Baby Walkers

Baby walkers

Baby walkers are devices said to provide mobility to babies while walking. They are thought to promote and aid walking. But it is not true. Instead, they delay the process of independent walking. Walkers may allow babies to move before they are physically ready for it which leads to unusual movement patterns and delayed muscle control. When children spend more time in the walkers, they may not learn the skills to sit and balance on the floor and try to take steps without support. When children are in walker, they do not visualize what is happening with their lower body and learn little about their motor development.

Disadvantages of Baby walkers

Though you think you are near your children when she is in a walker, it is said that a child in a walker can move more than 3 feet in one second. Though walkers are made as per the safety standards, accidents do happen. Baby walkers are banned in Canada and the American Academy of Pediatrics has called for a ban on the manufacture and sale of baby walkers with wheels in the United States.

The following are the disadvantages of baby walkers.

·         Injuries: Babies who are in walkers are more prone to get injured. It is reported in a study conducted from 1994-2014 that approximately 230,000 children (less than 15 months of age) were admitted in the emergency rooms of the hospitals due to walker related injuries. In the United States, around 2000 children have walker related injuries every year.

·         Roll down the stairs: Baby walkers give a false belief to children that they can climb the stairs. Instead they end up rolling down the stairs leading to broken bones and severe head and neck injuries.

·         Get burnt: A child in a walker will be able to climb objects easily. This makes him pull off the tablecloth and pour hot substances and get burnt. He will also have easy access to switchboards, radiators or space heaters, hot, sharp and poisonous substances.

·         Drown: A child from the walker can easily fall into a pool or bathtub owning the risk of drowning.

Safety measures

·         Be sure that when your child is in your friend’s home or with caregivers, there are no walkers there.

·         Choose some alternatives to baby walkers like play yards or playpens, stationary activity centers which look like walkers but have no wheels. Children will be able to play, crawl, bounce and walk in these.  

·         If you still plan to buy a walker, make sure they meet the safety standards and they are equipped with a brake to stop it from going over the edge of a step.

·         The walker should only be used in open areas with no pools and sharp objects nearby.

·         Always stay near your baby when she is in a walker.

·         Use walker in a “baby proofed” area.

 

·         Don’t allow your baby to be in a walker for more than 15 minutes.