What can you put in a crib?

Question

I am on baby one. I have heard that bumpers and comforters cause SIDS... what can you safely use in a crib? What should I register for? Just crib sheets?

Answer 1

I used bumpers in my baby's crib. I had to.....she was very wiggly and I was afraid of her getting hurt hitting the rails. They are soft and not very thick. She still has them in at 11 months. She has never tried to stand on them (she sleeps all night and I usually wake her in the morning after 10 and 1/2 hours) and I pushed down on them if she would try......the just go flat. They do not work like a step. So I feel safer with her having them than not.
Also she started sleeping with a stuffed bunny around 7 months. she LOVES him and buries her face in him all the time.

True SIDS is not caused by a blanket or bumper. SIDS is when the signal in the baby's brain stops and the baby does not breath on his/her own. Nothing you can do (as scary as that is) will prevent it.
What you are talking about is simple suffocation. If the baby presses her face into something soft and cannot breathe.....I waited until my baby was old enough that she could turn away before I gave her bunny. and the bumpers.......well, that was a safety call that I had to make. And I have not given her any type of blankets yet because she still moves all over the crib and there is no way she would stay covered.

Answer 2

Get Mickey Mouse crib sheets, absolutely.
Babies like to look at faces like Mickey Mouse. This will make a baby more alert, wouldn't you think?
I got this idea from a book The First 3 Years of Life by Burton White. I hope it is okay to give the name of a book.
There is a place on the Internet from which you can download interesting patterns that babies like to look at. You can tape these to the sides of the crib while the baby is very young and cannot move around--in the baby's line of vision.
I was lucky enough to find a mirror made out of metal (at a yard sale) that I strung across the crib, mirror facing down. My 3 month old had such fun cooing to her reflection. DO NOT USE A GLASS MIRROR. It could shatter. Perhaps you could find a metal mirror to use.
Anyway, the book I suggested gives lots of tips. There are plenty of other books on baby toys, etc. as well.
I never had any problems with bumpers in the crib with my several babies. Every one of my babies slept face down too because I feared that if they burped, they might spit up, and then gag if they were lying down face up. If they spit on the crib sheet, it was absorbed fast, or they turned their face away from it. I never had a problem.
SIDS seems to be more a medical problem some babies have a tendency toward having.
Sounds like you just fear smothering. Just no pillows in the crib. And make sure any mobiles can be seen by the baby. Most mobiles are designed so parents can see the colorful items, not the baby, although that may have improved.
Happy parenting!

Answer 3

This is a tough question- a crib needs the mattress, the mattress pad, sheet, baby in a bunting or sleep sac-they now have these in Babies R Us and they are GREAT! Blankets are not needed and are said to be unsafe as they can cause suffocation. Bumpers are up to your discretion really. I personaly have a whole bedding set on my son's crib and didn't use the quilt until he was old enough to move around on this own.
Hope this helps and congrats on the new little one!

Answer 4

I have heard that as well, but we made the decision to put our son in a bassinet for the first three months so he could be next to us during the night. He's been in his crib for a week now and we do have the bumpers tied to the rails and so far so good. Blankets - if you're going to use one make sure you tuck it under the mattress or put something on the end of it so they can't pull it over thier head. My son managed to do this when he was in the bassient. I woke up and saw and almost had a heart attack - he was fine, but scared me to death so now I make sure that I take procautions - in fact, since we've moved him to the crib, I haven't been using a blanket. I've also heard that stuffed animals are a bad idea because they can pull them infront of their face as well.

Answer 5

You can put a comforter in there as long as the baby lays on top of it. As far as a blanket, register for a Halo sleep sack. It's a wearable blanket. My daughter has had one for two winters now and she stays warm and cozy.

As far as things in a crib, I suggest the Fischer Price Ocean Wonders aquarium which straps onto the cribs spokes. My daughter is 19 months and still loves watching the fish swim around, light up, and bubble. It's a nap time and bed time ritual. Very soothing!

Answer 6

Very tight crib sheets. Wrap your child in a Swaddleme from Kiddopotamus & Co or something similar for sleep. Blankets, bumpers, pillows and stuffed animals are not supposed to be in the crib. They look great but are impractical. imnsho.
I love the blanket sleepers and other one piece sleepers found in the bedding section of Babies 'r Us

Answer 7

i got what they call a sassy back and side sleeper and it keeps your baby on its side or back all night and they can't roll or roll over it... i used bumpers with both of my children and they are fine i only put thier blankets with them though no stuffed animals or pillows and don't use fleece at first for about 2 or 3 months because the fibers can be inhaled and choke the baby baut after i'd say 6 months theres no worry any more about sids because the baby can hold thier head up and move it more easily and my children were both and still are belly sleepers and have slept on tier belly since they were 3 months..

Answer 8

just use cotton fitted sheets and there are some safe bumpers.also vaccines cause sids.http://www.thinktwice.com/stories.htm
ThinkTwice Global Vaccine Institute: Avoid Immunizatiohttp://www.nexusmagazine.com/articles/VaccineResearcher.html
NEXUS: Interview with a Vaccine Researchern Reactionshttp://thinktwice.com/links.htm
ThinkTwice Global Vaccine Institute: Vaccine Websites.http://youtube.com/watch?v=ELx2eX_kM-w
YouTube - The Truth About Vaccines

Answer 9

I used bumpers at 3mo because he had good head control. He is now 7mo old and I now give him a blanket, a "lovie" and a soft rattle. He needs things to play with when he first wakes up. I did use a blanket from the beginning and never thought I would, but he slept on an "inclined to sleep" (GREAT INVESTMENT) and I tightly tucked the blanket under it (and under his arms) so it never got near his face. They have "Sleep sacks" which they say is the best way to put baby to bed so you don't have to use blankets. You'll probably never use the comforter. We put ours on the wall for decoration since all of the bed sets come with it.
From about birth to 3mo baby should be in a basenett or we used a pack-n-play that had the basennett feature (another great purchase...good for travel)

I LOVED our "inclined to Sleep" it really kept him in place and I think he felt secure in it.
Ps. "swaddle me" is great for those of us who can't swaddle with a regular blanket.
Get a noise maker that makes white noise. AWESOME!!!!

Answer 10

I've heard the bad things about bumpers too. My pediatrician recommended a breathable bumper. I bought mine at Babies R Us. It's mesh so your baby can still breathe through it if she gets too close. I put my baby in a warm sleeper, no blankets. No stuffed animals or pillows either!