Good Baby TipsTips for keeping your baby happy and healthy

Before buying a stroller it is important to look for features mentioned in this article. However, the foremost of your concerns should be a stroller’s safety features. These days strollers are much safer than they used to be. However, due to unsafe features, poor manufacturing quality and parents’ carelessness, thousands of children die or get injured in stroller accidents every year. By following the tips given below you can ensure that you buy a stroller that is safe for your child and use it safely afterwards too.

• Safety Belt: Always purchase a stroller that has a safety belt with a crotch strap and get into the habit of using it whenever you put your baby in the stroller. Infants might not seem very active but using a safety belt is always a good measure because it saves the baby from many accidents. A seatbelt should fit securely around the sides and front of your baby’s waist. For this purpose a buckle design in the form of a T is most suitable. The T is attached to the crotch strap with the right and left waist belt parts buckling into that T separately. The most effective seat belt to restrain a child from climbing out, standing up or slipping out of a stroller is a five point strap that does not only include a crotch strap and waist belt but two straps that fit into the buckle after passing over the baby’s shoulders.Some strollers have belts that fasten across the stroller rather than around the baby, leaving a gap on the sides that might enable a toddler to get out. Always choose a stroller with buckles and restraint systems that secure a child tightly.
• Stroller Balance: Always choose a stroller that has a wide, long wheelbase and a seat that is mounted deep into the frame. This gives it more stability and the stroller resists tipping backwards when pressed lightly on the handles. For ensuring safety, never hang baggage with the stroller handles, it makes it more likely to tip backwards. Do not use a stroller for two children unless it has two seats and is meant to be used so. Putting any baggage over the canopy is also dangerous as it can collapse and cause injury to your child.
• Brakes: When purchasing a stroller make sure you buy one that has the rear wheel locking mechanism that works by engaging sprocket arrangement at the wheels rather than solely relying upon the breaks pressing on the tire. Pressing breaks are generally unreliable because they can permit unwanted rolling of strollers backwards or forwards even when the break is in contact with the tire. But, whichever breaking mechanism the stroller may have, do not rely on it to hold a stroller stationary on an inclined surface.
• Frame Safety: The frame of the stroller should not have any hazardous sharp edges. The small fingers and toes of your child can get stuck and hurt between metal parts and coils of uncovered springs. X-joints, where two tubes of the frame come together, can be particularly dangerous as they can act like scissors and can trap a child’s fingers or toes. Make sure the plastic caps at the ends of the handle are also tight and secured to that the baby does not remove them or choke on them.
• Secondary Safety Latch: When you set up the stroller there is a locking mechanism that keeps your stroller open and prevents it from collapsing. Many strollers have one locking mechanism. Some offer two locks or an automatic safety catch which means that it would take two locks to be released to fold the stroller. So even if the main lock fails, there is a secondary lock to prevent the stroller from folding and causing serious injury to your child.
  Some strollers, especially older models, have unsatisfactory metal slip rings that slide down over the overlapping edges of the frame’s tubing to hold the handle erect. These can easily become mispositioned or slide out of place causing the unit to collapse. These designs of strollers are not recommended from a safety point of view.
• Your Child Near a Stroller:  When your child is near his stroller exercise caution in handling it. Do not open or fold the stroller near him, the scissoring action can trap small fingers and cause injuries. Do not let children play with strollers either. It is dangerous to let children give each other rides in strollers and treat them as toys. Be careful when adjusting the reclining backrest and exposing the bracket which is shaped like a rooster comb when your child is in or around the stroller.
• Your Child Inside a Stroller: Do not try to carry a stroller with your baby in it. There is a big chance of tripping, hurting yourself and your baby. Avoid trying to carry the stroller with the child up or down the stairs. The stroller could easily fall with the child and cause serious injury. When shopping in malls, instead of using the escalator with strollers (in fact strollers are prohibited on escalators in many places) use elevators. Do not reverse the stroller handle while your child is in it. There is a chance that when you move the handle from front to back or back to front your child’s fingers, hands or arms may get caught between them. Always check that the locking mechanism of the handle is securely engaged.
• Using the stroller according to the baby’s age: If your baby is younger than seven months do not let him sleep in a stroller unattended as infants can slip through the leg opening, causing entrapment or possible strangulation. Stop using the stroller when your child weighs more than 36 pounds. A child usually weighs that much around 3 years of age. He then becomes too active or too tall for safely using a stroller.
• For Multiple Occupancy strollers follow the correct entry and exit sequence: For a multiple occupancy stroller (a side-by-side design or tandem style) follow the manufacturer’s instructions for loading and unloading children. If these instructions are not followed there is a chance of misbalance in weight and the stroller becomes more prone to toppling over and causing injury to your child. 
• Never leave your baby unattended in a stroller.

Strollers can help make parents’ lives a lot easier but choosing the right stroller for a baby and then maintaining it for long lasting use requires parents to have adequate knowledge. Strollers have come a long way from their initial heavy-weight designs. There is a wide variety of light-weight and durable strollers available today to suit a child’s needs and lifestyle and it becomes increasingly difficult to make a decision about which one to buy. The following buying tips can help you find the one most suitable for your child.

Buying Tips:

Choosing one stroller out of the several types that you will find in a store can be a hard job. Follow these tips to make the right choice more easily.

• Safety Features: Safety, as with all other baby accessories, is the foremost concern of a parent. First of all, before buying a stroller, ensure that it has adequate safety features for your baby. (For details of these features go to this article.)
• Walk the Stroller: Before buying the stroller you like walk in the store to get a feel of it. Walking a stroller will help you decide whether you are comfortable with or not. For instance the handle height might not be adequate for you. A comfortable handle height is usually at the waist level or a little below. For taller parents or those who have a significant difference in height, strollers with adjustable handle heights are very convenient so that both the parents can walk them easily. Handles covered with foam also add to the comfort of the parent or caregiver.
• Steering Ease: Before making a purchase check that the stroller runs easily and can be pushed in a straight line without veering by using one hand only. A good stroller also does corners smoothly, this is important when strolling a baby in crowds. Usually the bigger the diameter of the wheels the easier it is to negotiate curbs and sidewalk irregularities. Make sure all four tires are aligned. In case of double wheels, all eight wheels should make contact with the floor and rotate when the stroller is in motion. Also try walking the stroller at a fast pace to see if your feet bump against the wheels.
• Weight: When buying a stroller it is importance to keep its weight and folding ability in mind. There are several models of lightweight strollers these days that weigh less than 20 pounds and have the same features as heavyweight strollers. These strollers are also foldable and can easily be stored in a car’s truck for traveling. If you have a smaller car, keep in mind the size of the trunk and make sure the stroller you purchase will fit in the trunk when folded. It is always hard for parents to choose between a plastic or metal stroller. Metal strollers have sturdier frames and last longer. However plastic strollers are lighter in weight. It is a tradeoff between weight and sturdiness and the parent has to decide for him/herself which to buy. Perhaps if the stroller will be used for several children then a metal one would be a good choice. A plastic stroller can be more convenient for parents who travel frequently.
• Convenience Features: For s stroller to be convenient and easy to use there are a number of features that you should look for. Always look for a stroller with an adjustable seat. As your baby grows the inclination of the seat that is comfortable for him changes. So the angle that was comfortable for your six month old baby will not be comfortable for a one year old. A stroller should always have an extra storage area for the baby’s accessories or even parents’ use if he/she goes shopping. Before buying s stroller check that it has a good balance and does not topple over if you hang a baby bag with the handles. A stroller must always be made of a washable fabric as no baby is above making mess. Sooner or later the stroller will get dirty enough to want washing. The stroller must also include a canopy to protect the baby from sunshine or rain.
• Multiple seats: Sometimes when a couple has twins or two children close in age, they need to buy a stroller that can accommodate both. There are strollers available with up to four seats but those are rare. The most common ones with multiple seats are those that have two seats. These seats can be side by side or tandem style. The side-by-side style is appropriate for twins but not for children of different ages as they weigh differently and the heavier side has a chance of toppling over. The tandem style outsells the adjacent seat style because even with children of different weights it has no chance of toppling. Furthermore, the tandem style, when folded, occupies almost the same amount of space as a normal one seat stroller. However, a stroller with adjacent seats occupies double the space.
• Price: Lastly, price is always an important factor in deciding which stroller you want to buy. Remember, expensive strollers are sturdier and have better materials in manufacturing. They last longer. So if the stroller is intended to be used for several children, an expensive one would be a good long-term investment.

Stroller Maintenance

A stroller suffers outdoor wear more than any other baby equipment. Following are tips to keep a stroller clean and prolong its life and usability.

• Park the stroller inside after use and protect it, as much as possible, from dust, dirt and dampness.
• Check the stroller for loose screws, worn out parts or torn stitching from time to time and mend it immediately.
• Clean metal and plastic surfaces regularly with a damp cloth.
• Oil the moving parts of the stroller, for example axles, hinges, joints etc. occasionally with light household oil.
• To clean vinyl upholstery use mild soap and water, rinse thoroughly afterwards and allow it to dry naturally.
• Strong detergents, bleaches, solvents and abrasive cleaners may damage vinyl and fabric.
• Avoid soaking the stroller completely with water as it may soften pressboards and seat pans etc.
• Follow any special cleaning instructions if given by the manufacturers.