Baby Furniture That Lasts
It’s a fact that babies and young children grow quickly. Clothing may only last a few washes before new onesies and t-shirts are needed. The same nearly applies to furniture. A baby may soon outgrow his or her crib and will need a toddler bed. At this point, if you’ve already purchased a crib, you’ll need to purchase a toddler or adult-size bed. However, if you’ve already made an investment in a crib, buying another bed can be another investment. Because parents want high-quality furniture for their children but want it to last, one of the latest trends in baby furniture has been convertible cribs that fold out and transition into a toddler bed.
A brief recent article discusses this type of convertible baby furniture, mainly for its versatility. The product highlighted in the article, a Smart Kid crib, starts out as a standard wooden crib with drawers that can be used for storing baby clothing but, once the child starts to grow, the crib becomes a toddler bed with a desk. The drawers still remain intact and, even if not used for clothing, can store many other items a child uses.
This drawer-crib-toddler bed combination is only one possibility for convertible baby furniture. Another popular combination carried by many retailers of baby furniture is a dresser and bed set. A full chest of drawers for clothing or other items will be attached to a crib that transitions into a toddler bed. Another item attached to this combination may be a changing table on top of the dresser. Similarly, dresser and changing table combination baby furniture is another common product, as the large dresser can be used for many years after the top is no longer used as a changing table. No matter the pieces of furniture combined, convertible or combination baby furniture often has a longer lifespan.
Choosing Organic Baby Products
Going green seems to be one of the latest trends across many products. Choosing organic food over conventional, for example, is considered both better for you and for the environment, as synthetic pesticides aren’t involved in growing. Similarly, organic or green fashion has been gaining more ground for adults. Once relegated to organic cotton clothes that had an off-white color, green fashion now involves vegetable or soy-based dyes that are nearly as intense and varied as their conventional counterparts and fabrics made from organic cotton, bamboo, and hemp. But, organic clothing and cloth doesn’t only apply to adults, and many organic baby products can be found on the market.
A recent column from the Arizona Daily Sun discusses organic baby products and their benefits. In the column, this mostly pertains to cotton, which, grown conventionally, is exposed to many synthetic pesticides and fertilizers that are absorbed by the plant. Once the cotton is processed into cloth, it’s exposed to bleach and synthetic dyes and, for baby products, synthetic fire retardant chemicals. The chemicals may still be contained within the clothing, sheets, or mattress and may rub off on the child or stay in the atmosphere of his or her room.
Although, as the column mentions, babies have been exposed to non-organic products for decades and remained fine, the chemicals contained in these standard baby products could possibly have a negative impact on a child’s health. Much like BPA is being removed from many drinking products for children, after being added for many years, chemicals may also have a harmful effect on the child’s health. After all, a baby sleeps for seventy percent of its first year and, in that space, he or she may be exposed to these chemicals constantly through a mattress or sheets. While organic baby clothing may somewhat be impractical price-wise, many baby retailers have organic baby sheets and mattresses.
High Chairs, Baby Gates Recalled
2009 might have been the year of baby product recalls, but 2010 is starting to experience a significant share, too. Last week, we saw Infantino baby slings being recalled, and, this week, wooden baby gates and high chairs are both being recalled in medium to large quantities. In some cases of recalls, the manufacturer will send out a kit for the product to be modified or fixed, but, in either of these cases, it’s recommended that you stop using the product if you own either of these.
The recalled wooden baby gates by Evenflo are going through a voluntary recall. The model is the Top-of-Stair Plus, and the slats of the gate are susceptible to breaking, thus allowing children to fall down the stairs. So far, 150,000 of these products are being recalled.
Graco highchairs are the other baby product recalled recently. The model, the Harmony High Chair, is being pulled off the market due to a fall risk. The highchair has screws near the front of the legs that can loosen, which causes the chair to fall over and cause injuries to the child inside. So far, 24 injuries for this highchair model have been reported.
If you own either of these baby products, it’s advised that you stop using them immediately. While a kit to fix the problem may be offered through the manufacturer, continuing to use a defective product puts your child at more of a risk for injuries. If you own either of these products, discarding these and purchasing either a new wooden gate or highchair is recommended. Although you personally might not have experienced any safety issues with either product, some might arise in the future if you continue to use either.
One Million Baby Slings Recalled
As you’ve heard in the news recently, one million baby slings by manufacturer Infantino were recalled due to three deaths. Although the linked article doesn’t mention the causes of death in any cases, one caution when using a baby sling is the susceptibility a child has to suffocation. The two products recalled were SlingRider and Wendy Bellissimo, all sold between 2003 and the present, and Infantino plants to replace them at a later date. For parents or caretakers using these, use of the slings should stop immediately.
Babies, particularly those under four months of age, are easily susceptible to suffocation. In fact, a baby can suffocate in one to two minutes if fabric blocks his or her nose or mouth or if the baby is in a curled position with the chin against the check. While slings are recommended to help parents bond with their new child, as well as to breastfeed or to help fussy babies, they’re beneficial when a child is positioned upright, as indicated in the diagram with the article. Baby slings, however, aren’t regulated by federal safety rules and parents using them need to be attentive to their child’s position while using the sling.
Although the Infantino slings are being recalled at the moment, all parents who prefer to use them should be attentive to their child’s position. As indicated by the diagram accompanying the article, a child should have a flat back while in the sling – not a curved one. As the chin positioned against the child’s chest may block airways and result in suffocation, a parent should watch their child when carried in a sling. Additionally, a baby with his or her face against the parent’s chest also risks suffocation. As slings have their benefits in bonding between the parent and child and in breastfeeding, a parent should be watchful when using one.