Consumer Reports Thursday called for a federal ban of infant walkers, upon publishing an in-depth investigation on what they call “significant safety risks”.
With the call CR joined the American Academy of Pediatrics which has also called for them to be banned in the U.S. the sit-in baby walkers are already banned in Canada, yet continue to be sold in the U.S. despite being linked to infant deaths.
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According to CR from 2004-2008 the Consumer Product Safety Commission staff estimated there was an average of 3,000 injuries per year related to infant walkers among children under the age of 15 months that were treated in hospital emergency departments.
The CR said the most common injuries included babies falling out of their walkers or down the stairs, injured heads and faces, contusions and/or abrasions and injuries to internal organs.
The CSPC also reported eight fatal incidents from 2004-2008, one of which appeared to involve a fall from stairs by a child in a walker that didn’t conform to ASTM international standards.
Despite repeated recalls, updated safety standards and warnings from experts like the AAP the CR says baby walkers continue to be sold all over the U.S.
Other evidence in the CR report claims that ensuring the safety of walkers becomes increasingly difficult when you try and buy them online. There is also no medical evidence that it helps infants walk earlier.
For the full Consumer Report investigation click here