Dresser tip over accidents as well as a flat screen TV falls are common sources of toddler and child injury and even death. It’s estimated that three children die every month from dresser tip over, other falling furniture, and larger TV’s that are not anchored to the wall, according to a recent article from Baltimore ABC affiliate WMAR.

The Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) has been attempting to change this statistic by a trifecta of interventions that include negotiating higher manufacturing standards with furniture makers, educating the public regarding the dangers, and speaking out about the importance of anchoring furniture and TVs to walls.

The CPSC has undertaken a campaign to warn families of the dangers of dresser tip over accidents and the quick and easy ways they can be prevented. The CPSC says that by taking a few minutes to purchase two small pieces of hardware from a local store—one that is attached to the wall and one that is attached to the piece of furniture—dresser tip over accidents can easily be eliminated. This is especially important during the toddler years, when a child is blissfully exploring his environment and completely oblivious to the hazards around him or her.

Often within one year of birth, a baby begins to take the first tentative steps of independence. From that point, dangers abound that a parent may not anticipate. Dresser tip over accidents happen frequently because climbing toddlers pull open and hang on drawers and add weight that the structure is not made to withstand.

It is also not uncommon for toddlers to step in drawers and use them to climb to the top of dressers to reach a shiny object or toy that a parent has put out of reach. This can even happen in the middle of the night if a mother of father has transitioned them to a toddler bed from which they can get out easily.

While dresser tip over accidents can be prevented with the simple intervention of taking the time to anchor, the WMAR article also explores the responsibility that furniture manufacturers need to take to lower the injury and death statistics. Voluntary furniture industry standards are not always adhered to in the competitive marketplace.

Ikea, the popular Sweden-based big box furniture store, eventually recalled the Malm three-drawer dresser in November 2017, but only after eight children died in dresser tip over accidents with this particular chest of drawers. This product was found to be unstable without being anchored to the wall.

These dresser tip over accidents and others might have been prevented if the company had adhered to the voluntary standard that a dresser higher than 30 inches must be able to withstand 50 pounds of weight hanging from an open drawer—the weight of a 2-3-year-old—without tipping over. CPSC is also trying to increase this standard.

TV tip over accidents are also a big problem, since the manufacturers have transitioned to making large flat screens. In the past, TVs had large, heavy-weighted electronics inside that made them more stable. This is no longer the case with many newer TVs that are much taller and thinner than older models.

These TVs may be easily moved by an adult or two, but big-screen TVs can fall with a great deal of force on a young human. The injury might only involve a cut or abrasion, but serious head injuries and death have also occurred.

It should be noted that not only toddlers and young children are hurt in furniture, television, and appliance injuries. The second largest group affected by poor manufacturing standards and failure to anchor large items are senior citizens aged 60 plus.