Are Push Walkers Good for Babies? this is a controversial topic. Some parents believe that they are beneficial because they help babies learn to walk, while others believe that they are harmful because they can cause babies to become dependent on them. In this blog post, we will explore both sides of the argument to help you decide if a push walker is right for your baby.
On the one hand, parents who are in favor of using push walkers argue that they help babies learn to walk. They provide support for babies who are just learning to walk, and they can help them develop their motor skills. Additionally, push walkers can give parents a break from having to constantly hold their baby.
On the other hand, parents who are against using push walkers argue that they can be harmful to babies. They can cause babies to develop a dependency on them, and they can also lead to babies falling and injuring themselves. Additionally, push walkers can limit a baby’s mobility, and they can prevent them from developing their own muscles.
So, what is the verdict? Are push walkers good for babies? The answer may depend on each individual baby’s needs. Some babies may benefit from using a push walker, while others may not. Ultimately, the decision of whether or not to use a push walker should be made by the parents in consultation with their child’s doctor.
In the first year, a child develops very quickly. A six-month-old baby is very different from a newborn. Many babies already know how to sit and even try to get up in the crib. At this time, mothers get more trouble: the baby sleeps less and tries to explore all the objects around him. Some babies don’t want to be in a crib or playpen all the time. To make it easier to watch the baby, parents buy a wheelchair. Let’s talk about them in today’s article.
Are Push Walkers Good for Babies
What is a wheelchair-walker?
A wheelchair is a device that allows a child who can’t yet walk to move around independently. In the 1970s, walkers were deemed unhealthy and banned.
All walkers are divided into several types:
- Classic – a device with a special frame on wheels and a seat for the baby.
- Transformers – normal walker can be transformed into a rocking chair.
- Trolley – a toy on wheels, which the child pushes in front of him.
- Jumper – similar to the “baby carrier,” fixed in the doorway.
- Manufacturers produce many models of wheelchairs-walkers.
Types of wheelchairs-walkers: what to choose?
Wheelchair walker is not just a device that helps the child to make their first steps. Today, manufacturers supply them with many additional functions. Game walker not only teaches walking, but also entertains your baby, he can press many buttons.
Also popular are musical baby walkers. In these models, the melody sounds when the child moves.
Put your favorite toys is convenient in the wheelchair cart. Girls will be happy with a wheelchair-shaped wheelchair, which you can put the doll. Boys will benefit from a steamroller walker, which not only teach them to walk, but also develop motor skills.
Interestingly, the baby rocker, on which the baby sits and moves, pushing his feet. These walkers can simply be pushed in front of you. If a child loves animals, he will be interested in funny wheelchair-walker puppy.
Most walkers have 4 wheels, comfortable handles and bars. Wheelchair walkers with axillary support are designed for children with coordination disorders and cerebral palsy.
Materials used to make the wheelchair
In the manufacture of wheelchair walkers different materials are used: wood, aluminum, plastic.
Wheelchair wheelchairs made of aluminum are strong and lightweight, they are easy to clean. They can withstand any collision with obstacles. Most often the frame is made of aluminum. This material can be easily combined with others.
Fans of natural materials will suit wooden wheelchairs. These models are safe, bright, pleasant for babies who like to touch everything.
Most walkers are made of plastic. Wheelchairs made of this material are durable, lightweight and easy to wash with water and detergents. Plastic is not afraid of temperature changes.
Does your child need a baby walker?
The attitude to the walker in our country is contradictory. What are more benefits or harms from them?
Benefits:
- The child moves independently, being in a good mood
- The walker does not allow a restless child to get dangerous objects
- Develop walking skills
- The mother does not have to carry the child in her arms, and she can do household chores
Harms:
- Stunted motor skills
- Severe strain on the spine
- The foot does not form correctly as the child walks on her toes
- Baby cannot keep his balance while leaning on the stroller
- Your baby does not learn how to fall or crouch
In addition, the walker affects the child’s psyche. Persistence in achieving a goal is not formed, because the baby does not need much effort to get the toy he likes. Children who are used to a walker hardly crawl. Because of this, it can be difficult to read. In a walker, the child is restricted in movement, which does not allow for intellectual development.
It is important to remember! Buy a walker or not – you decide. For some developmental features they are contraindicated, so before buying, you should consult with your pediatrician.
With what age to use a wheelchair?
At what age can I use a walker? Sit in them the baby can, when he sits and gets up on his own by the support. These abilities are mastered by children at the age of 7-8 months. It is better to use a baby walker closer to 1 year of age, since they do not have a special frame.
There are conditions in which a child is contraindicated in a walker:
- rickets;
- disorders of the musculoskeletal system;
- leg tone.
How to choose a baby walker?
- There are many models of walkers, to choose the “right” one, you must remember the following:
- For the stability of the device, the base must be wide. It will not allow the walker to turn over.
- The width and diameter of the wheels depends on the maneuverability of the walker. It is better if they will be rubber and floating.
- The height of the handle is important. It should be comfortable and non-slip.
- In the passport, the manufacturer always indicates the height and weight for which the walker is designed.
- Many moms have already appreciated the advantage of folding models – thanks to their compact size, they can easily be stored and moved around the apartment.
- Musical and playful elements entertain and educate the child.
How to use the wheelchair: instructions for use
The child does not need to be seated in the wheelchair, he pushes them in front of himself. The only exception to this is a baby-sliding machine, where the child can sit. They are set in motion when the baby pushes his feet off the floor.
Precautions When Using Walkers
- Do not leave your baby alone in the walker.
- The floor surface should be flat and mats should be removed.
- All fragile and dangerous items should be moved higher so that the baby can not grab them.
Read also:
10 Best Baby Walker for carpet: Which Ones Are Right for You?
Caution. To avoid serious injury, do not use walkers next to stairs, as they can tip over. Also, tablecloths should be removed from tables so your child doesn’t accidentally grab them.
What is it?
According to Wikipedia definition, a walker is an assistive device for disabled and elderly people. Their main purpose is to help a person maintain an upright body position and balance while walking. The first patented devices for adults appeared in the mid-1940s.
The history of children’s walkers is more youthful, and most experts are inclined to believe that it was a successful marketing move. The first such products, which were positioned as children’s, appeared in England in 1953. A device for babies on wheels, almost as we see them now, were designed in the U.S. in 1970.
In Russia, walkers in stores began to sell only about 20 years ago. The fact is that during the Soviet Union pediatric standards did not imply the use of such devices: doctors considered them harmful to child development, and therefore the country was a ban on the production and sale of walkers. Now many experts go back to those standards and argue that these bans were more than reasonable and correct.
Nevertheless, walkers have entered our lives, and now parents need to carefully weigh the advantages and disadvantages of this invention to understand whether it is necessary to buy them for your own child.
Helping adults who were previously able to walk on two legs, but due to illness or injury lost the ability to do so – it is quite natural, doctors say. But the use of baby walkers for babies who have not yet made a single independent step in this life, raises a lot of questions, controversy and debate.
“Pros and cons.
Evgeny Komarovsky considers a walker a device that is very beneficial for parents, but not for the baby. They are designed, first of all, to make life much easier for the mother. After all, it’s very convenient – put the baby in a walker and went to cook, laundry, ironing, watching TV or working on the computer. The baby is not going anywhere out of them, will not fall, does not bump into a sharp corner.
However, quite often parents complain that the child has managed to fall out of the walker. This happens not by itself, but mainly if my mom has not taken security measures. Wheeled attachment can tip over if there is a collision with the steps, with large solid single objects that can get into the wheel, as well as if the child is poorly secured in the walker.
Because the child, by and large, does not mind such a pastime, because he is more interesting in the walker than in the crib. Proponents and fans of devices argue that they carry the most important developmental function. This statement can not be considered true, because there is no proven benefit of an infant in a frame on wheels. Sellers of walkers do not manage to prove their beneficial effect, no matter how hard they try.
But there is a well-founded opinion of doctors who argue that the walker is not only harmful to the child, but also dangerous. Evgeny Komarovsky argues that the decision whether to use a walker, should only parents, and no one else. He does not think that an hour spent in a walker, dangerous to the health of the baby, but a few – already an alarming signal. Everything needs a measure, and in the case of verticalizing devices, which include walkers, this statement is doubly true.
What are the dangers?
Nature has arranged so that the child in his development has passed through several stages, as evidenced by the main stages of evolution. First, the baby is lying down, then masters the coup de grace, then begins to try to crawl, sit, and only after that – walk. This sequence is important for further normal development. The weak spine does not allow a child to sit up independently, and the weak muscles of the back and abdomen, as well as the lateral muscles do not allow the baby to crawl and stand up confidently.
The child should go through all the stages independently, says Evgeny Komarovsky. He will sit down when his back is ready, and he will walk when the spine and muscular skeleton become stronger. If parents begin to force the events, forcing the child to sit and stand before the allotted time, the vertical load on the weak from birth spinal column will increase manifold. This is fraught not only with bad posture in the future, but also with more serious consequences, which may even lead to disability.
From this point of view, the use of walkers poses a certain danger to children who do not yet know how to sit or crawl independently. Komarovsky strongly recommends not using such devices for children under the age of 9 months at all.
Further, depending on the skills and development of the child, the walker can be used for half an hour to forty minutes a day. But the baby should not be in them all the time while he is awake, because the baby is not yet able to understand his feelings and tell his parents that he has a tired back. And the harm of vertical load is also relevant for children at the age of 10 months, and even at one year.
We recommend to read more about this in the article “How many months is it possible to put a baby on a walker, and should you do it?
How to choose?
Choosing a walker is not as easy as it may seem at first glance. After all, the range of such goods in all children’s stores is quite large. For a child who has already learned to stand up with support, but does not yet know how to make the first steps, you can buy a walker on wheels. The main thing about them is a solid base. Make sure that it is wide enough, made of strong plastic, and the wheels are attached securely, but also easily rotate.
The seat should be comfortable, the back – soft. It is best to buy a walker, the design of which provides the possibility of adjusting the depth of landing.
For children who have already learned to take their first steps, but are still very shaky and uncertain, you can choose a walker-pushers. When choosing them, you should pay attention to the fact that the height is adjustable or was originally optimal for your baby, so that the baby does not hump or pull up on the handrails.
The material of which the upright is made, should be strong, environmentally friendly (after all, kids are sure to try it on the taste or on the tooth). The walker must be stable. It is desirable that they were equipped with a development table, so the baby was interested.
How to properly use?
If the age and duration of stay in the walker parents already know, you should definitely check their knowledge in the operation of the device. Do not put the child by force, if he resists it in every way, does not want or is afraid of walkers. Do not leave your child alone in the walker without supervision. Optimally, if my mother will do household chores in the same room where the child will move in the walker.
These devices should not be used for children with diseases of the musculoskeletal system – it is very harmful. Also, walkers are contraindicated for boys and girls who have previously been reasonably (based on X-rays) diagnosed with rickets. You should not try to put a child with severe neurological disorders, such as cerebral palsy, for example, in them.
Even if you have a perfectly healthy baby in your family, you should definitely consult your pediatrician before using a walker.
Advice from Dr. Komarovsky
Summarizing all of the above, you can highlight the main recommendations that pediatrician Evgeny Komarovsky gives in his programs, publications.
If you were given a baby walker at birth, you should put it away until 9 months of age. Until this age, it is best to encourage your child to crawl, since it is this method of movement that allows the child’s spine and muscles to strengthen faster.
Claims that a walker will teach walking and strengthen muscles are nothing more than a myth. On the contrary, walkers take away a child’s sense of balance and create the illusion of a safe space. Children who have spent a lot of time in a walker usually start to walk on their own later than their peers. They are afraid, because they have never learned how to group themselves and fall down safely in a walker. And muscles are strengthened only by crawling, gymnastics and independent attempts to stand and walk, not by restraints.
The maximum time spent in a walker should not exceed 1 hour. The average “harmless” time in a supportive device is 15 minutes.
It is harmful to stay in a walker with a seat for long periods of time for children who do not rest on their full feet, but on their toes. This can lead to problems with the development of the hip joint, can contribute to problems with the foot. Regular crawling around the house is much healthier for such children.
