Firearm-owning parents of young children often store at least one firearm without secure storage
Keeping every firearm locked and unloaded helps keep children safe
SAN DIEGO — About 44% of parents of young children who own firearms reported that they own both a handgun and a long gun, at least one of which is not stored securely, according to research presented during the American Academy of Pediatrics 2026 National Conference & Exhibition in San Diego Oct. 2-6.
The study, “Handgun and Long Gun Ownership and Storage in Families With Young Children,” found that most of the parents stated they kept firearms for their family’s protection. More than three-fourths (77%) of them reported that they stored at least one firearm unlocked and loaded or both unlocked and loaded.
“We found that many children under age 5 live in homes where firearms are not stored securely,” said Andrew Hashikawa MD, MS, FAAP, clinical professor of emergency medicine and pediatrics at the University of Michigan. “Families often own firearms to protect their loved ones, but leaving them unlocked can put young children at risk. Keeping every firearm locked and unloaded is an important part of keeping children safe.”
Storage was classified as secure if all household firearms were stored both locked and unloaded, and not secure if any firearm was stored loaded, unlocked, or both.
Hashikawa and senior author Alison L. Miller, PhD, questioned 843 U.S. firearm-owning parents of children ages 1 to 5 in an online survey. Eligible participants were ages 18 and older, English-speaking, and living in a household with firearms. The study investigated the types of firearms they own, why they own them, and how they store them. At least 49% of parents surveyed owned at least one long gun, and 44% owned both types.
The authors observe that firearm injuries are the leading cause of death among children in the United States, and the rates of unintentional firearm injury are increasing among young children. Given that most parents owned handguns and reported protection as their primary motivation for firearm ownership, they conclude there is a need for messaging that addresses the needs and concerns of these groups.
Funding for the research: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
Media Relations Contact:
Ananya Sen at seananya@med.umich.edu or 734-764-2220.
Study author Dr. Andrew Hashikawa, is scheduled to present the research, which is below, from noon to 1:00 PM PDT on Sunday, Oct. 4 at the Marriot. To request an interview with the authors, contact Ananya Sen at seananya@med.umich.edu or 734-764-2220.
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The American Academy of Pediatrics is an organization of 67,000 primary care pediatricians, pediatric medical subspecialists and pediatric surgical specialists dedicated to the health, safety and well-being of infants, children, adolescents and young adults. For more information, visit www.aap.org. Reporters can access the meeting program and other relevant meeting information through the AAP meeting website at http://www.aapexperience.org/
ABSTRACT
Submission Type: Council on Injury, Violence, and Poison Prevention Program and Firearm Injury Prevention Special Interest Group
Abstract Title: Handgun and Long Gun Ownership and Storage in Families With Young Children
Andrew Hashikawa
Dexter, MI, United States
10/04/2026 12:00 PM - 1:00 PM
Firearm injuries are the leading cause of death among children in the United States (US), and the rates of unintentional firearm injury are increasing among children younger than 6 years. Most of these injuries involve household firearms stored loaded and unlocked. Handguns account for most unintentional firearm deaths among young children and may be stored less securely than other firearm types. Families with children may own handguns, long guns, or both for protection, recreation, or hunting, yet little is known about firearm ownership patterns and storage practices in these households. Our study aims were to characterize firearm ownership and storage practices among families with young children and to examine sociodemographic characteristics and motivations for firearm ownership.
We conducted a cross-sectional, nationally representative online survey of US firearm-owning parents of children aged 1-5 years using a national panel. Eligible participants were adults aged 18+ years or older, English-speaking, and living in a household with firearms. Parents reported sociodemographic characteristics, the primary motivation for ownership (e.g., protection, recreation, hunting), the types of firearms they owned (handguns only, long guns only, or both), and storage practices. Storage was classified as secure if all household firearms were stored both locked and unloaded, and not-secure if any firearm was stored loaded, unlocked, or both. We examined: 1) distribution of firearm ownership by type; 2) sociodemographic characteristics and ownership motivations; and 3) storage practices by type of firearm(s) owned.
Demographic characteristics are presented in Table 1. Among 843 firearm-owning parents of young children, more than 94% reported owning a handgun. Nearly half of families reported owning both long guns and handguns (44%), 51% owned handguns only, and 5% owned only long guns. Protection (77%) was the most commonly cited reason for firearm ownership. On average, families owned just under 3 firearms. Compared with parents who owned both handguns and long guns, parents who owned handguns only were more likely to store household firearms securely. Secure storage was reported by 41.5% of handgun-only compared with 30.7% of those owning both handguns and long guns (χ²=14.1, p<.001).
Among firearm-owning families with young children, firearm type and reasons for ownership may be important considerations for injury prevention efforts. Although handgun-only families stored more securely, more than half of all families stored at least one household firearm either unlocked, loaded, or both. As handguns pose a particular risk for young children, it is critical to emphasize the secure storage of handguns. Efforts to promote secure storage could tailor firearm safety messages to household firearm type and ownership motivations. Partnering with families who store securely could be a way to engage other families with young children to encourage secure storage.
Table 1. Characteristics of firearm-owning parents of children aged 1-5 years
Subject of Research
People
Article Title
Handgun and Long Gun Ownership and Storage in Families With Young Children
Article Publication Date
2-Oct-2026
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