Over the last few weeks, there have been two major baby item recalls: one for a baby seat and one for a baby bather. Both were prompted by serious accidents to young children. That is very, VERY sad, indeed. HOWEVER, I think that a dose of common sense, and not just a safety strap/replacement hinge is in order here. For example, why would anyone carry a baby around in a plastic bather? Why would anyone leave a baby on a coffee table in a plastic seat? Would a label telling you not to do that make a difference? (Read - do you need a label to tell you that is potentially dangerous?) With the bather, if the hinge is truly faulty, that would be different. I am just responding to numerous articles that I read about accidents that happened when the babies were left alone in the seat on a raised surface/being carried around in the baby bather.
If you think I am wrong, please feel free to set me straight.
*AV* - You are right, the warnings can be hilarious. I bought an over-the-counter sleep aid recently and the warning said. "May cause drowsiness." What do you mean by 'may?'
My favorite sleep sacks have a label inside that says "Not intended for sleeping" :)
No joke. The only reason I can think of is that maybe the fabric is not flame resistant, which children's clothing must be by law...as I understand it.
There are a lot of stupid people who don't use the common sense God gave them. We used the bumbo, for example, quite well for the purpose for which was designed - and nothing else! We also had no problems with shopping carts because the carseat is meant to latch to the stroller or base, NOT the shopping cart! So if you put your kid up there and he or she falls, that's on you. There are even stores with infant seats on some of their carts, so it's a matter of you taking the time to *gasp!* move your kid out of the carrier to an appropriate carrier - your arms, the cart seat, a sling or bjorn...
If you want a laugh (or to be depressed) look at warnings on products. You know someone did the thing they are warning about for them to include it. And don't get me started on how apparently American parents are too stupid to feed their kids kinder eggs...
I wondered the same thing myself. I don't understand why someone would put their baby in a Bumbo seat and then put them on a table...it just doesn't make sense to me. It's all a liability thing for sure. Someone is going to sue because the company did not tell them to not to put a baby on a table for risk of falling.
Funny thing about common sense is it's not very common.
Yes, "Common Sense" DOES appear to be an oxymoron, doesn't it?
:)
Yeah, I think MOST recalls are driven by idiocy.
Unfortunately, stupid people breed and then their kids suffer.
There's no fixing stupid.
No warning could EVER cover every single possible contingency of stupidity.
Well, the bather thing. The only thing I could see is maybe mom gave the baby a bath in the kitchen forgot to get a towel and decided to carry baby in the bath so as not to get wet? I moved my daughter out of the sink onto the counter before if the hinge broke I could see where that would cause issues.
And what about my soft booster seat for the table? Once it gets dirty (inevitable with food) it slides all around. I can see my child getting seriously hurt. They advertise no straps needed!
These are not recalled but I wonder if it's a matter of time.
Hi C.,
I am of the opinion that the less baby products around, the better. The safety warnings are common sense, but lot of people do not have it. I'm not of the 'can't fix stupid' population inasmuch as I'm of the 'let's do things which are developmentally appropriate for kids' group. For instance, if a child cannot sit up and the parents use a bathing seat or ring, they really *should* be using an infant bath instead. That is what this is for: infants who cannot sit up on their own. Thus, the product is not necessary. (What's more, from my experience as a nanny, these items, even when used as suggested, are tippy... I often had to talk to parents about using appropriate gear and not using the bath seats.)
When the standards for strollers is to let children recline in a cradle position (or in the cradle position of the car seat which clicks in... notice that it doesn't sit up) until the child can sit up on their own/six months, it stands to reason that there's really no *real* necessity for these products--only perceived necessity because other parents have them.
I come from a different background, which is that I believe we do our children a disservice in keeping them propped up all the time. This is likely what parents are using Bumbos and bathers for. My background is more Magda Gerber "RIE" than Babys R Us.
So, while I will agree that perhaps the recall is not the best choice in this situation, I also feel that these items are redundant to what children really need-- to be exploring and exercising their bodies, to be a little frustrated-- because it is precisely that frustration which will motivate them to develop those muscles for sitting, crawling and walking. So for me, "is the recall appropriate" is the wrong argument to focus on, instead, I would ask people to critically consider *why* we think our children need these products to begin with.
I agree with you.some people are just clueless or too lazy to follow the rules. They do not think the rules apply to them.
At the grocery store yesterday a very small child maybe 11 months and tiny, stood up in the grocery cart seat and trying to reach her mom. The buckle straps were there, but not being used. The mother just told her to sit down. She did not, mom told her again as this child teetered while standing. The mom sat the child down. I turn around as I passed them and the child stood up again.still not buckled, so I said, looks like she wants to be buckled in.. The mom glares at me and does not buckle the child.
If that child fell on her head, I wonder if the mom would take responsibility?
I doubt it.
Common sense died. Didn't you read the obituary about it. It is quite funny, but true. I am sure you can find it. It started when the woman sued McDonald's because she was burned by hot coffee. She claimed it should have been put on the cup!!!!!!!!!!! She won!!!!!!!! Since then it has been downhill.
