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The kitchen is full of potential safety hazards.
The kitchen can be a dangerous area for a person with impaired vision, but it is possible to make it safer. Good organization is crucial to avoid mishaps with the stove and sharp knives, for example. Start with a complete inventory of all objects and supplies, and organize for convenience. General tips for this room include:
- Use a labeling system to organize items and utensils.
- Use large-print labels or a system using the sense of touch, such as varying numbers of rubber bands to distinguish between similar cans of soup.
- Avoid hot burners and open flames from electrical or gas stoves, and use a microwave oven as much as possible.
- Ensure adequate lighting over working areas, such as the counter and stove.
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The stove is an important source of danger. The risks can be reduced as follows:
- Avoid the danger of leaving oven or stove burners turned on by increasing the use of alternatives, such as microwave ovens, electrical toasters, and electrical frying pans.
- For all of these appliances, as well as the washer and dryer, ensure proper use of control settings by making raised marks on the dials with glue or nail polish or by using large print labels.
- One way to ensure the stove is turned off after use is to cultivate the habit of turning it off before the food is removed.
- Ensure good lighting in the areas around these appliances, but beware of glare reflecting off porcelain surfaces.
- Use dark-colored pots for light-colored ingredients, light pots for dark ingredients.
- Wrap contrasting colored tape around handles of pots to maximize their visibility.
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The kitchen floor can be hazardous if it is cluttered or slippery.
- Avoid highly polished floors, which can produce slipperiness and glare.
- Avoid harsh patterns, which may cause eyestrain or optical illusions.
- Choose carpets and furniture in contrasting colors to the floor, so that they stand out against their backgrounds.
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It is important for the refrigerator's contents to be well organized to avoid mistakes in meal preparation. There are many ways to accomplish this:
- Group foods alphabetically or on different shelves according to types, such as bread on the lower shelf and milk on the higher shelf.
- Use a labeling system to identify individual shelves and to help distinguish between containers of similar size and shape.
- Attach large-print cards with adhesive tape to food containers. Alternatively, use a system of rubber bands; for example, one band for the strawberry jam and two bands for the marmalade.
- Leave items in plastic bags, rather than containers, so that they can be quickly identified by touch.
- Keep a detailed map of the interior stuck to the front door of the refrigerator.
- To identify temperature settings, create raised markings on the dial with nail polish or glue.
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A well-organized cupboard or pantry is key to accessing food items conveniently and correctly. Arrange items using any of these systems:
- Organize foods and dishes by group for easy identification. For example, place all the soup cans to the right and all the cans of preserves to the left. Another example would be to place cups, plates and bowls in a cupboard close to the counter for quick access.
- Use a marking system to label shelves and items. Simple large-print labels are one option. Another is a colored label system, such as a white label for a container of corn flakes and a black label for the shredded wheat cereal. A third method is the use of rubber bands; one for the saltshaker and two for the pepper.
- Once a system has been established, remember to return items to their specific places.
- Always close doors after use to avoid collisions with a half-opened door. Consider installing sliding doors on the cupboards.
- Paint cupboard doors in a contrasting color so that they stand out from the surrounding walls. Use colored tape or paint in a contrasting color to make door handles stand out clearly from the background. These measures will aid the person with some remaining sight to identify the cupboards.
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The kitchen or dining room table is often the focal place of daily life. Many people also use the table for close-range activities such as reading, writing, and sewing. Adequate lighting is important here, as is the use of color contrast. Here are some general tips for this area:
- Choose the colors of tables and chairs so that they stand out against the surrounding background. Repaint these items if necessary. Alternatively, use a brightly colored tablecloth or hang a colored towel over the back of a chair.
- Push chairs in close to the table whenever they are not in use to permit safe circulation around the table area.
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To ensure adequate lighting, use an adjustable goosenecked lamp at the kitchen table. Use color contrast to distinguish the plates from the tabletop and the food from the plate. Apply the same principle for cups and beverages. Other suggestions are:
- Throw light on close objects such as dining, reading or writing materials with a goosenecked lamp positioned on the same side as the best eye or on the opposite side from the working hand.
- Start with the color of the food to be served and select plates, bowls, placemats and tablecloths with contrasting color. For example, use a light-colored plate with dark-colored food, such as chili, and place a dark-colored placemat or tablecloth under the plate.
- Use a light-colored cup for dark liquids, such as coffee, and dark-colored cups for milk.
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- Choose the colors of your appliances so that they stand out from the kitchen counter.
- Change electric appliances for battery-powered models to reduce the number of electrical cords in use and the risk of shocks.
- Use cutting boards that contrast with the color of the food.
- Mark the control settings on appliances with nail polish or glue to enable operation using the sense of touch.
- Install a lamp over the counter with a screen to reduce the amount of light shining directly into the eyes.
- Place light and dark rubber placemat squares on the counter. Work over the dark mats when using light-colored ingredients and over the light-colored mats with dark ingredients.
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Pour liquids in or over the sink in case of overfilling or spills. Choose containers with colors that contrast with the liquids, such as a dark pitcher for milk. |
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Good use of color contrast on walls can help enhance visibility and mobility within the kitchen.
- Select paint or wallpaper with light colors to brighten the room and to make dark-colored furniture, light switches and electrical outlets stand out.
- Avoid bright colors and busy patterns, which may contribute to eyestrain.
- Stick a large dark square of paper on a light-colored wall. A clear container can be held up against the square to measure light-colored liquids, such as milk, being poured into a transparent container. The wall itself may serve the same purpose for dark-colored liquids such as grape juice.
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- Choose outlets in colors that contrast with the walls to make them easier to locate. If this is not possible, highlight outlets with colored paint or tape.
- Install outlets or tape extension cords at a convenient height. This helps the person with poor vision or mobility to avoid searching the wall at floor level for an outlet.
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