Pottery Barn Recalls Drop-Side Cribs, U.S. Plans Ban
Pottery Barn Kids voluntarily recalled 82,000 drop-side cribs today. This coincides with the proposed ban on drop-side cribs by the U.S. Consumer Products Safety Commission. The recall by the Williams-Sonoma Inc unit affects cribs sold from January 1999 through March 2010, priced at $300 to $600.
This is the 12th U.S. recall of drop-side cribs in the past five years, involving more than 7 million units, the CPSC said.
The CPSC’s proposal would ban the sale of all drop-side cribs from the United States, and require their removal from hotels, motels and day care centers. The ban would also require stronger mattress supports in cribs.
Baby Bodyguards is Now Working With Day Care Centers
One of the hardest decisions a parent has to make is deciding on a Day Care facility that they feel comfortable with.
Baby Bodyguards is hoping to make this decision a bit easier by working with local Day Care Centers to ensure that the level of safety you have in place in your home, exists in the facility you choose to send your child to.
Look for the Baby Bodyguards Seal of Safety or call us for a list of “Approved” Centers. 718-332-0511
Kellogg’s Cereal Recall
We have been on a Kashi kick these days, but for those of you who like you Apple Jacks and Honey Combs, listen up. Some Kelloggs cereal have been making people ill. The affected cereals include many of the well known brands that the manufacturer produces. The recalled cereal includes Kellogg’s brand Corn Pops, Honey Smacks, Froot Loops, and Apple Jacks.
The strange smell that has been reported by consumers has been recognized by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). It is said to be caused by the plastic packaging that he cereals are wrapped in. It is said that although the risk for serious illnesses caused by the problem is extremely low, there is a high chance that consumers would get a ‘stomach upset’ if they were to eat these affected cereals.
Here is the link to the Kellogg’s site to check if your box is among the recalled.
Traveling Safely, New Resource
With Joran van der Sloot all over the news today, one can’t help but be reminded of Natalee Holloway, the teenager who vanished on a trip to Aruba in 2005. Natalee’s mother Beth Holloway is collaborating with Mayday 360, a global safety company, to enhance travel safety. Mayday 360 will donate $10 to the NHRC (Natalee Holloway Resource Center) for every member who signs up as a result of registering on their site.
Mayday 360 has a great travel security handbook that can downloaded for free. It is very informative and a must for all who are traveling abroad this summer.
Congress Looking to Ban Drop-Side Cribs
32 infants and toddlers have suffocated or been strangled in their drop-side crib since 2000. Drop-sides, around for decades and probably slept in by many of today’s parents, are suspected in an additional 14 infant fatalities during that time.
The Consumer Product Safety Commission, which regulates cribs, has warned about the problem. Its chairman, Inez Tenenbaum, has pledged to ban the manufacture and sale of cribs by the end of the year with a new performance standard that would make fixed-side cribs mandatory. It could be several months into 2011 before becoming effective.
The industry has already started phasing out drop-sides and big retailers such as Babies R Us and Wal-Mart have taken them off sale floors. Yet there are still plenty for sale on the Internet, and that’s part of the reason Congress is getting involved.
“There’s a great urgency here. We have to make sure that no parent is unaware that drop-side cribs could kill their children,” Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, D-N.Y., said in an Associated Press interview.
She plans to introduce legislation this week to outlaw the manufacture, sale and resale of all drop-side cribs and ban them from day-care centers and hotels. Gillibrand wants to accelerate efforts for a ban, from Congress or the CPSC, and highlight concerns about the cribs to parents who are using them.
“There still are thousands and thousands of children who are sleeping every night in drop-side cribs and we need to protect them,” said Gillibrand.
She outlined her bill at a news conference in New York on Sunday, accompanied by parents of victims.
More than 7 million of these cribs have been recalled in the past five years, often because screws, safety pegs or plastic tracking for the rail can come loose or break. The industry insists that babies are safe in drop-sides that haven’t been recalled.
“We believe firmly that when these products are assembled and used properly, they are the safest place to put your child,” said Mike Dwyer, executive director of the Juvenile Products Manufacturers Association, which represents over 90 percent of the crib industry.
But when the hardware malfunctions, the drop-side rail can detach partially from the crib. That creates a dangerous “V”-like gap between the mattress and side rail where a baby can get caught and suffocate or strangle.
Dwyer says manufacturers have seen cases where parents installed the drop-side improperly, sometimes upside down, or they have reassembled a crib for a second or third child with some of the screws or other hardware missing.
In addition to the CPSC’s pledge to vote on a ban by year’s end, two New York counties — Nassau and Suffolk, on Long Island — have banned the sale of drop-sides.
Late last year, crib manufacturers were already moving in that direction when they voted to eliminate the drop-side design and instead opt for four fixed sides, but the standard is a voluntary one.
Despite the industry’s move to end production, there are plenty of new and used drop-side cribs for sale online. The Associated Press found drop-sides for purchase on websites for Sears, Kmart and Amazon.com. Craigslist also had scores of used drop-side cribs for sale.
The industry doesn’t have figures on how many drop-sides might still be on the market, but Dwyer says it’s a small percentage.
Recall On Infant/Children’s Tylenol, Motrin, Benadryl, etc
Mcneil Consumer Healthcare is voluntarily recalling the below listed medicines because some of them may not meet the required quality standards. Some of the products included in the recall may contain a higher concentration of active ingredient than is specified; others may contain inactive ingredients that may not meet internal testing requirements; and others may contain tiny particles. While the potential for serious medical events is remote, the company advises consumers who have purchased these recalled products to discontinue use.
Fantastic Urgent Care Facility in Brooklyn
What do you do when you baby gets sick on a Sunday at 8PM? This was exactly the predicament I found myself in last week. My 3 year old, all of a sudden started pulling on his ear, telling us he was in pain, and the thermometer read 102.
I searched Google looking for a walk-in urgent care center, but couldn’t find anything open so late at night. I called our pediatrician, who said to just give him Motrin and bring him in the next day. I was going to do just that until my Aunt who used to be the head ER nurse at Victory Memorial clued me in to one of Brooklyn’s greatest secrets.
The old Victory Memorial Hospital, which has been shut down, on 92nd Street and 7th Avenue in Bay Ridge, now has a 24/7 Urgent Care Center run by SUNY Downstate, in what used to be Victory’s ER, for non-life-threatening cases.
We pulled right up to the Center, got a legal spot right in front, talk about VIP 
and proceeded to follow the signs to the 3rd floor. We were so…. elated when we got there, and saw we were the only patients in the place, and there was a full medical staff waiting to help us with smiles and kindness.
A wonderful nurse evaluated our little boy. She asked him questions, took his temperature and weighed him. Then a lovely young doctor checked his ears and throat, and within 30 minutes we were back in the car going to fill his prescription.
BTW….This cost us nothing. They didn’t even take our co-pay.
Here is the address and phone number
SUNY Downstate
699 92nd Street
Brooklyn, NY 11228
(718) 567-1400
Voluntary Recall Of Evenflo Safety Gate
The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission announced a voluntary recall of Evenflo children’s safety gates due to a fall hazard. About 150,000 Evenflo Top-of-Stairs Plus Wood Gates were imported from Mexico by Evenflo Co. Inc. of Miamisburg, Ohio, and sold nationwide from October 2007 through March 2010 for about $40 each.
An additional 33,000 gates were sold in Canada.
The company has received 142 reports of slats breaking or detaching from the gates, increasing the risk of a fall. Several reports described minor injuries to children.
The recall involves gates with model numbers 10502 and 10512 made October 2007 through July 2009. The model number can be found on the bottom rail.
Consumers were advised to stop using the recalled gates and contact Evenflo for replacement with a newer model.
Consumers can call 800-233-5921 for information.
Recall of Graco Harmony High Chair
color and fabric may vary
The Harmony™ high chair was manufactured from November 2003 through December 2009 and is no longer in production. The model number can be found on the label that is located on the underside of the foot rest.
The high chairs were sold at: AAFES, Burlington Coat Factory, Babies “R” Us, Toys “R” Us, Sears, Target, Target.com, Walmart, WalMart.com, Shopko, USA Baby, and other retailers nationwide from December 2003 through March 2010 for between $70 and $120.
Consumers should immediately stop using the Harmony™ high chair and contact Graco to receive a free repair kit. To order a free repair kit, contact Graco toll-free at (877) 842-3206 or visit the firm’s Web site at www.gracobaby.com. For additional information, contact Graco at (800) 345-4109 between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m. ET Monday through Friday.
| Harmony™ High Chair Model Numbers | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3920BAN | 3920BAN2 | 3920BEB | 3920BEBB | 3920COV | 3920DOH | 3920GEI | |
| 3920GEIDSP | 3920GRN | 3920HMP | 3920IVY | 3920LAU | 3920PKR | 3930DDH | |
| 3930DHO | 3935CAL | 3935OXB | 3935PKR | 3935PKRDSP | 3935SPM | 3935SPMDSP | |
| 3935THR | 3935THR2 | 3935THR3 | 3940BIA | 3940BIADSP | 3940CAP | 3940CLE | 3940COT |
| 3940DRM | 3940HML | 3940MCH | 3940NGS | 3940SAV | 3940SLT | 3940SPT | 3940STA |
| 3940UNN | 3951CLO | 3951CLT | 3951COT | 3951ORC | 3951WLO | 3955WSR | 3960BGN |
| 3960CJG | 3960CNP | 3960GGG | 3980CNR | 3E00ABB | 3E00BAT | 3E00DCF | |
| 3E00DCFDSP | 3E00DGP | 3E00DGPDSP | 3E00GPK | 3E01BDS | 3E01BDSCA | 3E01DNY | |
| 3E01DNY1 | 3E01ELP | 3E01ELPDSP | |||||
| Note: These model numbers may begin with the letter A, B, C, or D | |||||||
| Additional Models: | 1752404 | 1755859 | 1755860 | 1757259 | 1757412 | 1760429 | |
Deaths Linked to Baby Slings
(This originally was posted Wednesday March 10th, 2010 however due to our recent move to a green hosting company the database backup did not catch the last post so we’re re-posting this today, Monday March 15th 2010)
With the clock ticking and our new Baby Bodyguard family member arriving in a few weeks, I have been trying to decide whether to use a sling, a wrap or a carrier. When we had our first baby, I had registered for the Infantino “Slingrider” that was then recalled because of a defect with the ring that the fabric goes through. I had filled out the product registration card (duh) when I got he sling, was quickly informed of the recall and was sent a new sling immediately. I think I used the sling once. Our son was a Winter baby and I didn’t walk around much, plus he got so heavy so fast!
News broke today that there are going to be new warnings on Infant Slings after more and more deaths and injuries have been linked to their usage. CPSC is mostly concerned about the so called “bag style” sling that wraps around the adult’s neck and then “cradles the child” in what it described as a “curved or ‘C-like’ position,” which has the baby resting below the chest near the belly. Apparently, the curve is what can cause infants’ heads—and infants have minimal head and neck strength—to droop forward with their chins falling on their chests, which restricts the infants breathing
Hmmmm, I think I’ll check out the Ergo or the Bjorn, it’s not worth the worry
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