Learn More About Your Pregnancy
Baby Walkers
Q:
I keep seeing baby walkers in the store. I have heard they aren’t safe, so I’m confused. Are baby walkers okay to use?
No
Correct!
Baby walkers are not safe. Even though baby walkers are now made wider so they cannot fit through most doors, and have brakes to stop them at the edge of a step, they don't prevent all injuries. They still have wheels, so children can still move fast and reach higher.
Yes
Incorrect!
Baby walkers are not safe. Even though baby walkers are now made wider so they cannot fit through most doors, and have brakes to stop them at the edge of a step, they don't prevent all injuries. They still have wheels, so children can still move fast and reach higher.
The American Academy of Pediatrics has called for a ban on the manufacture and sale of baby walkers with wheels.
Many parents think walkers will help their children learn to walk. But data shows that walkers can delay when a child starts to walk.
Injuries caused by walkers
- Baby can roll down the stairs in their walker, which often causes broken bones and severe head injuries. This is how most children get hurt in baby walkers.
- Baby can reach higher in a walker and pull down a hot pot and get burned. It‘s also easier for a child to pull a tablecloth off a table and spill hot coffee, grab pot handles off the stove, and reach radiators, fireplaces, or space heaters.
- Baby can reach more items, even the ones you thought you put out of reach.
Most walker injuries happen while adults are watching. Parents or caregivers simply cannot get there fast enough. A child in a walker can move more than three feet in one second! That is why walkers are never safe to use, even with an adult close by.
What you can do
Throw out your baby walkers! Also, be sure that there are no walkers wherever your child is being cared for, such as childcare centers or in someone else’s home.
Try something just as enjoyable but safer, like:
- Stationary activity centers—they look like walkers but have no wheels. They usually have seats that rotate, tip, and bounce.
- Play yards or playpens—these are great safety zones for children as they learn to sit, crawl, or walk.
- High chairs—older children often enjoy sitting up in a high chair and playing with toys on the tray.
