If you're like any other mom in America, then sitting somewhere in your living room among your ridiculous amount of baby gear is a Bumbo seat. (Am I right?) That thing is awesome for helping babies sit up, and it's so convenient for feeding, etc. But if you do have one, then you'd better read on, because 4 million Bumbo baby seats have been recalled due to major safety hazards.
The seats present a falling risk to infants when they are placed on raised surfaces, which can result in injuries as severe as skull fractures. And as much as I'd like to say I only put my son in his Bumbo seat when it was on the floor, I can recall setting him on the kitchen counter in it a time or two. Because that thing fits so snugly around a baby's body, you'd never dream they'd fall out of it. Luckily, I never had any safety issues with my Bumbo seat -- but other parents haven't been so fortunate.
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The seats were originally recalled in 2007 after babies fell out of them, and as a result, a warning was issued to parents stating that the seats should never be used on elevated surfaces. But not everyone got the message, and since then, at least 50 babies have gotten hurt. Want to know the scariest part? Get this one -- some of the infants who suffered injuries fell out of their Bumbo seats while they were placed on the ground.
But before you panic and immediately take your Bumbo seat to the nearest dumpster, the CPSC has a solution to make your seat safe. All you need to do is contact Bumbo to be given a free kit that includes a safety belt for the seat and new instructions on how to use it properly. You can check out Bumbo's recall site for more information on the kit, or call (866) 898-4999.
Do you use a Bumbo seat, and have you ever worried about it not being safe?
Image via USCPSC/Flickr
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Comments 83
Yeah we dont have one..I find them pointless. And common sense tells you not to put the thing on an elevated surface
Yeah we dont have one..I find them pointless. And common sense tells you not to put the thing on an elevated surface
These seats are not even good for infants. Infants need to learn to sit on their own. Not be propped up. I never had one of these for any of my kids. Although these seems like a good idea they are not really. ( I am an infant teacher). Babies need to spend time on the floor. If you want to put your baby in a chair use a high chair or booster seat for babies. (I don't mean to offend anyone just wanted to say how I felt.) Avoid using these Bumbo chairs as much as possible. Thanks!
So now how many baby products will be recalled because people are so dumb? The directions say not to put them on a raised surface, and looking at the thing that would be obvious & common sense. Pretty soon all the cool stuff on the market for babies & kids will have to be recalled because people don't think about how to use them. This stupidity just makes the lawyers richer.
Juliemomof three, in some cases these are actually very helpful. My daughter when she was an infant had a flat head (plagiocephaly) and need to stay off of the back of her head as much as possible. She could not be in tummy time at all times and sitting in a bouncy seat was not the best idea. She was in daycare so was not able to be worn all day. By being in the bump she was able to work on her neck muscles and to stay off of the back of her head. The one we had did in fact have a safety strap.