They come in different shapes, sizes, and colors. However, they all have one great thing in common: they are all bad for your child’s development. I mean the bad baby walkers, the ones with the support system that suspends the baby’s bottom in the air. They are marketed to make parents believe that they promote walking in children, when, in fact, they only promote problems.
Developmental milestones must not only be achieved, they must also be achieved on time and in sequence. Babies need to roll before sitting, sit up before crawling, and crawl before walking. What walkers do is encourage skipping one of the most important milestones in our life: crawling. Most of the time, parents unknowingly place their young babies in walkers before they can crawl, which eliminates the desire to crawl away from babies and thus slows the development of eye coordination. -hand.
However, even if babies are placed in walkers after they have learned to crawl, they still run many dangers from developmental delays. Let’s name a few:
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The walker visually divides the baby’s body into two parts: the upper part and the lower part. That confuses the developing brain into not understanding how to operate the invisible lower part, and that leads to proprioceptive problems like the inability to figure out the position of the joints in space without looking at them.
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The walker, especially with a poorly adjusted height, encourages the toes to reach the floor and tiptoe. That often leads to tiptoe walking, which can become permanent. (In my practice, since 2005, out of hundreds of children with trouble walking on their toes, I only saw two patients who had underlying causes other than walker use, and the remainder were mild to moderate walker users. To all parents of children who walk on tiptoe it is always about the use of the walker in the past and, unfortunately, the answer is always “yes”).
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When babies are placed in a device with bumpers, where they can collide with things around them without learning to avoid obstacles and balance their bodies, their brains are not forced to learn balance, and we all know how important the balance is. balance in our lives. . Children may later have trouble excelling in sports or simply catching up with their peers.
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Believe it or not, walkers can play a role in lowering children’s mental abilities. As research shows, “In a standard test of mental development, infants who did not walk had the highest mean score, followed by infants using ‘see feet’ walkers and those using newer walkers.”
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Walkers are especially bad for babies who already have a developmental delay for a number of reasons. They most likely cause bone misalignment and balance problems.
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“An estimated 197,200 baby walker-related injuries occurred among children younger than 15 months who were treated in US emergency departments between 1990 and 2001.” These are very scary statistics that speak for themselves.
With all these facts known to science, walkers can still be made and sold everywhere in the US Interestingly, in 2004, Canada banned the production, importation, sale, advertising, marketing, or gifting of walkers. Those who violate the law face fines of up to $ 100,000 or 6 months in prison. The hope is that one day all countries will follow Canada’s lead.
For now, all we can do is educate parents on using good devices for our children. The best thing parents can do for their child is to allow them to explore the environment by strolling along the furniture and walking while an adult holds their hands. The next best option is to use good walkers that resemble adult walkers. They do not restrict vision, do not promote imbalance and allow proper development.
If you ever suspect that your child may have developmental delays or other problems, speak with your pediatric physical therapist right away. We are experts in child development.
We screen and treat children in the comfort of their homes.
All major insurances accepted.
http://www.cta-pt.com