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February 2015 Moms
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Warning about bumper pads. (Infant loss mentioned)

kdhulingkdhuling member
edited September 2014 in February 2015 Moms
I've gone back and forth about posting this since no one wants to read about the death of a child, but the more nursery posts I see the more I feel like I should at least throw it out there so people know the dangers and can then decide for themselves what is best for them and their baby.  That being said...

In April of 2010, my sweet, 7 week old nephew, Preston, was found dead in his crib by my brother. The cause of death was determined to be suffocation.  He had somehow managed to roll out of his sleep positioner wedging his face between his mattress and the bumper pads.  Unfortunately this isn't the first death to be contributed to bumper pads and sadly it probably won't be the last. Many stores have begun to remove bumper pads from their shelves but not all.  I'm not telling any of you this in order to down on people who use them. I know there is a small chance of something like this happening, however, I'm a firm believer of knowing the pros and cons so I just wanted to throw out a warning on the potential danger of bumper pads so you guys can at least make an informed decision either way. 
My brother and sister law have since lobbied for the banning of bumper pads and their story was published by several different sources. I'm including some links to my nephew's story which include far more information and statistics than I've included in this post. Some of them are repetitive.

Again I'm not throwing this out as a judgement or to down on anyone who does choose to use them.  I just like to have all the information possible on products I intend to use on my child and thought some of you might too. 
*Edit because I suck at grammar. 
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Re: Warning about bumper pads. (Infant loss mentioned)

  • ckimberley14ckimberley14 member
    So sorry about your nephew. I read that bumper pads shouldn't be used until baby can roll over independently. We didn't use them until both girls could do so.
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  • kdhulingkdhuling member
    @krendel1990 Yes the sleep positioner was definitely a factor in what caused the whole thing but ultimately the coroner ruled it was suffocation due to the bumper pads.  It wasn't a factor in some of the other deaths reportedly caused by bumper pads either.  There have been warnings issued against the use of sleep positioners and I don't intend to use one.  But I don't have a lot of facts to back up the claim they are dangerous so I didn't feel comfortable including sleep positioners in this post if that makes sense.
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  • angelg3134angelg3134 member
    Sorry about your nephew.
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  • Sahara6971Sahara6971 member
    That is awful :(

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  • schnitz9schnitz9 member
    I plan to have them in the crib but def not until my child is able to roll over on their own. This is what has been told to me by many including my dr.
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  • jmcgra06jmcgra06 member
    edited September 2014
    FWIW, I don't think they are even legal to sell in Maryland anymore. Sometimes bigger kids stand on them, and that might be the last bit they need to climb out.
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  • kdhulingkdhuling member
    Thank you for the condolences, while I definitely appreciate them, I definitely didn't post this to garner sympathy, just so you all know.  Just wanted to make the potential dangers known to all you mothers to be. 
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  • mandamoochiemandamoochie member
    edited September 2014
    If they were in Henry's (14 months) crib right now I guarantee he would use them to springboard himself out. I never knew babies learned SO MUCH MANEUVERING in their cribs. Its hilarious to watch him jump on the bed holding the slats though.


    ETA : As a mom that has never used bumpers the worst thing we have ever experienced is the fact that if you use pacifiers you have to go behind the crib DAILY to get them. That is all. :) I can handle that.
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  • kdhulingkdhuling member
    @jmcgra06 I knew some states had begun to ban them, I believe Illinois is one of them. That's awesome to hear that about Maryland too.  They are still legal in AZ where I live and I see them most often on craigslist and in consignment shops.  I'm not sure if craigslist is regulated in the states they are banned though.  
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  • SNail312`SNail312` member
    I am so sorry for your loss. Thank you for posting this and backing it up with so many reputable studies. I think the knowledge about safe sleep practices is slowly growing, but not quickly enough. Thanks again :)
    Also, the Halo website has great studies and prevention methods to check out if anyone is interested!
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  • ordinary1ordinary1 member
    Bumpers of any sort are not recommended at any age due to strangulation and suffocation.
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  • ConstanceGoodspeedConstanceGoodspeed member
    So sorry about your nephew.

    I also just plain old don't like the way they look. Not my style I guess.
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  • mandamoochiemandamoochie member
    miniwheat10 said:
    I am so sorry for your family's loss. That must have been so hard. And thank you for sharing.

    I think this info is also a great reminder to some of the grandparents to be. When I had my DD my mom (a first time grandma) had no idea how much had changed since we were babies and how much has changed particularly with infant bedding. My mom mentioned more than once she felt like she had a huge learning curve ahead of her on baby stuff when DD was born.
    OMG totally. When my DS was born my MIL went BSC for a minute because of 1. swaddling and 2. sleeping on the back. Mostly for swaddling though. I was like my kid, my choice. 
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  • NQueen11NQueen11 member
    Thanks for this post and sorry to hear about your nephew.  I was actually still debating about a bumper for the crib, and was leaning toward leaving it out but I think this pushes me over the edge to leave it out completely.  We purposely picked a crib that has smaller gaps so hopefully little limbs won't be able to be shoved through the cracks which is sometimes a purpose for a bumper (other than bumping heads against the hard side) but it just isn't work the risk!! 
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  • ksgsmuksgsmu member
    I am so sorry for your families loss...

    I know a sweet couple at our church who lost a baby due to bumper pad suffocation about 10 years ago. 

    I will not be using bumper pads...
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  • natsgirl12natsgirl12 member
    So sorry about your nephew. Thanks for sharing this info. Everyone should be informed on this topic. There's really no need for bumpers. Your child isn't going to hurt themselves on the rails of the bed. A limb may sneak out. If so they usually pull them back in themselves. If you're concerned, use a sleep sack to keep the legs in. The arms aren't as big of a deal. They'll easily pull their arms back in.
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  • mishka29mishka29 member
    Thank you for sharing. Sorry for your loss. I ended up using the mesh ones around 6 months once DD started moving and shaking. She was getting stuck in the slats a lot. Once she a little older I took them off. Even now at 19 months she still gets stuck once in awhile.
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  • KiaE3620KiaE3620 member
    Thanks for the post. Its good to know and something to consider. Sorry for the loss of your nephew.
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  • mommadozermommadozer member
    So sorry about the loss of your nephew. Ya, my girlfriend mentioned that to me about bumpers. After hearing that, I'm not getting them! I've heard that nothing can be in the crib at all and I am going to stick by that.
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  • kdhulingkdhuling member
    Yeah we are planning on just having a sheet on the mattress and that's it for crib bedding/decor. We will make sure baby is warm enough by dressing him appropriately and or swaddling him. Though we live in AZ and keep our house at about 75-80 degrees year round so I'm not seeing that as being too big an issue.
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  • yesiknowwhatcausesthatyesiknowwhatcausesthat member
    They are illegal in daycares in our state. All bedding, blankets, toys, even bibs and pacifier clips are also illegal. Daycare providers are not even allowed to swaddle babies (yes, it is true!). A sleep sack may be used to make sure baby is warm enough (but not too warm!). The new sudden unexplained infant death syndrome (SUIDS) class is scary...makes me never ever want to watch an infant in my daycare...but it does contain some interesting information.
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