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Keeping Baby Safe: your most important role as a parent by: Claire Bowes Saying Thanks, But No Thanks to Used Safety Equipment Once your beautiful bundle of joy arrives, the work of raising your child really begins. The biggest job you have as a parent is keeping your baby safe. Yet, it is impossible to watch over your children twenty-four hours a day. Thankfully, there are many safety products available to keep them from getting hurt. These products include safety gates, outlet covers, oven and table bumpers, doorknob covers, bed rails, locks and guards, and many more. As a parent, you need to use products that are one step ahead of their children's abilities, and can do so by getting down on their level and looking around. This gives you a child's eye perspective of child safety issues in your home. But with so many products to buy and so many different brand names, how do you decide what products you need most? The best thing to do when it comes to safety is buy new products rather than used ones. An older, used product may have been recalled due to dangerous safety issues, or it may be damaged from previous use. Although hand-me-downs are great for clothes and toys, your child's safety is just too important to leave to chance. Babies R Us is a great place to find all the safety products you need. That still leaves the issue of how to choose between one safety gate, for instance, and another. Here are some purchasing tips for some of the more popular safety items you will need for your baby. Car Seats More children are seriously injured and killed in auto accidents than in any other type of accident. Each year, hundreds of lives could be saved if children were protected in cars by using child safety seats. Using a child safety seat is the best protection you can give your child when traveling by car. When purchasing a car seat, look for: Label states that it meets or exceeds the Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards; Is the car seat appropriate for your child's height and weight? Be aware of the type of seat belts your car has; all car seats are not compatible with all seat belts; Check recent car seat recalls before making a purchase; Be sure that the seat you choose fits your child - a smaller baby can slip out of a seat that's too large. Infants one year or younger and up to 20 pounds must be placed in a rear-facing seat, toddlers (older than 1 year and between 20 and 40 pounds) may use a forward-facing seat, and children who are between 40 and 80 pounds need to be placed in a booster seat; Consider choosing a seat that is upholstered in fabric - it may be more comfortable for your child. Safety Gates Baby safety gates are an essential element in making your home baby proof. Now that he's on the move, every nook and cranny is a potential area of exploration for him. Your baby is curious about his new environment, wanting to investigate each little corner and new room. The best way to make sure he can't do any harm to himself is to install safety gates. These will prevent him from reaching the stairs, kitchen, or an office room, where there might be many wires and electrical equipment just at his height Accordion gates, which open to form diamond-shaped patterns with wide V's at the top, can trap a baby's head and have resulted in strangulation deaths. In January '1985
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