Infant Safety - Back to the Basics

As the proud father of our second child, I found the need for a refresher course in infant safety and thought many of you could probably use one also. Whether you are a first time parent or expecting number 9; you're children should be your number one priority. I find that there is some very good, consistent, and accurate information that every parent should adhere to so you're little one is getting the best care possible. Did you realize that accidents are the number one cause of death in children. As is the case with most accidents, most could be easily prevented, therefore it's very important to put your infant's safety first. Here are a few infant safety tips that apply to all newborns. With the help of resources such as www.keepkidshealthy.com we've composed the following infant safety tips:

1. Make sure your infant is secured in a rear facing infant child seat in the back seat of your car. This is the law until a babies first birthday and there weight reaches twenty pounds. Putting your infant's car seat in the front passenger chair is not only unlawful, it' really dangerous, especially if you have side airg bags.
2. Take the time to read and install the infant seat properly according to the instruction manual. The best car seat won't be effective if it's not installed correctly. So you're child is larger than average and weighs more than 20 pounds but is still not a year old. If your child has outgrown his car seat before he is one, consider buying a larger seat that can fit a child up to 30lbs while he faces backwards until your child is one year old.
3. Bringing the little one home can be very stressful for mom and dad. With my first child I was so concerned about her well being that I couldn't sleep (even when she did). I wanted to be able to see her, to make sure she was breathing and that everything was OK. The use of a video monitor made our lives much easier during that first year.
4. Make sure the crib is safe and secure; it should not have spaces between the bars larger than 2 3/8 inches. Anything more can allow baby to get their head or neck stuck in between.
5. Don't by a cheap crib mattress, make sure yours is firm and fits very snug within the crib. The crib should be positioned in a quite room, with the ability to restrict light and to maintain a consistent temperature. Avoid using anything that could potentially cause smothering. I advise keeping the crib free of everything except the mattress, a snug mattress cover; then '"swaddle" the infant tightly and lay on his back.
6. Doctors overwhelmingly say, Back To Sleep: meaning put your baby to sleep on his back (sleeping on his side is not as safe, especially if he can roll over onto his stomach) to prevent SIDS. When I was a child we were almost never placed on our backs, instead the stomach was the place to be. With that said, make sure that anyone who will be caring for your infant understands and accepts this. Sometimes it is very difficult for grandma to understand "back to sleep" they want to do it the way they remember. Be very firm with this. BACK TO SLEEP is the way to go to help prevent SIDS.
7. To prevent falls never leave your infant alone on a bed, changing table, or with another child. In the first few weeks after our first child was born, my wife was fighting severe "sleep deprivation". She lay ed down on the couch with baby on her chest, and quickly fell asleep. She was awakened by our little one's piercing scream. She rolled off mommies chest and onto the floor. About a 3.5 foot fall. If your tired and just can't seem to console your little one, do the best you can then place them in the the portable baby car seat, buckle and secure. Now you can close your eyes for a few minutes, knowing that baby is safe.
8. Don't allow smoking around your baby PERIOD.
These are just a few tips to ensure infant safety. Hope you find them helpful.