Readers' question:
I read in a magazine that Paediatricians recommend that infant walkers not be used for safety reasons. What is your opinion on this?

My Answer:
Yes, there is much concern because of increasing reports of injuries to infants caused from the use of infant walkers. Because the infant does not have a lot of control of how the walker moves (speed and direction) they can very easily bump into furniture and other objects around them. Head injuries because of accidental striking against tables and other objects at that height have been reported. Also of concern are the increasing reports of severe injuries sustained following falls down stair cases.
Many people in the general public believe that use of walkers help babies to start walking earlier than otherwise. This however, is not true. There is some evidence from studies that use of walkers increase the time taken by infants to begin independent walking. The postulated reason for this is that with the use of walkers the infants don’t learn to balance themselves.
My personal opinion is based on the above findings. I believe that it maybe unsafe and it can delay independent walking in infants.

Please note that the above statements are derived from statistical relationships. There would be cases where use of infant walker had not caused any injuries, had not led to any delay in walking and maybe even had infants apparently walking earlier. Risk reduction is the main aim of discussing this issue here.

Note:
The term "infant walker" here refers to the wheeled devices in which infants are placed to get them to move around indoors. They are called "koshi" in commen dhivehi language. This does not refer to Prams!