How important is a new cot mattress for a baby?

[BorgLady]

I've got an Ikea cot which came to me with a mattress already slept on by 2 kids, though they are not very old.

Since this cot and mattress were made, Ikea have changed all their sizes and now don't do the old ones which fit my cot.

I've had a look about on the internet and can't find one that will fit my cot.

How important is the new mattress thing? Am I going to have to buy a new cot or get one specially made?

If anyone can point me in the right dorection, that would be super helpful.

Thanks!

I had a 2nd hand mattress (it was a water resistant one) and have just bought new bedding.

IMO a new baby equals a new mattress which is why we have 1 cot in the loft with 3 mattresses.

I could sell you my cot and then you could get a new mattress to fit as it is standard sie.

Lots of shops sell cots and mattresses and they are all varying prices. I would suggest you get the best mattress you can afford. That is more important than the cot frame imo.

very important !! i would not reuse a mattress used by 2 other children.

i had a mattress made by a local baby shop when i had DD, as my cot was a few years old and was discontinued, and the mattress size was not readily available.

it cost me £45 i think for a custom made mattress , so not more than a regular shop bought one

if it was a gd mattress to begin with i wld of thought it wouldnt matter? tho im not an expert

Thanks everyone.

While I haven't been able to find a mattress in the right size, I have just found a site where you can get a made to measure mattress for cots in different thicknesses, and they seem pretty reasonably priced too.

Thanks for your help, much appreciated.

no, there are risks in reusing cot matresses

IKEA cots are increadibly cheap, cheaper and less troublesome to get a new cot + mattress in IKEA, than getting a made to measure mattress

What are the risks in re-using a cot mattress?

I can get a made-to-measure one from this site for £20, so definitely cheaper than ditching my cot and getting a new one + mattress.

Thanks to everyone for letting me know, I had heard that you shouldn't reuse cot mattresses, but no one had said why.

My mum couldn't believe it. Six kids slept on the mattress she had for me!

it can increase the risk of cot death, especially if used by another family..

There is no evidence of anything associated to reusing one that I have seen More ways to get new mums to spend money I think!

The only thing you must get new is a car seat apparently.

I personally am using a second hand one from my cousin. It's clean and does not have any stains. Obviously, I wouldn't use a really old one with other kids "stuff" on it.

But why Lulumama? Am not being arsey, I just need to have a reason to understand why

I'd be interested to hear too. Obviously if there is a proven link then I'd buy new but the books I have read - Miriam Stoppard, Jo Frost etc have all said it is not necessary if pennies are tight.

Our baby crib's not a standard size and it's possible to get mattresses made to measure without them costing a fortune. We ordered recently from Baby Mattresses Online...they've not arrived yet but were very helpful when we phoned up with random questions! Might be worth a try?

there was a report produced where they linked reusing mattresses to cot death, a bigger study was then done which disproved the first and said there was no link - however few people seem to advertise/make known the findings of the 2nd report!!!

Personally provided it comes with a machine washable matress cover that then has a sealed unit underneath I'm happy to reuse.

That was the site I found! Thanks ... don't know how to link or else I'd have done it.

Personally it wasn't something we were prepared to risk and so all 3 children had new pram mattresses and cot ones.

From FSIDS

Thanks Hunker, although the site doesn't give reasons why.

I'm not exactly doubting what they are saying, but I would like to know the thinking behind it. If it mentioned a mattress that is from a smokers house, or an old mattress that doesn't comply with current safety standards then I could understand why ........ but they don't mention anything.

It looks like I will have to investigate further.

I think the foam stuff used in older matresses could disintergrate when very old and their was a risk of fumes (or suffocation if it was too sagy & soft) However modern mattresses are usually completely sealed so nothing could leak anyway.

Thanks too for the link. It's just the same as most books I have read - no real reason given.

Their site is written really badly. Look at this:

"Can my baby share my bed?
There are dangers in bedsharing. The safest place for your baby to sleep is in a cot in your bedroom for the first six months. There is a proven risk in bedsharing if you or your partner smoke (even if you never smoke in bed or at home), have been drinking alcohol, take drugs or medication that make you drowsy, or have had little sleep, or if your baby was born premature, was small at birth or is less than three months old. If your baby does come into your bed, use lightweight blankets and keep your baby?s head uncovered and remember that accidents can happen. Never sleep together with your baby on a sofa or armchair."

There are dangers... What dangers?

Remember accidents can happen... Er, yes, any fool knows that - wtf is the point of writing that?

I thought it was about the chemical fumes that could be given off when urine, sick, etc seeped into the mattress?

Dangers because you could smother your baby for one, but I am sure you knew that, Hunker, and are making a point about those that might not realise.

I remember reading about a mother who lost 2 babies very young when she fell asleep with them. Once on the sofa and once in the bed.

No, I meant that they said "there are dangers" then didn't tell you what they were - or only if you've been drinking, etc. Twattish writing, imo. Raises more questions than it answers!

How horrendous for the woman who lost two babies like that