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Pregnancy

Cot bumpers?!

17 replies

planner26 · 26/08/2010 15:41

Hi,

We are trying to get together everything for DD1 and am reading conflicting advice about cot bumpers. Keep going into shoppings and cooing at the lovely dressed cots, which the lady says are fine to use until 12 months. However, I have read in a few other places that they are not fine and associated with SIDS.

Obviously I don't want to buy one if they are so wondering if anyone can advise. I just can't seem to understand these shops flogging expensive 'bed sets' including bumpers, quilts etc. when books advise against them!

Am I right in saying that all I actually need are:

  • waterproof sheet for cot
  • fitted sheets for cot
  • blankets for on top of baby


Thanks a lot!
OP posts:
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bubblagirl · 26/08/2010 15:48

i used cot bumpers my ds had them all the way round his cot 4 i had lol as he was a wriggler and his limbs would get caught outside of cot and he would scream in pain an dhtis could happen couple times a night so bumpers were the only way to go quilt we never used until he was in a bed only the thin quilts were used blanket looking ones not actual one

i have never heard of bumpers being assosiated with SIDS before as i thought quite commonly needed because of babies and limbs stuck outside cot also headbanging on the bars we needed it for that too

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bubblagirl · 26/08/2010 15:51

must also add ds was nearly 6 mths when he went into his cot i have heard not to use on new born as restricts air flow but not sure in the exact risk factor of that but at 6 mths ds did need the cot bumpers or he really would have hurt himself

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lurcherlover · 26/08/2010 16:22

You can get ones that don't restrict airflow, but they don't look as cute as the patterned ones. I read if you use them you should take them out as soon as baby can sit up alone as they can pull them off and choke/potentially strangle themselves on them. Personally I'm not going to bother - using a moses basket initially, so by the time baby goes into the cot it will only be a couple of months before he/she is pulling up into a sit and I'd have to take it off anyway.

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japhrimel · 26/08/2010 16:31

You shouldn't use quilts either, yet all the cots in shops are dressed with matching quilts.

As I understand it, bumpers can restrict airflow, so making the baby hotter, and they're also a risk in case they fall off or in case LO gets trapped in them.

A lot of cots do seem to be designed with gaps between the cot slats/bars that look ideal for trapping little limbs though!

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Hevster · 26/08/2010 16:38

The cot bumper and quilt set I purchased said on the packaging not to use it before baby was 12 months old so we didn't.

yes all you really need is sheets, matress cover and either blankets or sleeping bag - we found a mobile quite helpful from about 8 weeks when DD could focus enough.

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Clary · 26/08/2010 16:46

yes cot bumpers not needed and in fact potentially dangerous, you are right about SIDS, possibility of overheating, entanglement etc.

Serve no purpose except for cooing factor Wink

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lal123 · 26/08/2010 16:48

we never used waterproof sheets - just an extra sheet at the top which could be whipped off quickly if/when baby was sick

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sheeplikessleep · 26/08/2010 16:50

Why can't a company invent a cot, with sides like a travel cot (i.e. flexible mesh), but base and support of a normal cot? The headbanging / limbs trapping thing is very annoying, our 5 month old does it all the time. But, I wouldn't feel comfortable using a cot bumper if I'm being honest.

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RunningOutOfIdeas · 26/08/2010 17:04

There is cot wrap sort of thing available from Jojo Maman Bebe that does the job of stopping limbs getting trapped, while being breathable. I think this much safer than a bumper.

However I did not use anything. Had DD in growbags until she was about 12 months. By then she was capable of getting her arms out from between the bars.

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AhickeyfromKenickie · 26/08/2010 17:47

I asked this Q a couple of weeks ago, and someone (sorry, forgot who!) recommended this as a safe alternative to the head bashing/arms getting stuck problems:

www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B002CPO7BE/ref=pe_30411_21369681_pe_vfe_t1?tag=mumsnet&ascsubtag=mnforum-21

I personally wanted a pretty bumper to make the cot look a bit less like a prison, but the general consensus is they're not suitable for newborns. I'm completely baffled as to why they are sold as such then. Yes, I know the baby shops want you to buy all sorts of unneccesary pretty stuff but it's not made clear enough that they're potentially dangerous. If I hadn't come on here and asked, I would have never have known they were unsuitable.

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CardiCorgi · 26/08/2010 19:19

How about the fabric lining that you see on cribs and moses baskets? Are they also a problem?
I´m confused - all of the shops seem to sell them with lots of fabric and padding.

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kittyonthebeam · 26/08/2010 19:26

We used bumpers, thin ones on the outside of our cot so no limbs could get through. It looked quite weird but all my friends started to do the same. On headboards we used them inside but tied on outside, so only a thin layer up the top.

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sheeplikessleep · 26/08/2010 19:43

Ahickey - that looks fab! Bloody expensive for what it is though. Thanks for posting that.

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Tarlia · 26/08/2010 19:51

Apparently cot bumpers restrict airflow then from 6mnth plus they then start climbing.

Regarding those pretty quilts, there are many countries, for example Scandinavia and Germany, that use a quilts and tiny thin pillow for baby from day 1! These babies live..

Personally I like sleeping bags.

There will always be conflicting advice which will change every few years , it's so confusing!

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Liv77 · 26/08/2010 20:56

I have never used a bumper as heard all the advice against them so my DS is always banging his head but doesn't seem particularly bothered by it and he does like to sleep with his head right up against the top on the cot. Mind you, whenever I've been to friends houses and seen their nurseries I noticed they ALL had cop bumpers inside the cot.

I'm still undecided what to do when number 2 arrives next year. Confused

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FoxyRevenger · 26/08/2010 20:59

FSID advice is that cot bumpers have no discernible effect, good or bad. And I don't get the argument that they restrict air flow - surely that would also mean that a moses basket did the same?

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PotPourri · 26/08/2010 21:00

We used to put a voile curtain laced through the bars due to legs getting stuck. In the end I went for a bumper as all my babies have been cold and need a ridiculous amount of blankets to sleep at night, and I found that the bumper kept them cosier in the cot.

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