SAFE OPERATION

Safety Tips

Read the manual

You may have noticed that parents can buy all kinds of baby equipment and gadgets these days. These products can be very useful but some of them, like high chairs, baby swings, chairs, even cribs can cause injuries.

So when you get a new piece of equipment read the instructions, just like you would with any gadget you bought for yourself. Hmm, maybe even a bit more thoroughly.

And, you know how cars get recalled sometimes. Baby equipment gets recalled too. So keep you eyes and ears open. Baby equipment recalls are often mentioned in the news media.

Back to sleep

Twenty years ago doctors used to tell parents that babies should sleep on their tummies. Now they tell parents that babies should sleep on their backs and there’s good reason for it.

Since they started telling parents to put babies on their backs for sleep there has been a sharp drop in the number of babies who die of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome, or SIDS, as people often call it.
SIDS refers to babies who died in their sleep for no apparent reason. They didn’t smother or choke , they weren’t sick. They just went to sleep and don’t wake up. Very sad.

The good news is that SIDS happens a lot less often than before and one of the big reasons, according to experts, is that most babies now sleep on their back.

So always put your baby on his back for sleep, unless your doctor advises you not to do it for (rare) medical reasons.

Eventually babies learn to roll over. If that happens, don’t worry about. If your baby is old enough to roll over by herself, she most likely old enough to sleep on her tummy.

Within arms reach

Anytime a baby is on a high surface, like a change table, or lying on a sofa or in a little baby chair on a table or counter, an adult should be within arms reach. Falls are one of the more common causes of injury in babies.

The arm’s reach rule also applies to bathtubs, even if the baby is in a seemingly secure device like a bath chair. Babies can drown in very small amounts of water.

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Car Seats

You’ve probably heard about the importance of always using a properly installed car seat when you take your little one out on the road.

Safety Tips

You may have noticed that parents can buy all kinds of baby equipment and gadgets these days.