Safety considerations
birthTIPS
A baby walker is a frame with a seat on wheels that you sit your baby in to allow them to move about by propelling themselves with their feet and toes. Depending on the design or the walker, some will have a high back, to support the baby's back and head and most have a tray in front to lean on (perhaps with toys attached to it). A few walkers also have a bouncing action that provide a range of forward, back, up and down mobility.
Walkers are aimed for use by babies old enough to sit up but not yet able to walk. However, despite their name, walkers will not teach your child to walk and do not improve a child's physical development. In fact, many physiotherapists advise against them because they believe they may interfere with a baby's normal muscular development enhanced through sitting up, crawling and pulling themselves up on furniture. Increasingly, caregivers are advising parents not to buy walkers, because they have a very high injury rate for babies.
Safety considerations
The major safety concern with walkers is the alarmingly high injury rate from babies falling down stairs or steps, tripping over rugs, electrical leads and uneven surfaces in the walker. Their mobility also allows quicker access to potentially hazardous items such as hot drinks, dangling cords, heaters or open fires etc.
Over the years manufacturers have made efforts to improve the safety of walkers, but many children continue to be seriously injured. If you do decide to use a baby walker, then your baby must be supervised at all times. It has been suggested that babies who are left for long periods in a walker while their parents (or carers) attention is elsewhere, are at considerably higher risk of injury. Walkers should not be used as inanimate babysitters!
Some Australian states do have laws relating to walkers.