By now you know that drop side cribs are banned by the Consumer Products Safety Commission (CPSC), and if you owned such a crib, you got rid of it. Even with a more sturdy piece of baby furniture for your child, is the sleeping area safe? If you use crib bumpers or sleep positioners, it may still contain hazards to your baby.
A recent story in the New York Times discusses the CPSC’s decision to revisit a study about crib bumpers conducted by Dr. Bradley Thatch from 1995 to 2008. Thatch found that, over this 13-year period, 27 babies died from suffocation with bumpers in their cribs.
At the time Thatch finished his study, the CPSC dismissed it for too many external factors, but with the drop side crib ban in effect, the CPSC appears to be tightening its standards, an approach that started three years ago with the Consumer Products Safety Improvement Act of 2008. The CPSC started the “Safe Sleep” campaign and detailed mandatory standards and suggestions for a baby’s sleep area. The use of no drop side cribs is a mandatory standard, while being cautious with sleep positoners and baby monitor cords are suggestions.
Even if you decide to forego a crib, make sure your baby’s sleep area is still safe. An article from The Times Herald in Norristown, Penn., recommends that a baby not sleep with parents in the same bed. An adult-sized person can roll over and smother a small child. Although cribs are standard sleeping places for a baby, low-income families may not be able to afford one, and other parents abide by the “family bed,” or sleep sharing, theory. Additionally, the Times Herald piece recommends that a baby not be placed on a soft surface, such as a waterbed or a pillow, for sleeping.
