CPSC joins 'Safe Sleep for Babies' campaign

NEW YORK -- The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) has joined three child safety organizations to release "Safe Sleep for Babies," a crib safety video aimed at helping new parents avoid suffocation, strangulation and entrapment risks in their children's sleep environment.

CPSC is collaborating with the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP), Keeping Babies Safe (KBS), New York-Presbyterian/Morgan Stanley Children's Hospital, and journalist and mom Joan Lunden. The video demonstrates how to keep babies safe and sound in cribs, bassinets and play yards.

"Nurses will not allow newborn babies to leave the hospital without parents having a safe car seat. I also believe that we need to make sure that new parents provide a safe crib, bassinet or play yard for their babies to sleep in," said CPSC Chairman Inez Tenenbaum. "By reaching new parents before they leave the hospital and again when they visit their pediatrician or health clinic, we hope to prevent deaths and ensure that all babies have a safe sleep."

"Safe sleeps' tips highlighted in the video include:

  • Use a firm, tight-fitting mattress
  • Do not use positioning devices – they are not necessary and can be deadly
  • Regularly check cribs for loose, missing or broken parts or slats
  • Do not try to fix a broken crib
  • Place cribs or playpens away from windows and window covering cords to avoid fall and strangulation hazards

Read the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission's press release.

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