Choosing the Proper Excessive Chair
Like so many different product classes within the child world (and the feeding world!), it may be extremely overwhelming to know which excessive chair, of the a whole bunch provided in the marketplace, could be greatest to your child and household. With dozens of various kinds, options, and attributes at worth factors starting from $25 to $600, it truly is loads!
There are issues which might be going to be very family-specific (how a lot area do you will have? the place will you utilize the excessive chair? what’s your finances?) however there are additionally some which might be extra common. Learn on for the whole lot it’s essential to find out about easy methods to choose a excessive chair — and for those who’re simply getting began with solids, be sure to take a look at this information masking readiness indicators, first meals, knowledgeable options, and the whole lot in between.
1. Take into consideration your area to choose what model you want.
The very first thing is to think about the place you’ll use your excessive chair and the place you’ll retailer it. There are excessive chairs designed to face on their very own (these have a tray), pull proper as much as the “grown-up” desk, sit fastened on prime of a eating room chair, grasp off the counter or desk, and sit on the ground. Some excessive chairs have a reasonably sizable footprint, and keep put, whereas others are extra compact and should have portability options that allow you to fold them up and retailer them out of sight. Relying on whether or not you reside in a metropolis house or a bigger area within the suburbs, you’ll have actual area limitations.
If you happen to’re searching for a conventional excessive chair with a tray, these are usually referred to as “commonplace” or “standalone” excessive chairs (or nothing in any respect, simply excessive chairs, hah). Undoubtedly examine to verify the tray is *simple to connect and detach, pinched fingers are the worst!
If you’d like one thing you possibly can affix to a chair you already personal, these are referred to as space-saving excessive chairs.
If you happen to plan to make use of your excessive chair on the desk, search for a transitional (additionally typically referred to as a convertible or a “grow-along”) excessive chair. These get pleasure from usually lasting for much longer — properly into and past the toddler years — since they “develop alongside” together with your baby. (Word: that is additionally the kind of excessive chair that almost all feeding specialists advocate, because it allows infants to eat on the desk with their households.)
If you’d like a seat that hooks onto a counter or desk ledge, go for a hook-on or attachable excessive chair. (Since none of those include a devoted foot relaxation, see #3 beneath, you’ll must DIY for that function.)
If you happen to want a excessive chair you possibly can retailer within the closet, search for a foldable, moveable, or collapsible excessive chair. These may also be handy for journey and on-the-go.
At Amara, our mission is to set each baby up for a lifetime of wholesome consuming, beginning proper from their first bites. In reality, a child’s first experiences with meals are tremendous enjoyable and in addition tremendous essential — which is why we make 100% actual child meals and toddler snacks in quite a lot of contemporary flavors, starting from savory to candy and unique to staples.
Our meals use a nutrient-pressed expertise that locks in all the great things (vitamins, tastes, textures) to make entire meals handy and accessible for each household. Our elements are licensed natural, picked at peak harvest (when they’re most nutrient dense and flavorful), and 100% plant-based, too! Try our full line of natural child meals and toddler snacks for an array of fresh-tasting flavors and enjoyable pairings to your child or toddler.
2. Take into account the seat — particularly, the recline.
Though many excessive chairs in the marketplace immediately function reclined seating choices, pediatric nutritionists strongly advise towards this (which actually makes you marvel — who’re they consulting within the product design??).
In reality, when infants are beginning solids, it’s *tremendous essential that they’re sitting straight up. Like, completely straight up, at a 90 diploma angle. It’s not solely unsafe for infants (who’re nonetheless studying easy methods to eat) to eat whereas they’re leaning again, but it surely’s additionally simply greatest for his or her our bodies. That is one motive why the power to sit down up independently and properly is one “readiness signal” for beginning solids.
Thus: select a excessive chair that has a supportive, straight again. (And for those who already personal a excessive chair with a recline, you should use a rolled up towel behind your child’s again to assist them sit up.)
3. Go for one thing with a foot relaxation.
Right here is one other space the place there’s been some lag between product design and knowledgeable recommendation… Many excessive chairs haven’t any foot relaxation, and infants actually need someplace to set their ft. Give it some thought: how uncomfortable would you are feeling consuming from a bar stool with no footrest and your legs simply swinging within the air? Vitamin specialists say it’s equally “bizarre” for infants — a easy footrest helps them really feel extra grounded and secure, so choose a chair that has one.
Or, you possibly can flip to Google for any variety of intelligent mother or father hacks so as to add a DIY footrest to a excessive chair (you would use duct tape or an train band, for instance, or affix a picket beam to a chair for those who’re useful). There are additionally firms that now promote this sort of accent for fashionable excessive chairs that don’t function footrests.
Whenever you’re selecting a excessive chair, think about that the best and most secure positioning for infants, in accordance with pediatric dieticians and feeding specialists, is 90/90/90 — this implies infants sit with a 90 diploma bend at their hips, knees and ankles.
If you happen to already personal or aren’t in a position to buy a excessive chair that facilitates the 90/90/90 place, don’t be afraid to make use of props to assist get your child seated on this approach. A rolled up hand towel can function a again relaxation; an enormous guide might be a booster to sit down on, and you would use a field or a chair for a footrest.
4. Select cleanability.
That is HUGE, pals. If you happen to haven’t began solids but, know that it’s messy. So, so messy. Imagine me, you need a excessive chair you possibly can wipe down simply. Don’t choose one thing with tons of fabric, material, or nooks and crannies (be careful for buckles/harnesses and tray-table attachments particularly…) — it should drive you bonkers attempting to scrape half-dried mashed pumpkin out of hard-to-reach corners and crevices. Critically, it’s so irritating.
As an alternative, search for a excessive chair with a straightforward cleanability issue. Select one thing with both no material or one thing that’s simple to wipe, a no-frills harness, and a dishwasher-safe tray.
5. Examine for security options.
A straightforward approach to be sure to are buying a protected chair is to examine whether or not the product is “JPMA licensed.” Any merchandise which have a Juvenile Merchandise Producers Affiliation certification have been by means of voluntary, unbiased testing for numerous security requirements — it’s a good way to know whether or not any product (not only a excessive chair) has been reviewed and “accredited” for security by a third-party.
The 2 largest hang-ups with excessive chair security are:
- A crotch bar/publish — be certain that yours has one (in any other case child might slip by means of the seat…).
- A five-point harness — whereas older infants might not want the full-body buckle, infants who’re simply beginning solids undoubtedly do!
Top-of-the-line methods to search out an excellent excessive chair is to ask different dad and mom which one(s) they love greatest. What model of excessive chair are you searching for? If you happen to already personal one, what do you want about and what do you dislike? Tell us within the feedback!
