September is baby safety month to bring awareness to the importance of safety precautions for infants and kids but it is always the right time to accident proof your home and car. As a mother and a former licenced in-home child care provider, I decided to create a checklist for baby safety along with listing the most highly recommended and best selling products.

Sleep Safety

Due to SIDS (Sudden Infant Death Syndrome), sleep safety is on of the biggest safety issue for babies. Over the time that I have had kids I’ve seen the government standards change a lot. My kids had cribs filled with matching quilt, blankets, sheet and bumper pads. They had the foam pieces that held them in position to stay sleeping on their sides. They also had stuffed animals. Now the only thing that should be in the bed is a tight fitted crib sheet and babies should be put to sleep on their back. Sleep sacks rather than blankets are the most recommended covering for babies in all weather as long as they do not get overheated. SIDS is a risk until a baby is 12 months old. The biggest risk is for babies under 4 months. It is known that babies who use pacifiers greatly reduce their risk of SIDS. My little ones would never take pacifiers but give them a try since they can help your baby. Most everyone has a baby monitor these days to both listen and see baby at any time during the day and night.

Bath Safety

Babies are fairly safe in baths as long as they are supervised the entire time. Never trust children to watch younger siblings. Do not leave a child in a bath for even a minute because it only takes 25 seconds for a baby to drown. Accidents happen when people make bad decisions and accidents are preventable. First of all make sure your home hot water heater thermostat is turned down to 120 degrees. A baby bath thermometer will prevent scalding or overheating as well. Keep any electrical cords or devices away from the bath area so they can not be accidentally knocked or pulled into the water. Bring everything you will need in the bathroom before you draw the bath water including your phone so that you will not be tempted to leave for any amount of time. This bath time organizer goes over the edge of the tub and also has a kneeling mat and elbow pads for the adults. Or you can invest in a simple, portable bath time caddy that can be moved to a cupboard or shelf when not in use. You may also like this Bath Gift Set and this Baby Bathtub with infant sling.

Baby Car Seat Safety

The two biggest factors for car travel are 1. to have a safe, unused car seat that is properly installed and 2. to never leave your child in a car. This year alone there have been too many instances of babies dying after being left in hot cars. Leaving a child in the car can be prevented by putting your purse, briefcase or wallet in the backseat near baby so you don’t forget they are there. Car seat safety is pretty straight forward as well. Never buy a used car seat as it may have been in an accident or defective in some way. Car seats will work when installed properly which can be a difficulty for some people. Make a quick trip to a fire or police station to get help installing yours. Here are the most highly recommended car seats this year:

  1. Britax B-Safe 35 Ultra 
  2. Chicco Fit2 
  3. Chicco KeyFit 30 
  4. Peg Perego PV 4/35 
  5. UppaBaby Mesa  

Here are more products that are important to baby safety. Below is an image that you can pin to your baby boards on pinterest to keep track of this article.

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