Massachusetts Personal Injury Library
Crib Safety Tips
From the beginning of a child’s life, products intended for a child must be selected with safety in mind. Parents and caretakers of babies and young children need to be constantly aware of the safety standards of the products they purchase or products they are given as gifts. As children are left unattended for long periods of time in cribs and bassinets, by intent, design, practice and custom, you want to be especially vigilant with these products; they deserve your special attention and need to be completely safe.
Since the first of the year, the Consumer Products Safety Commission has recalled at least 13 different cribs or bassinets—many of which have resulted in serious injury and child deaths.
Understandably, parents and caregivers are concerned about these recalls as they relate to a place in the home – their bed – where a child spends a majority of their time. Parents and caregivers should feel confident that their children are safe in their cribs at all times. Here are some ways to decrease anxiety and increase safety for children in cribs:
- Buy a crib that meets all current national safety standards. Corner posts should be 1/16 inch or shorter and they should be the same height as the end panels. The distance between crib slats should be 2 3/8 inches or less and the crib shouldn’t have sharp or jagged edges.
- Check the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) website to make sure that the crib has not been recalled and sign up to receive any future crib recall notices.
- Parents should not use any crib with missing, broken or loose parts. Hardware should be inspected from time to time and tightened to keep the crib sturdy.
- Lay babies on their backs, facing up.
- Remove pillows, comforters, stuffed toys and other soft products from the crib before putting the baby to sleep.
