Don’t Buy These Attachment Parenting Products Alleges Consumer Reports
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I was really upset when I read this article from Consumer Reports – Five products not to buy for your baby!
Along with Baby bath seats, Crib bumper pads and Sleep positioners were listed two products near and dear to advocates of attachment parenting: Co-sleepers and Slings!
Consumer Reports first blasts co-sleepers saying:
Although sleeping with a baby in an adult bed is a common practice among some cultures, it can be dangerous. The new bassinet-like devices designed to go in between parents or alongside an adult bed don’t necessarily make co-sleeping with a baby safer… Currently, safety standards don’t exist for either co-sleepers or bedside sleepers. Until they do, we think the safest place for your baby to sleep is in a crib.
Then they go on to denigrate slings:
Over the past five years, at least four babies died and there have been many reports of serious injury associated with the use of sling-type carriers. The incidents include skull fractures, head injuries, contusions and abrasions. Most occurred when the child fell out of the sling. As slings grow in popularity, so do the number of serious injuries. No safety standards exist for slings. We think you should skip the sling and opt for other types of infant carriers, which have safer track records.
4 pages of comments later and a lot of upset parents later:
….Sure you can point out the negatives of these few items… but how many babies have died in cribs? How many cribs have been recalled? It’s not just co-sleepers. How many babies have been injured or died from falling from their parents arms or being left on the changing tables?
….it seems to me that the common thread in all of these “dangerous” products is a lack of education and care on the part of the parent.
…Talk about throwing the baby out with the bathwater!
…and no response from Consumer Reports. Since I spent hours and hours researching products on this site prior to purchasing my baby gear, I’m disappointed to say the least!
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Photo Credit: jennycu on Flickr Under Creative Commons License
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