How to Buy Safe Baby Cribs and Other Safety Measures

Aside from the style and decoration of your baby’s room, you need to decide thoroughly on the furniture in your baby’s room.

The best place to start is in the central piece of the room – your baby’s crib. There are a lot of different cribs in the market. Some can rock, some can be wooden, and some can be a sleigh while there are some that are convertible. But you must not only think of the style – you must also consider its functionality as well.

Some cribs have adjustable mattress heights and side rails that are removable. Some cribs can be converted into larger bed sizes which makes them useful even when your baby grows up. The convertible crib for one is a crib that can be attached to your bed. This is useful if you prefer to sleep with your baby during its first few months.

As a general rule though, hand-me-down cribs are not considered to be safe for your baby. This is because they may have missing, broken or loose parts. Your crib must have complete hardware and materials such as screws and brackets. This is vital in order to keep your baby safe. Aside from that, there may be rough edges and chipped paint in the crib and these can be ingested by your baby. If you insist on using second hand cribs then make sure that the chipped paint is stripped off and that all the hardware is complete. Make sure that the crib is repainted with lead free paint.

You must also avoid cribs that have decorative headboards and footboards especially those that have cut out designs. Your baby can put their limbs or head through one of them as they grow up and become more active. This can cause serious injury. Cribs that have corner posts that stick out above the panels are also considered dangerous since your clothing can easily get caught on those posts. If your cribs have slats make sure that they are not more than 2-3 inches apart. Your baby’s head or limbs can be trapped between the rails if they go bigger than that.

The mattress should be able to fit snugly with no more than two finger widths between the side of the crib and the edge of the mattress. A square cornered mattress will work best and will provide the highest level of safety. You can also add bumper pads for additional security.

Aside from your crib, the rest of the room must be baby proof as well. Once you have all the furniture in place, make sure that you install rubber stoppers at the top of all doors including the doors of your closets. Make sure that the room has wall to wall carpeting. And put plug covers on all exposed electric outlets. This will help ensure that your baby’s room is safe throughout the years.