Walkers do not provide any advantage to a child’s development. Babies need opportunities to build and develop their muscles by engaging in activities that involve pulling up, creeping, and crawling, which they can’t do in a walker (which actually delays their walking development). Even worse, baby walkers are a safety hazard and a leading cause of injuries in babies.
A study conducted on incidents involving baby walkers in the Middle East found that the average risk was around:
The recorded incidents included hitting objects, overturning, accessing hazardous objects, and falling into swimming pools and down the stairs. Incidents were recorded in almost every family surveyed and around 49% included injuries.
Did you know?
Baby walkers have been banned in Canada since April 2004, due to the high number of injuries caused. The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) has been actively calling for baby walkers to be banned.
Potential Injuries
- Roll into hot stoves, heaters, or pools. Burns, scalds, drowning.
- Reach/grab/pull objects on tables/ counters/shelf (e.g. stovetop, tablecloth, power cables, appliances, hot drinks, kitchen knives, etc). Head/neck injury caused by falling objects, cuts, access to hazardous materials (cleaning supplies or other poisonous items).
- Fall/roll down the stairs. Head/neck or other injury caused by falling.
An educational contribution by Malaysian Paediatric Association.
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