up to forty minutes after they have been switched off. A heat proof pouch is the easiest and safest way to store a product after use. - Keep them away from skin
Do not allow the any of the hot plates to come into contact with the face, neck or scalp when using straighteners. - Seek medical attention
In the incident of a serious burn, seek immediate medical attention. If the hot plates comes into contact with the skin but it is not serious, run the affected area under cold water. - Find out what more you can do to protect children from hair straightener burns and other accidents by visiting the website of our campaign partner The Child Accident Prevention Trust.
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