Cribs Safety Guide

• Safe Bedding Practices
• Baby Safety Checklist
• Childproofing Your Home
• Strangulation Risks
• The Safe Nursery

For many parents, purchasing a crib before their first child is born is the act that really, truly makes them believe that they're going to have a baby. When making your choice, keep in mind that the purpose of a crib is not only to complement your nursery's decor, but to provide a safe, cozy place for your child to sleep (and sometimes not to sleep).

More than 5 million cribs, bassinets and play yards have been recalled in the last two years

Babies spend much of their time sleeping; therefore, the nursery should be the safest room in the house. Check to see if your crib has been recalled. Since the beginning of 2007, more than 5 million cribs, play yards and bassinets have been recalled.

With any crib, bassinet or play yard, following a few simple rules will keep babies sleeping safely and will give parents a better night’s sleep:
- To prevent suffocation, never place pillows or thick quilts in a baby’s sleep environment. Also, make sure there are no gaps larger than two fingers between the sides of the crib and the mattress.
- Proper assembly of cribs is paramount - Follow the instructions provided and make sure that every part is installed correctly. If you are not sure, call the manufacturer for assistance.
- Do not use old, broken or modified cribs - Infants can strangle to death if their bodies pass through gaps between loose components or broken slats while their heads remain entrapped.
- Properly set up play yards according to manufacturers’ directions. Only use the mattress pad provided with the play yard; do not add extra padding.
- Never place a crib near a window with blind or curtain cords; babies can strangle on curtain or blind cords.

For infants under 12 months of age, follow these practices to reduce the risk of SIDS (sudden infant death syndrome) and prevent suffocation:
Place baby on his/her back in a crib with a firm, tight-fitting mattress.
- Do not put pillows, quilts, comforters, sheepskins, pillow-like bumper pads or pillow-like stuffed toys in the crib.
- Consider using a sleeper instead of a blanket.
- If you do use a blanket, place baby with feet to foot of the crib. Tuck a thin blanket around the crib mattress, covering baby only as high as his/her chest.
- Use only a fitted bottom sheet specifically made for crib use.

Check Your Crib for Safety

There should be:
- A firm, tight-fitting mattress so a baby cannot get trapped between the mattress and the crib.
- Cribs that are assembled wrong, have missing, loose or broken hardware or broken slats can result in entrapment or suffocation deaths. Infants can strangle when their head and neck become entrapped in gaps created by missing, loose or broken hardware or broken slats.
- No missing, loose, broken or improperly installed screws, brackets or other hardware on the crib or mattress support.
- No more than 2 3/8 inches (about the width of a soda can) between crib slats so a baby's body cannot fit through the slats; no missing or cracked slats.
- No corner posts over 1/16th inch high so a baby's clothing cannot catch.
- No cutouts in the headboard or foot board so a baby's head cannot get trapped.

Crib slats, posts, and cutouts. The vertical bars, or slats, that run along the sides and sometimes the head and foot of a crib should be separated by no more than 2-3/8 inches. While all new cribs are built to meet this safety standard, the distance between slats on older cribs should be carefully measured. You also should make sure that there are not cutouts on the boards at the head and foot of the crib that your child could get his head or limbs stuck in. And avoid cribs with posts-if they're longer than 1/16th of an inch, they can pose a strangulation risk if your child were to get his clothing looped around one. Finally, you might consider buying a crib that sits close to the floor; the height of a typical crib is purely for parental comfort and provides yet another place from which a child can fall.

Mattresses. Despite what some salespeople might recite when it comes to the latest, the greatest (and, coincidentally, the priciest) crib mattress, the most important consideration is that it fit snugly into the crib. In general, all new cribs and crib mattresses are a standard size, which is designed to prevent a child from becoming trapped between the two. In order to decrease the risk of SIDS, or sudden infant death syndrome, make sure the mattress you have is firm and don't cover it with a quilt, sheepskin, or anything else that could interfere with your infant getting adequate air circulation around her face.

Bumpers. These long lengths of padded cloth run around the borders of the crib and are either snapped or tied into place. While bumpers look nice and help prevent your infant from banging his head against the slats of the crib, a mobile baby can get tangled up in them. The ties need to be cut as short as possible, and the top and bottom edges of the bumper should be well secured (at least at each corner and at the midpoint of each side of the crib). When your child is able to pull up to a standing position, you should remove the bumpers so that he doesn't use them to climb on.

Mattress height and crib railing. Most cribs are designed so that the mattresses can be put at more than one height. While the highest position can limit how much you have to bend over when putting your infant in the crib, the mattress should be lowered as soon as he is able to sit up. And once your child can pull himself to a standing position, the mattress should be put at the lowest level. Regardless of what height your mattress is set at, cribs are designed to prevent falls when the railing is locked in the up position. While a newborn unable to roll over will not usually be at risk if the railing is left down, this is a bad habit to develop because he will soon be transformed into a more active little guy.

Mobiles. Many infants are enthralled with the melody and simple merry-go-round movement of the mobile hanging over their cribs. Any mobile sold in stores today should meet safety standards that limit string length (in general, no longer than seven inches) and, therefore, strangulation risk. The same, however, is not necessarily true for old mobiles, mobiles not designed for cribs, and homemade mobiles. Mobiles should be placed well out of reach of your child, and once he's able to sit up, it's time for you to take the mobile down (before your little one helps you do it).

Crib placement. As newborns turn into rolling and sitting infants and then jumping toddlers, many seemingly innocuous items in a room can become potential hazards. Make sure that you don't put your child's crib next to a window or near shade or curtain cords, alongside framed pictures or heavy wall hangings, or next to furniture that might have tempting but forbidden objects on it or that might provide just enough assistance for your toddler to climb out.

Bedding. Crib sheets should be designed specifically to fit snugly around the crib mattress. Blankets used in the crib should ideally be small--such as the receiving and baby blankets commonly available--and should be tucked in along the sides of the crib (you can tuck it into just one side if the blanket doesn't reach all the way across) or wrapped securely around your infant. An alternative to using a blanket is to dress your baby in heavier pajamas or a sleep sack that will keep him warm but eliminate the suffocation risk that a blanket can pose. Remember that infants who are bundled up too warmly, however, can get overheated, develop a fever, and may be at an increased risk for SIDS.<

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