Baby push walker good or bad

Why Baby Walkers Aren’t Safe—and What to Buy Instead

As parents, we want to place our trust in the many baby products available on store shelves and online. But not all gear is created equal, and some so-called “must-haves” are simply unsafe, despite their appeal. One item you may hear mixed reviews about? Baby walkers. They sure do look cute and fun, but numerous accidents and incidents have proven them to be potentially dangerous. So are walkers bad for babies? Read on to learn more about why you shouldn’t use them—plus, find some nifty, safe and adorable alternatives to baby walkers to shop instead.

In this article:
What are baby walkers?
Are walkers bad for babies?
Are walkers bad for babies?
Safe alternatives to baby walkers

What Are Baby Walkers?

In short, a wheeled baby walker is a piece of gear that babies who can’t walk yet (generally between the ages of 6 and 15 months) can use to scoot around spaces on their own. Traditional baby walkers feature a seat for babies to sit in, a table and a wide base that has four wheels; baby’s feet touch the ground, and they can use their legs to push off the ground. This is not to be confused with a push-toy baby walker, which is an upright toy that a standing baby can hold onto and push forward.

Are Walkers Bad for Babies?

So are baby walkers safe? By now you probably realize that the short answer is no, they’re not. Baby walkers with wheels pose a risk to a child’s safety and development, says Paul Patterson, MD, PhD, a pediatrician in Seattle. He adds that baby walkers with seats have been outlawed in Canada, and that the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) has called for a ban on them as well.

But exactly why are walkers bad for babies? There are a few specific hazards to be concerned about, says Leah Alexander, MD, a pediatrician in Elizabeth, New Jersey. Below, some of the more common issues associated with baby walkers with wheels:

Falling down stairs. According to the AAP, more than 230,676 children under 15 months old were treated for baby walker–related injuries between 1990 and 2014. Of those injuries, a whopping 74 percent involved infants falling down the stairs while in a wheeled baby walker. If there’s any good news, it’s that the number of injuries involving wheeled baby walkers has decreased in recent years as a result of parents becoming better informed about the risks involved.
Moving too quickly. Unfortunately, walkers for babies can pose a threat even when you’re closely supervising. Once baby gets the hang of how to scoot around, they can pick up speed. “They can quickly get away from a parent or caregiver and into a dangerous situation,” Alexander says. “What’s more, baby can’t get out of a walker if an injury occurs.” Essentially, they’re trapped.
Reaching for hazardous items. In her practice, Alexander has seen multiple injuries from babies reaching for hazardous items while using a baby walker with wheels. “In one case, an infant reached up and swiped a soup pot handle while passing by a stove,” she says. “The pot’s contents fell on him, resulting in third-degree burns. Another infant ‘walked’ into the cord of a hot iron. It fell on him and caused a large second-degree burn.” There have also been reports of drownings of infants who used a walker near a pool or body of water, she adds.
Improper leg development. From a developmental perspective, baby walkers place a child in an atypical standing position, inadvertently promoting external rotation and pointed toes, explains Patterson. “This can put unnecessary force on joints, creating an abnormal walking pattern and impacting typical muscle development,” he says.

What Are Some Safe Alternatives to Baby Walkers?

Don’t worry, we’re not here to take away all of baby’s fun, especially at such an adorable age. Instead of a baby walker on wheels, the AAP recommends opting for an activity center with either a stationary, rotating or bouncy seat.

Sturdy wagons or push walking toys are also acceptable, but you’ll need to closely supervise when your child is using this item, as the wheels can increase the risk of injury. Make sure your toy of choice has a bar for baby to hold on to, and check that it’s weighted and won’t tip over while in use.

Ready to help baby explore, play and move around in a safe way? We’ve rounded up developmentally appropriate alternatives to baby walkers for littles who are just beginning to use their legs and feet.

Image: buybuy BABY

Skip Hop Explore & More 3-Stage Activity Center

This fun activity center allows babies to swivel and bounce once they’re ready to use their little feet to explore. It supports proper leg alignment at a variety of ages and stages, and a removable bounce plate lets babes bounce before their tiny tootsies even reach the floor. As your little one grows, removable and repositionable toys give way to a simple tabletop space perfect for playing, coloring or snacking.

Buy it: $142, BuyBuyBaby.com

Image: buybuy BABY

Baby Einstein Neptune’s Ocean Discovery Jumper

Satisfy baby’s need to move and bounce with this brightly colored bouncer from Baby Einstein. Choose from three different designs, each with a host of coordinating toys for hours of play. The seat is suspended from the top of the toy, which allows for maximum bounce action.

Buy it: $100, BuyBuyBaby.com

Image: Amazon

Baby Einstein Around We Grow 4-in-1 Walk Around Discovery Activity Center Table

Here’s a unique spin on a baby walker with wheels: This toy combines a wheeled walker with an activity table. A seat on one end of the toy sits on wheels, which allows baby to safely circle around the activity table without the whole contraption moving around the room.

Buy it: $109, Amazon.com

Image: buybuy BABY

VTech Super Star Learning Table

When baby is preparing for those first tentative steps, a learning table offers a great way to encourage movement. This bright and colorful VTech table is loaded with interactive toys that light up and sing. As baby begins to take steps, they’ll love pitter-pattering from one side of the table to another.

Buy it: $30 BuyBuyBaby.com

Image: Amazon

Angel Bliss Extra Large Playard

If it’s freedom that baby craves, try giving them more space and less restriction with the help of an extra-large playpen. This oversize option affords baby the liberty to scoot and crawl and attempt those first steps without risk.

Buy it: $130, Amazon.com

Image: Amazon

Kiddery Toys Wooden Push-and-Pull Learning Walker

Sturdy push toys are an alternative to traditional baby walkers with wheels. Just make sure your pick has a bar for baby to hold on to, and check that the toy won’t tip while in use. Younger babies can use this toy to play, while early walkers will benefit from the support the toy gives as they push it and practice their steps. Keep in mind that caution and supervision is always in order when baby uses a toy with wheels.

Buy it: $60, Amazon.com

About the experts:

Paul Patterson, MD, PhD, is a pediatrician in the Seattle area. He received his medical degree from Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences in Bethesda, Maryland.

Leah Alexander, MD, is a pediatrician with Pediatricare Associates of New Jersey, and a consultant for Mom Loves Best. She received her medical degree from Michigan State University College of Human Medicine.

Please note: The Bump and the materials and information it contains are not intended to, and do not constitute, medical or other health advice or diagnosis and should not be used as such. You should always consult with a qualified physician or health professional about your specific circumstances.

Plus, more from The Bump:

When Do Babies Start Walking?

How to Childproof Once Baby Is Walking

21 Baby Walking Shoes to Support Your Child’s First Steps

Are Push-Along Walkers Bad for Babies?

Do a quick search on google and the overwhelming opinion is that baby walkers are bad for babies. However, these articles refer to sit-in baby walkers rather than push-along baby walkers and even sit in walkers should be safe for short periods if supervised.

A sit-in wheel around baby walker is dangerous for a number of reasons.

Firstly they put babies in an unnatural position for their stage of development and cause them to use their muscles and limbs in an unnatural way. They don't learn to balance and they use different muscles to scoot than they would use to walk. This can lead to developmental delays and even long-lasting hip, knee and ankle issues.

Secondly as babies, like being upright, and enjoy the feeling of being able to move around so, are often very happy to be in a walker. This can lead to parents leaving babies in a walker when they need to get things done without realising how dangerous they can be if babies are left unattended.

One of the reasons baby walkers have been banned in Canada is the number of walker related injuries including burns, scooting into things and crushing their fingers, pulling things down on top of them and even falling down steps or stairs.

A push-along wooden baby walker, however, is a completely different toy that can support babies natural development and be a fun tool in their journey towards walking.

The difference of a standing/push-along baby walker

A stand up walker is different in a number of key ways.

Firstly providing you get a good quality walker babies can use them to pull themselves up to standing which is an important part of learning to balance and walk. They'll probably want to use you or the sofa to pull themselves up, to begin with, but a push-along walker is essentially just another great bit of furniture as far as babies are concerned.

Just make sure you are there to make sure the walker doesn't tip.

Secondly the fact that they are not sitting in the walker allows them to drop back down on their bottoms when they lose their balance. Sitting in a walker leaves them dangling which can damage both their spine and hips. Sitting unassisted builds strength and develops muscles needed for walking and balance.

Thirdly, babies can see their feet which is vital when learning to walk.

And finally they can let go.

Wooden baby walkers also tend to support walking and development in other ways as well. An activity walker is fun long before a baby can stand and walk and will encourage sitting and crawling which are both important developmental milestones.

An activity walker for baby might come with blocks or other activities which are perfect for developing fine motor skills and again are perfect for playing with before babies can walk. And of course, pushing toys around in a little cart, or building block towers is fun for years making these great value toys. Our brands include djeco, bigjigstoys etc.

Are walkers harmful? Orthopedist answers

Parents often ask us the question: “Can a walker be used?” when visiting a pediatric orthopedist. And although in medicine in general, and in orthopedics in particular, there are many topics for disputes between doctors, but as for the use of walkers, jumpers, etc. devices, orthopedists around the world have long come to an unequivocal answer - walkers do much more harm than good.

Learning, the beginning of walking is a very important stage for any child, and parents are well aware of this - after all, one of the most significant milestones in the development of a baby, along with the first word, the first smile, the first “coo”, are the first steps, which rejoice, which they remember and try to capture in photos and videos. However, in order for a child to walk steadily, a huge transformation must take place in his body from a lying to an upright man. And this transformation involves a whole range of organs and systems - from the brain and the vestibular apparatus, to bones and muscles. Moreover, this whole process should take place naturally, one might say “naturally” and gradually - it is then that all the organs and systems of the little man will be able to properly prepare, develop and “ripen” for the transition to the walking stage.

So why can't a walker be used at this stage? After all, it would seem that by placing the baby in this device, we help him get on his feet. In fact, everything is exactly the opposite.

Baby walkers cannot be used because:

The natural development of the vestibular apparatus responsible for the sense of balance and position in space is significantly inhibited. In the walker, the child is fixed and he will not fall, which is harmful. For the natural and harmonious development of the baby, it is very important to form a sense of balance. To do this, the baby first learns to sit, then crawl, then stand with support, and finally takes the first independent steps. The use of walkers deprives the body of the opportunity to self-learn, as if skipping important stages.
The child does not learn the instinct of self-preservation, because the walker prevents him from falling and creates a false sense of security. At the same time, the fall of a baby is a natural process of learning to walk, a kind of “tuning” of the vestibular apparatus, and parents should not worry about watching their baby get up and fall “on the ass”. The musculoskeletal system of children is very “soft” and “flexible”, nature has already provided mechanisms for protecting against injuries. Therefore, children in the process of learning to walk can and should fall - this is a natural process that is very important for the formation of the vestibular apparatus and the development of a sense of self-preservation.
High risk of injury - a kind of continuation of the previous paragraph. In the walker, the child is fixed, the presence of wheels allows him to develop greater speed and crash into obstacles without consequences. This is also very bad. Firstly, a child in a walker is completely devoid of a sense of fear - he simply does not have such experience, while babies developing without adaptations know what walls, a door jamb, corners are. They have already "stuffed bumps" and have the experience, which in the future can significantly reduce the risk of injury in natural life. For example, we repeatedly observed at receptions how children at full speed crashed into a table, into a door jamb - in the vast majority of cases, these kids were in walkers for a long time. And, secondly, walkers still do not provide sufficient stability, and the presence of wheels and the absence of fear of injury in a child can lead to sad consequences. Accelerating to a speed of 8-9km / h (if there is where to accelerate), babies can get more serious injuries than in a natural fall.
Stimulation to go earlier than necessary. Let's explain. In order not to get enough serious problems with the back at the age of 20-40 years, it is necessary in infancy to correctly and progressively go through all the stages of development of the musculoskeletal system. In fact, the later the child starts walking, the better (of course, we are talking about the norm here, and we do not mean the presence of any pathologies), since the child later begins to receive vertical loads on the spine, which at this age is not yet has fully formed natural shock-absorbing bends. Thus, at first the child learns to sit - muscles and ligaments are strengthened, then to crawl - muscles and ligaments are strengthened, then slowly walk with support - again, muscles and ligaments are strengthened. Those. By the time the musculoskeletal system is READY to accept vertical loads, the child begins to walk, which in the future minimizes the occurrence of any radiculitis and other back problems. The use of jumpers, walkers and other similar devices stimulates the child to start walking earlier, "jumping" the necessary period of natural strengthening of muscles and ligaments. And, as a result, satisfied parents that their baby began to walk earlier than their peers, but the potential problems with the child’s back from childhood in the future.

We have tried to explain in sufficient detail why baby walkers do much more harm than good. In principle, they have only one benefit - the child "frees the hands" of the mother, and they cope very well with this role. Of course, one cannot speak of a complete and unconditional ban on walkers. If the baby will be in them for no more than 15 minutes, no more than two or three times a day, for example, when the mother wants to drink tea or go to the toilet, then they will not bring harm. If abused, there will be problems.

If you still have any questions, you can make an appointment with an orthopedist here.

Always yours, "Children's Doctor".

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Baby walkers: pros and cons

Reviewer Kovtun Tatiana Anatolievna

31315 views

September 15, 2021

The feeling when you enter a children's room and find that your baby is standing in a crib is something incredible. Just yesterday, he tumbled to one side when trying to sit down on his own, and today he is already standing and even trying to squat on his legs funny. Very soon he will take his first steps. And here the mothers of the whole world are divided into two militant camps. Some, in an attempt to help the baby, and at the same time unload themselves, are puzzled by the choice of walkers, while others simply let the development process take its course. We do not join any camp, but simply present the facts regarding the pros and cons of walkers.

What is a walker

A baby walker is a device that allows a baby who is not yet able to walk to move without the help of parental hands. They are a frame on wheels, inside of which a special “saddle” for a child is fixed; the child can, sitting in the saddle and pushing off the floor with his feet, ride around the apartment. Walkers are successfully used in the treatment of cerebral palsy (infantile cerebral palsy), and are also intended for older children (1-3 years old) who cannot walk on their own.

Advantages of walkers

Walkers were invented, like most children's modern gadgets, to relieve mom and dad. They make it possible to calmly drink tea, do household chores and even work without worrying about the baby.
Walkers move the baby from a horizontal to a vertical position, thereby expanding the possibilities of learning about the world around.
Positive emotions for the baby. It's so cool to explore the world around! And when all this is accompanied by sound and light effects, just thirty-three pleasures.
Safety. A beloved child will not fit into an outlet, will not fall, will not fit into a cupboard with dishes, and so on, because it is limited in movement and space.

Disadvantages of baby walkers

Lack of motivation in the baby. If there is a device that helps you stand on your own two feet and even run, the incentive to learn to do it yourself disappears: why? After all, my mother will put me in a walker, and I will run!
The load on the fragile apparatus of the legs can lead to a number of problems.
Walkers can affect the function of the cerebellum. A baby in a walker quickly gets used to the fact that when walking he has support from all sides. As a result, the functions of the cerebellum, which is responsible for the coordination of movements, are formed incorrectly. And then, starting to walk, the baby begins to fall in all directions and fall.
Frequent use of a walker can hinder a baby's motor development. Children who are often placed in walkers start walking 3-4 weeks later on average, and the gait is characterized by uncertainty and springiness.
Loss of sense of caution. If the baby does not fall, does not encounter obstacles, then he simply will not develop the instinct of self-preservation.
Risk of injury if the baby is in the walker without supervision.

Orthopedic Warning

Incorrect position of the feet when walking (in a walker, the child gets used to walking on tiptoe)
Overstrain of the back muscles (constant vertical position and inability to change it)

As you can see, walkers have their pros and cons.