Consumer Reports calls for federal ban on baby walkers. Here are the risks.
Consumer Reports is calling for a federal ban of infant walkers, saying the products injure thousands of babies every year despite federal safety standards that have slowed — but not stopped — heartbreaking incidents for parents.
The consumer advocacy group’s stark warning, along with its newly published report detailing injuries and deaths caused by baby walkers, comes two decades after Canada banned them after investigating serious pediatric injuries from falls by infants using the products.
The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) in 2018 also pushed for a ban, stating that walkers do not help babies learn to walk and in fact can delay normal motor and mental development.
report, citing data from the National Electronic Injury Surveillance System.
Asked for comment about Consumer Reports’ call for a baby walker ban, a spokesperson for the CPSC said the agency’s staff “constantly review incident data with a view toward ensuring that standards continue to address product hazards. To the extent that staff recommend additional improvements to the mandatory standard, the commission will consider how best to act on those recommendations.”
Kate Gibson
Source: cbsnews.com