Know the dangers of glass table tops.

You love glass table tops. Whether it's your dining room table, end tables, or coffee table, something about the glass just makes them look better. But while they make your home look more stylish, did you know they also make your home more dangerous?

Here's why.

Glass table tops

Glass table tops continue to be in style year after year. They are always a popular choice for home furnishing because they increase the style and sophistication in homes. They also increase the number of injured children in the emergency rooms every year.

According to reports, emergency room doctors see approximately 20,000 children with serious injuries due to glass table tops each and every year. While this number is not shocking to you, remember that this number is injured children -- not adults. Adults are also susceptible to this injury.

All it takes is children running through the house or jumping on the couch, one slip and they fall onto the glass top. Adults forget and sit on the table top or an elderly person who loses their balance and falls on the table is injured seriously. It happens quickly.

So what's the answer to this problem? The answer lies in the type of glass of your table. The typical glass is "annealed" glass. Striking this glass in some way, makes it break into different sized pieces. Some of these pieces are large and jagged which easily sever arteries as you fall onto them.

The type of glass you want to have in your glass table top is safety or "tempered" glass. This is the same type of glass contained in your vehicles. When safety glass is broken, it shatters into hundreds of tiny pieces. You still get cut, but the likelihood of a serious injury is much less likely.

When choosing a glass table top for your home, look for a sticker on the table that says "Safety Glass" or "Tempered Glass." If the table doesn't have this label, you need to assume it is regular or annealed glass and is dangerous.

If you already have glass table tops in your home, simply take the glass off the table and take it to a local glass shop. You can find these shops in your phone book. They use your piece of glass as a pattern, and cut safety glass for your tables that will fit perfectly and be safe.

The next time you are admiring your glass table tops, stop and think about the danger they present to you and your loved ones and get the glass replaced with a safety glass.