crib bumpers at 6+ months?

ATLdesi · September 2013

Hi everyone - wondering what the prevailing opinion is on the use of crib bumpers for babies 6+ months old, and/or babies who have great head control, can roll forward/back, are near crawling, etc. I know with newborns and young babies, crib bumpers are considered a SIDS risk and therefore shouldn't be used - - but now that my DS is older, he's often waking up, getting onto his hands and knees, and rocking so much that he bumps his head all over the crib. I'd love to use a bumper to protect his noggin, but obviously would only do so if it is no longer risky.

Thanks in advance!

babywisher · September 2013

I do use the bumper. I do keep the fan going while she sleeps to keep the air flow going. She really doesn't move when she sleeps either.

ally2011 · September 2013

They do increase the risk of SIDS until one year per the American Academy of Pediatrics so I personally am not using. Decreased air flow is thought to contribute to SIDS, but of course no one knows exactly why it happens. If you are worried about his head maybe look into Wonder Bumpers. Here is more info: https://www.healthychildcare.org/pdf/sidsparentsafesleep.pdf

jbatch · September 2013

I use bumpers..

Kristie330 · September 2013

We just put on breathe able bumpers last night. After four nights in a row that she got at least one limb stuck between the slats and woke up. They were pretty reasonable and have a lower SIDS risk. My concern with regular bumpers at this age and forward is she could use them to climb out of the crib. Good luck with whatever you decide

jd614 · September 2013

We have used bumpers for the last 2 mos. as for air flow out crib has slats and the bumpers only go half way up so there is plenty of air .

Puck1182 · September 2013

Kristie330 said:
We just put on breathe able bumpers last night. After four nights in a row that she got at least one limb stuck between the slats and woke up. They were pretty reasonable and have a lower SIDS risk. My concern with regular bumpers at this age and forward is she could use them to climb out of the crib. Good luck with whatever you decide

We just did that too! DD rolls around while she's trying to fall asleep, and lately she ends up with a leg or foot sticking out. She doesnt ever fall asleep with her face against the side, and we always leave her ceiling fan on for air circulation, so I'm not terribly worried about it. And I like that the breathable bumpers will collapse of she tries to use them to climb out, although that isn't a concern for us just yet.

Rosebean · September 2013

We don't use bumpers, but I found DS hasn't had any limbs stuck between his slats since the first week he really got mobile in his crib. He had just the few incidents, and seems to have figured it out. Though he did take a nap in a friends crib that had bumpers the other day and he was talking to them before he went to sleep.

ally2011 · September 2013

jd614 said:

We have used bumpers for the last 2 mos. as for air flow out crib has slats and the bumpers only go half way up so there is plenty of air .

All bumpers only go halfway up and all cribs have slats. They can still affect the air flow low where the baby is laying, and besides that, according the AAP, they present a suffocation and strangulation hazard which is the main reason they are not recommended for children under 1 year of age. I may be overly cautious, but there is a mom in my baby loss group that lost her son at 6 months to SIDS. It is rare, sure, but it does happen, and to me it is more than a statistic so I will take all recommended precautions as there is plenty I still have no control over.

ATLdesi · September 2013

Okay, sorry for going MIA awhile - but thank you everyone for chiming in. I currently use mesh breathable bumpers, and have since DS was born. They were great for awhile, but now that DS is getting better at crawling and moving around, he's definitely managed to get a limb or two stuck under/over the mesh bumpers from time to time. Moreover, he's learned to pull the bumpers down, no matter how tightly I fasten them, so that they're all bunched at the bottom. Additionally he just tends to whack his own head pretty hard on the crib slats no matter whether the bumpers are in place or pulled down - and yeah, they do provide a little cushioning, but not much.

BUT. Ally2011 - - that last story you just wrote, about the mom losing her son to SIDS at 6 months, is all it really took for me to personally decide not to proceed with more substantially cushioned bumpers. Yes, it might have been a fluke, or unrelated to bumper use, but that's really scary to me.

Sigh. Guess we'll just hope he learns to modulate his movements soon once the bumping really gets painful for him??

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