Warnings and news stories continue to come out against the Bumbo seat, and Parents News Now blogger Holly Lebowitz Rossi recently wrote about a lawsuit against the company involving a 9-month-old who fractured his skull after falling out of the chair. In October 2007, Bumbo issued a voluntary recall of the chairs and though they remain on the market today, they carry a warning label advising parents not to use the product on elevated surfaces. More recently, in November 2011, the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) issued a release urging parents to use caution when using the Bumbo because serious head injuries continue to be documented despite the recall and warning label. These accidents have occurred when the seats were placed on chairs, countertops, tabletops, or other high surfaces, but also when used on the floor (cases have been reported of babies falling and hitting their heads on a hardwood floor or plastic toy). Children can fall out of the seats by arching their backs, leaning forward or sideways, or rocking.
Since the Bumbo is still sold in stores, we encourage you to take the following precautions if you have one in your house:
Don’t use the Bumbo or similar seats on a tabletop, chair, countertop, or other elevated surface or on a hardwood floor.
Keep your eyes on your baby at all times while he’s in the seat.
Take your baby out of the seat as soon as he starts arching his back, leaning, or rocking in it.
What do you think? Should Bumbo be obligated to tweak its product so it’s safe, even when there’s no parental supervision? Or is it enough to put a warning label on the product and say it must be used with parental supervision? Do you own a Bumbo? Why or why not? Were you previously aware of these warnings, and have you ever left the room while your baby was in the seat?
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