To bumper or not to bumper? That's a question facing many parents-to-be as they ready their baby's nursery. But as Healthland's Bonnie Rochman writes today, suffocation concerns have moved experts (and, hopefully, parents) firmly into the "no bumper" camp. The U.S. Consumer Products Safety Commission is currently examining bumpers' safety record, but:
Now, the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) is pre-empting the agency's process and calling on parents to stop using the pads that cushion the perimeter of a baby's crib.
"It's a potential hazard, so don't have it in the child's environment," Marion Burton, AAP president, told the Chicago Tribune. "I can't think of any reason to have them."
Well-known baby expert Alan Greene, MD, a Lucile Packard Children's Hospital pediatrician, agrees, writing on his blog:
As tempting as it may be to put a pretty crib bumper in your baby’s crib, the use of these bumpers should be avoided. These bumpers can suffocate or strangle an infant; and an enlightening article in the Journal of Pediatrics in September 2007 concluded that crib or bassinet bumpers should not be used due to these serious risks.
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