Before your child goes to a friend’s home for a playdate or sleepover, parents often ask each other several questions. “Do you have any pets?” “Who will watch the kids?” “Is there a pool in your backyard?” “Does your child have any allergies?” These and many other questions are widely accepted – and even expected – between parents to keep the kids safe. However, one important question is often missing: do you have a firearm in the home? In the U.S., children are at greater ri

Did you know that in 2020, the biggest cause of death for children and teens (ages 1-18) was firearm accidents? It caused 3,219 young lives lost, even more than car crashes or cancer (1). Some of these deaths happened because of accidents, while others were from people hurting themselves on purpose. Let's focus on how to keep kids safe if there's a gun at home. But remember, the safest option is not to have a gun in the house. Suicides: Out of the 3,219 youths who died becaus

Azucena Lopez is a Master of Public Health candidate at Northwestern University in the Community Health Research concentration. She is a Chicago native passionate about creating safe and healthy neighborhoods through conducting and applying public health research. Children and Guns “Is there an unlocked gun in your house?” Asking [SK1] about guns and safe storage can keep your child alive. Too often children gain access to a loaded firearm and tragically shoot themselves o

Dear Parent, Thank you for taking care of me and thank you for trying to protect me but I must ask you a favor... please avoid having a gun in the house where I am using all my senses to discover everything around me, and if you decide that my safety entails you buying one, please read the following numbers: · In 2019, there were 171 deaths related to firearms in the age group 0-19 years old in the state of Illinois. · In the age group 0-14 years old there were 17 deaths in