Table 1

Definition of exposures and confounding variables

Exposure: Safety and other potentially risk reducing equipment use

  1. Use of safety gates

  2. Kettles with curly or short cables

  3. Play pens (or travel cots)

  4. Stationary activity centres

Exposure: Safety behaviours

  1. Not drinking hot drinks while holding a child

  2. Not passing hot drinks over a child

  3. Keeping hot drinks out of reach of children

  4. Storing kettles at back of work tops

  5. Use of back rings on cooker

  6. Turning saucepan handles away from edge of cooker

  7. Not using tablecloths

  8. Knowledge of hot tap water/thermostat temperature

  9. Using cold water first when running a bath

  10. Measuring bath water temperature

  11. Not leaving child without an adult in the bath or bathroom

  12. Not having children running baths

  13. Teaching children safety rules about hot liquids

Exposure: Home hazards

  1. Has baby walker

Potential confounders: sociodemographic

  1. Age

  2. Gender

  3. Ethnic group

  4. Family size and structure

  5. Housing tenure

  6. Receipt of state-provided means-tested benefits

  7. Single parenthood

  8. Adult unemployment in the household

  9. Overcrowding

  10. Deprivation (measured using the Index of Multiple Deprivation39)

  11. Distance of residence from hospital

  12. Use of out-of-home childcare

Potential Confounders: child and parent measures for health and behaviour

  1. Child behaviour (infant, early child and child behaviour questionnaires)40–42

  2. Child health status (VAS43; PedsQL44 45)

  3. Long-term health conditions

  4. Parental mental health (Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale)46

  5. Parenting daily hassles47 48

  6. Parental perception of child's ability to reach hot liquids (a series of questions on climbing, reaching, turning on taps, ability to open safety gates)

  • PedsQL, pediatric quality of life inventory; VAS, visual analogue scale.