Choose Baby Cribs To Ensure The New Baby's Safety

By Jeffrey Bruce

Baby furniture cribs are the main piece of furniture in the nursery. A bassinet can be used during the early weeks of a baby's life, but there comes the time that you eventually need to invest in a crib in order to be sure that the baby can be kept safe.

Convertible cribs are some of the most popular cribs available today. Many of these cribs will eventually convert to a toddler bed. The convertible crib saves money as it allows you to purchase only one bed to be used for several years. You will also find cribs that can be converted to attach to your bedside and allow you as parents to co-sleep with your child.

You will also find that there are cribs that are able to gently rock a baby to sleep. While this could be a plus when the child is young, it may set you up for a difficult transition when it is time for the baby to move to a regular bed.

Baby furniture cribs must be a safe place for your baby to sleep. These safety tips can help to ensure that the child is able to sleep in a baby crib that is safe.

Be cautious about purchasing a used crib. The crib should be in almost like new condition and have all of its parts. If you are given a crib that does not have all the parts, contact the manufacturer to see if replacement parts are available. If not, do not use the crib. Cribs that are incomplete can often collapse and hurt a baby.

Check the distance between the slats on a crib. If a soda can will fit through the slats when parallel to them, then the slats are too far apart for safety.

Crib mattresses should fit snugly in the bed. If there is more than an inch of space, it is too much and is not safe for the baby.

Corner posts must not extend more than one sixteenth of an inch above the side rails. Otherwise they can cause the clothing of a child to become entangled and cause a suffocation risk.

All nuts, bolts and screws should be tightened securely on the new crib. Once they have all been tightened, check once again before you put your baby to bed. Continue to check these connections at least once per month.

You also need to check all the safety latches that keep a the crib's side rail from moving up and down. You do not want a crib that the child could accidentally release this rail. Also avoid stuffed animals or extra blankets in the crib where a child is sleeping. Any extra items can pose a suffocation risk during the first few months of a child's life when SIDS is possible.

Very young babies sometimes enjoy a mobile that is attached to the side of the crib. Babies that are able to sit up can pull these mobiles off the side of the crib where they can fall and hurt the baby. Remove them before the baby is able to sit up on his or her own. - 30224

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