JPMA Kicks Off 2019 Baby Safety Month with Safety Tips for Parents and Caregivers.
Today marks the official start of Baby Safety Month, an annual child safety awareness campaign established by the Juvenile Products Manufacturers Association (JPMA) more than three decades ago. Held in September each year, Baby Safety Month helps raise visibility around safety concerns for babies and young children. Annual awareness campaign is aimed at keeping babies and young children safe through all the "ages and stages" as they grow.
MT. LAUREL, N.J., September 03, 2019 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ -- Today marks the official start of Baby Safety Month, an annual child safety awareness campaign established by the Juvenile Products Manufacturers Association (JPMA) more than three decades ago. Held in September each year, Baby Safety Month helps raise visibility around safety concerns for babies and young children.
- Preventable injuries are the leading cause of death of children younger than four years old in the United States. (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)
- Car seats can reduce the risk of fatal injury in a crash by as much as 71%, but 73% of car seats are not installed and used correctly. (National Highway Traffic Safety Administration)
- Approximately 3,500 infants die annually in the United States from sleep-related deaths, including sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS); unexplainable deaths; and accidental suffocation and strangulation. Room-sharing, but not bed sharing, decreases the risk of SIDS by as much as 50%. (American Academy of Pediatrics)
This year, JPMA focuses on helping parents and caregivers navigate safety concerns associated with the "ages and stages" of early childhood, providing actionable tips and useful resources for selecting and using products designed to support the safety of babies and young children as they grow and explore their world. This includes identifying age appropriate products and recognizing when to transition to different products based on age, weight and developmental needs.
"Nothing is more important to parents than keeping their children safe, but decisions on what products to use as a child grows can often be confusing," said Kelly Mariotti, executive director of JPMA. "During Baby Safety Month, JPMA helps families understand how to safely choose the right products for their child and how to use those products correctly every time to help reduce the risk of injury through every age and stage of their child's development."
JPMA recommends parents and caregivers do a daily safety check for potential hazards in their home from baby's point of view – down on hands and knees – and offers the following tips to help with common safety questions for babies and young children.
Car Seats & Child Passenger Safety:
- Children should ride rear-facing until they reach the maximum rear-facing weight or height allowed by the manufacturer's instructions. Ongoing research indicates that rear-facing is bio-mechanically safer than forward-facing because the car seat supports a child's head, neck and back.
- Children who exceed rear-facing limits should ride in forward-facing car seats with internal harnesses.
- Children who exceed the forward-facing harness weight or height limits should ride in booster seats until seat belts alone fit correctly.
- Experts agree that the back seat is the safest place for children under 13 to ride.
- Follow the car seat instructions and your state law for proper selection and use, and register your car seat with the manufacturer.
- Car seats expire! Check labels and instructions for information about your model's useful life.
- Do not use a second-hand car seat or booster seat, especially if it is beyond the useful life period indicated by its manufacturer, has ever been involved in a crash, or if it has missing or damaged parts or labels.
- Ensure everyone in the car is buckled up! Unrestrained passengers can be thrown with violent force in a sudden stop or crash, potentially injuring themselves and others in the vehicle.
- Use your car seat during air travel to protect your child from turbulence. Most car seats with internal harnesses are approved for use on aircraft and display a label that says, "This Restraint is Certified for Use in Motor Vehicles and Aircraft." While booster seats cannot be used in flight, you can pack yours as luggage so you have it at your destination and won't have to rent one.
Sleep Safety:
- The safest place for baby to sleep is in a bare, fully functional, properly assembled, JPMA Certified crib.
- For babies under 12 months of age, healthy infants should ALWAYS sleep on their backs unless otherwise advised by a pediatrician. Do not overdress your baby. Consider using a wearable blanket or other sleep clothing as an alternative to any covering. For newborns, consider swaddling.
- Before using a crib, check to make sure it has not been recalled.
- Make sure there are no missing, loose, broken or improperly installed screws, brackets or other hardware on the crib or mattress support. Check the stability and hardware of the crib often. Do not substitute hardware. Only use hardware obtained directly from the manufacturer.
- Always use a properly-fitting mattress as infants can suffocate in gaps between a poorly-fitting mattress and the crib sides or ends.
- Room-share, instead of bed-share, for the first year.
- If using a baby monitor with cords, make sure all cords are out of arm's reach of your child. Never place any item in or on the crib that has cords, strings, etc., as babies can become entangled and strangle in these items. At least three feet away is where your monitor should say.
- Avoid strangulation hazards and never place the crib or toddler bed near windows with cords from blinds or drapes.
- When your child is able to pull to a standing position, set the mattress to the lowest position and remove any objects that could serve as steps for climbing out.
- Mobiles should be removed from the crib when baby can push up on hands and knees or pull up to a standing position.
- Move your child to a toddler bed when he or she begins to climb out or reaches a height of 35-inches.
Home & Product Safety:
- Never leave children unattended during bath time and avoid distractions.
- Correctly use and adjust straps and harnesses on products when available, each and every time.
- Do not place your baby in an infant seat, swing, bouncer or car seat on a countertop, table or any elevated surface.
- When changing or bathing baby, be sure everything you need, such as diapers, shampoo and toys, are within arm's reach. Use the restraints on your changing pad and bathers every time.
- When using activity centers, mats or bouncers, keep away from stairs, doors, windows, plants, lamps, the television, fireplace, heaters or tables.
- When baby can crawl, install gates on doorways and stairways. If they try to climb the gate, teach them to use the stairs.
- Follow manufacturer's instructions, warning labels and recommendations for age and weight requirements.
The month-long education campaign also includes a special car seat check event in Washington DC, hosted by JPMA and top car seat brands for parents and caregivers during Child Passenger Safety Week – Sept. 15-21, 2019.
JPMA Car Seat Check Event
Saturday, September 21, 2019
10:00 a.m. - 1:00 p.m.
Emmanuel Baptist Church
2409 Ainger Place SE
Washington, DC 20020
Parents and caregivers across the country can look for local car seat educational events in their communities throughout the month.
JPMA has partnered with Walmart, RILA, Safe Kids Worldwide, First Candle, Window Covering Safety Council, American Home Furnishings Alliance, National Safety Council, International Association For Child Safety, Safety Mom, and Twiniversityfor 2019's Baby Safety Month. For more information about Baby Safety Month and tips for caring for babies and young children, visit http://www.babysafetymonth.org.
ABOUT JPMA
The Juvenile Products Manufacturers Association (JPMA) is the voice of the industry on quality and safety for baby and children's products in North America. We do this by:
- Advocating for safety through product certification programs and legislative and regulatory involvement;
- Supporting a broad and diverse membership through member-only programming and industry promotion;
- And by acting as a comprehensive source for baby product information and education.
JPMA members represent 95 percent of the prenatal to preschool products sold in North America.
To find out more about JPMA, our certification program and products certified, and for a complete listing of JPMA Members, please visit https://www.jpma.org. Follow JPMA on Twitter @JPMA and connect with us on Facebook to learn about additional safety tips and JPMA initiatives
SOURCE JPMA
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