It?s easy to understand the appeal of crib bumper pads for new parents. Those pre-baby weeks are a blur of frantic decisions about what you need to make your baby safe in your home and, at first glance, bumpers seem to fit the bill. The soft pads promise to protect your baby from whatever dangers lurk behind the hard surfaces and gaps of crib bars.
But for years, health professionals have considered crib bumpers to be not only an unnecessary protection but also an added safety risk for your baby. Unlike baby walkers, they are not banned in Canada and are easily available at many baby stores and large retailers, including Babies?R?Us, Walmart and Indigo.
In fact, Health Canada and the Canadian Paediatric Society warn against using crib bumpers, and studies have linked them to baby deaths. In the US, there is no national safety standard on crib bumpers, but they are banned for sale in at least two states. Meanwhile, the American Academy of Pediatrics says that they ?have no place in a safe sleep environment.? ?They?re never a good idea,? says Edward Kulich, a concierge paediatrician with KidsHousecalls in New York.
What are crib bumpers"
When you first hear the name, you might think that ?crib bumpers? are something designed to protect an out-of-control crib from a collision. That might be an interesting product idea, but it?s not what we?re talking about here.
Crib bumpers are pads that line the inside of a crib, starting at bed level and rising less than a foot. They?r...