What Should You Know About a Crib Mattress?

A crib mattress is typically a small sized mattress designed to fit in a baby crib. It is specially designed to ensure a secure and supportive surface for your precious baby while stay and sleep on it. It is as essential as the crib and is generally bought along with the baby crib.

But why does it so significant?

Sometimes you need to even consider leaving your child without your watchful eye. Such an occasion when your baby will be left unattended at night, while he is sleeping. For this reason, you need to select a safe crib mattress.

A high quality crib mattress helps your baby to sleep with comfort through the night. It also helps him/her to promote health growth and ensures safety as well. Your baby or toddler will stay on a crib mattress for a long time.

It seems hard to believe that infants tend to spend up to 18 hours a day and toddler spends an average 13 hours in his/her crib. That is, half of their first five years of life they need to stay on the crib mattress in a sleep environment. So, comfort and safety are a great concern. It is essential to make sure you arrange his/her surroundings and sleeping environment carefully.

Nowadays, the manufacturers are offering different types of baby crib mattresses, all claiming to be the best for your baby. Note that, not all crib mattresses are safe for your child, and there is also some misleading information out there.

From them, how it’s possible to determine the one that will be best for your baby?

Be sure that the baby crib mattress you buy fits inside the crib without gaps, otherwise it may be a danger to your baby’s health. A soft mattress can conform to the shape of your baby’s face or head that increase the risk of suffocation or SIDS (sudden infant death syndrome). So, the mattress should feel firm.

You should know the types, features and other must-know topics to make a decision to buy a good crib mattress. Also consider the comfort, cost, and durability, because you need to use it for a long time.

Read our informative content and be a crib mattress expert!

What Is Standard Crib Mattress Length, Width, And Depth?

Buying the right sized crib mattress is an important first step in ensuring the safety of your infants and toddlers.
The size and thickness of all crib mattresses are regulated by The Federal Government via Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act of 2008(CPSIA). The law states that the minimum size is 27 1/4 inch x 51 5/8 inch and a thickness not exceeding 6 inches. Still, a slight variation in length, width, and depth among mattress is usual. Before buying the one, be sure the exact measurements of your baby crib.

Length and Width of crib mattress

In both Canada and the USA, crib mattress size may vary from 51 ¾ inches to 53 inch in length and 27 5/8inches to 28 5/8 inches in width.

Depth

Do you know that crib mattress have a standard depth? The thickness may not exceed 6 inches. The standard thickness of Coil mattress: 5 to 6 inch and for foam crib mattress: 4 to 6 inches.

Firmness

It’s important that the crib mattress should be firm enough. Soft mattress surface creates a health hazard to baby increasing suffocation and the risk of SIDS. To confirm the firmness of the crib mattress, press on the mattress at the edge and in the center. A firm mattress should not show any indentation when your baby is lying on it. According to the report of The National Institute of Child Health & Human Development, using a firm crib mattress is one of the important factors that helps the baby to prevent SIDS. Note that, a mattress for the adult or older children won’t likely be perfect for a crib, and it won’t be firm enough. So, you should use a specialized baby crib mattress.

Fitness

It is important that a crib mattress should fit snugly in the crib with no space left between the side of the crib frame and mattress. Otherwise, it could be an entrapment hazard to your baby. Follow the good rule of thumb: if it’s possible to squeeze more than two fingers between the crib frame and side of the mattress, the mattress is too small and you should avoid this one.

The Importance Of A Good Crib Mattress

The design, color, and material of the crib mattress, of course, are important factors, but the safety feature of a crib mattress is even more important. A newborn grows so rapidly over the first two years. However, for an infant, a crib mattress is not only a sleeping surface but also it is their development and growth center that provides a good support for their delicate growing bones. Sleeping time is more important for an infant as this period plays a significant role in their growth.

So, an infant needs a firm and flat surface to ensure his or her development. The firm surface provides resistance to an infant that is important when he/she try to push up, turn and stand in the crib. A good crib mattress, thus, a vital baby gear that ensures the resistance necessary for strengthening and developing their muscles.

When you think, a baby will spend more than 70% of their lifespan on the crib mattress, it’s easy to realize why this item is important for your infant.

Experts recommended that parents should prefer those mattresses that are made of natural fibers. Natural fibers are safe and non-toxic and won’t cause any rashes on the infant’s sensitive skin. Also, note that the colors and dyes used in the mattresses should be non-toxic.

Conclusion

Undoubtedly, the health and happiness of your baby is the utmost important thing to you. Be sure that the crib mattress that you choose for your baby won’t harm your precious one. Crib mattress is not an item of luxury, but it’s an essential product for your baby as well.