Today, on the heels of the latest in a seemingly never-ending flurry of crib recalls, the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC), along with three New York-based partner organizations, launched its new video “Safe Sleep for Babies.” This video is the newest tool in CPSC’s ongoing Safe Sleep Initiative, which works to reduce deaths and injuries associated with unsafe sleep environments.
The new video will be distributed to hospitals nationwide in an effort to reach as many health care providers and parents as possible, and to educate the public on these important safe sleep issues. The goal is to reach parents while they are still in the hospital, so that they create a safe sleeping space for babies from day one, and is an important step to make this information readily available and accessible for all parents and caregivers.
The video urges parents to:
- Place infants to sleep on their backs
- Use a firm, tight-fitting mattress
- Never use extra padding, blankets or pillows under baby
- Remove pillows or thick comforters
- Do not use positioning devices – they are not necessary and can be deadly
- Regularly check cribs for loose, missing or broken parts or slats
- Do not try to fix a broken crib
- Place cribs or playpens away from windows and window covering cords to avoid fall and strangulation hazards
- Place baby monitor cords away from cribs or playpens to avoid strangulation
The three new crib recalls–the Heritage Collection 3-in-1 Drop-Side Cribs, Angel Line Drop-Side Cribs, and Ethan Allen Drop-Side Cribs–affects about 40,000 cribs. As always, please check the CPSC website to make sure that your crib is not affected.
