cot mattresses - should they be life-cycled/re-used?

[BillieT]

I am a bit concerned about people recycling cot mattresses. As far as I remember, cot mattresses should not be passed on unless it's with the cot it was originally made for. and even then, aparently, its a bit dodgy. I remember Ann Diamond speaking about it a number of years ago.

I just wanted to say, please be careful with secondhand mattresses and if you are thinking of using one - then google it or something - just check it out first. And I dont mean to scare anyone either.

[roo12]

Your right a new mattress is recomended for each child .... its fine to use the same cot but to replace the mattress

[paprika]

I've heard it elsewhere too, but actually why?

[jenniferalan]

very good point. I always wondered why too. I googled it and got this article from the Independent from 1995. It is worth reading

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/cook-report-cotdeath-claim-faces-dismissal-1524402.html

[lislaw]

This is actually something that has bothered me for a while now on JT. Cot mattressess should NOT be reused and there is a very good reason.
It's got to do with urine/faeces and vomit trapped in the fibres, which then releases toxins which may be a factor in SID (Sudden Infant Death) Syndrome.
A lot of the newer mattresses have removable covers for ease of cleaning but even these are not recommended to be used for more than one child.
It doesn't matter how often you clean the mattress/cover it is still not recommended to reuse a child's mattress.
I know babies are expensive - I've done it twice now - and I'm not trying to be melodramatic here, but surely a mattress is a small price to pay when it comes down to a factor which could be the difference between life and death.
IMO, cot mattresses should be banned from JT, or at least not included in the baby/child section. Obviously they can be used for other things - we used our first one for the dogs bed and the second was used for padding in the van when my hubby transported motorbikes. But I do think that Admin should consider this issue and possibly check the facts and maybe just place a sticky warning up on the relevant section.


**phew, between the time I'd read the thread and posted my reply the previous reply had been posted. But that's exactly what I was talking about**

[Eily]

Hi, I agree with Lislaw, this information is correct and maybe they should be banned from the site?
Eily


This is actually something that has bothered me for a while now on JT. Cot mattressess should NOT be reused and there is a very good reason.
It's got to do with urine/faeces and vomit trapped in the fibres, which then releases toxins which may be a factor in SID (Sudden Infant Death) Syndrome.
A lot of the newer mattresses have removable covers for ease of cleaning but even these are not recommended to be used for more than one child.
It doesn't matter how often you clean the mattress/cover it is still not recommended to reuse a child's mattress.
I know babies are expensive - I've done it twice now - and I'm not trying to be melodramatic here, but surely a mattress is a small price to pay when it comes down to a factor which could be the difference between life and death.
IMO, cot mattresses should be banned from JT, or at least not included in the baby/child section. Obviously they can be used for other things - we used our first one for the dogs bed and the second was used for padding in the van when my hubby transported motorbikes. But I do think that Admin should consider this issue and possibly check the facts and maybe just place a sticky warning up on the relevant section.

[biker chick]

I agree as a mum of two i got a new mattress for my 2nd child & passed on the cot bed to a cousin without the mattress,these should be banned from jt for health & safety reasons for our children!

[Chris P]

Hi Everyone,

Thanks for the feedback so far on this thread.

Any more thoughts on the life-cycling/re-use of cot mattresses?

Regards
Chris P
Admin

[jenniferalan]

Was looking at a website called
http://www.cotlife2000.com/


It has information on this topic, this paragraph is particulary important


"Proof that the risk of cot death rises from first to second babies in families; and from second to third babies; and from third to fourth and later babies; and that babies of solo parents are at higher risk again (a corollary of the fact that re-use of mattresses increases the risk of cot death):
Analysis of official British cot death statistics (Source: Office of National Statistics, United Kingdom)

The finding of the rising risk of cot death from one sibling to the next refutes every proposition that cot death has a medical cause. The more times an unwrapped mattress is used from one baby to the next, the greater is the risk of cot death.

This accounts for the higher cot death rate among lower socio-economic families, who are more likely to sleep babies on secondhand mattresses.

If a mattress contains any of the elements phosphorus, arsenic or antimony, and if certain household fungi have become established in the mattress during prior use, any generation of toxic gas commences sooner and in greater volume."

[lislaw]

Yeah, scary stuff!!

I'm sure we could come up with some really good uses for them, though, considering how inventive and resourceful most of us JTer's seem to be.

Lisa.

[roo12]

The dog has always benifited from the old mattress's by cutting them in half and putting in his kennel, have 4 kids so gone through quiet a few ....

[colmsmum]

Not sure if this has been mentioned before but how about seat pads for kitchen chairs made from the foam from cot mattresses! Anyone handy (and there's a lot here!) with a sewing machine could make zip covers to match one's decor. I know they might be a bit high but it would boost up the little ones in the family and save a few quid. Just an idea!

[kiwicooke]

Could you make some kind of bean bag out of them chopped up into tiny little pieces? put them into a beanbag and that might keep it puffed up..

I seen someone asking where they could get bean bag filler, but why not use the chopped up cot matteress?

I agree with everyone about the cot matteresses, i wouldn't trust any other matteress apart from a brand new one.

[Chris P]

Hi Everyone,

Thanks for the feedback on this important subject.

The consensus seems to be that cot mattresses should be re-purposed or recycled rather than
life-cycled/re-used. I'll add cot mattresses to the "Prohibited List" in the User Guide.

Regards
Chris P
Admin

[sparklyirisheyes]

Yes these def should be banned, i can't believe they weren't! I'm still on my campaign to get JT to lift the ban on cosmetics, I have so much stuff to give away as does every girl! How bout it Chris?! How come you can sell used cosmetics on eBay? Could you consider allowing new sealed cosmetics to be givin away on this site?
(sorry i've gone totally off the point, well done for banning cot matresses!)


Hi Everyone,

Thanks for the feedback on this important subject.

The consensus seems to be that cot mattresses should be re-purposed or recycled rather than
life-cycled/re-used. I'll add cot mattresses to the "Prohibited List" in the User Guide.

Regards
Chris P
Admin

[Chris P]

Yes these def should be banned, i can't believe they weren't! I'm still on my campaign to get JT to lift the ban on cosmetics, I have so much stuff to give away as does every girl! How bout it Chris?! How come you can sell used cosmetics on eBay? Could you consider allowing new sealed cosmetics to be givin away on this site?
(sorry i've gone totally off the point, well done for banning cot matresses!)
Hi sparklyirisheyes,

The Managers of the Jumbletown have no plans to lift the ban on any type of cosmetic or lotion.

The thread for this particular discussion can be found in the Support Forum...here:
http://www.jumbletown.ie/forums/showthread.php?t=31962


Regards
Chris P
Admin

[elbo]

My daughters never used the same cot mattress (or pram mattress) more than once. Always bought new ones for each child.
I know they said it was something to do with SID syndrome.

[misstake]

Well as a mum now a granny i disagree with you all The cot bought for my youngest now 23 is still in use in my house and all my six grandkids slept on it So thank god they are all healthy and well if you had your way i would need four mattresses here as four still sleep in the cot when they stay over lol not at the same time Sorry i just had to say my piece
We really are becoming a nation of fusspots and with all this new progress you would think any type of disease would be erradicated Instead more children suffer from asthma and exema than ever before
just my opinion thanks for reading

[bluecurlygirl]

My son's cot was bought second hand with the mattress and when he finished with it I handed it on to someone who had gotten rid of all hers years previous (thought she was finished!) and it did the rounds after that too. My daughters cot was also second hand with the mattress. Her moses basket had been slept in by two of her cousins and after she finished with it another cousin slept in it. Her cot has been given (with mattress) to a neighbour whose grandson comes to stay now and again. I really think that they don't know for sure what causes SID so they'll blame everything that comes in close contact with the child. Hope they don't suggest that us mothers should be disposed of too as the kids got sick on me numerous times. I did of course wash but who knows - maybe there's microscopic traces left in the furrows on my brow or something!! Not making a laugh of the issue. It is serious and a neighbour of mine had a child died from SIDS. I'll never forget it. But banning cot mattresses on jumbletown? They'd make lovely window seat pads guys.

P.S. All the aforementioned children are alive and well and healthy thus far.

[gillo]

Have to agree with the last 2 posters on this. Never until we all became so health and hygiene conscious in this country have we seen so many children with intolerances to food, air and God knows what. Asthma has increased 10 fold since major warnings were given about smoking, and 20- 30 years ago nut allergies and the like were virtually unheard of, nowadays they are common place. Children born today have no resistance to anything because they're not let build up immunity to them. I'm not saying that smoking and not being clean are actually good for you, but I really feel that we all go totally over the top sometimes, and to suggest that a new mattress is needed every time a new baby uses a cot in my opinion is ridiculous. I have a funny feeling this might have been a suggestion initially made by the manufacturers of these products. How do they account for the little ones who die that are first borns and therefore first users of the cot and mattress. Also in Asia where babies sleep in the same bed as their parents for the first 2 years of their lives, the incidence of cot death or SIDS is much lower than here or the States. Just my opinion on this, regards to all

[bluecurlygirl]

Well as a mum now a granny i disagree with you all The cot bought for my youngest now 23 is still in use in my house and all my six grandkids slept on it So thank god they are all healthy and well if you had your way i would need four mattresses here as four still sleep in the cot when they stay over lol not at the same time Sorry i just had to say my piece
We really are becoming a nation of fusspots and with all this new progress you would think any type of disease would be erradicated Instead more children suffer from asthma and exema than ever before
just my opinion thanks for reading

I'm with you misstake - would they be suffering because of the continually sterile environment we put them in? We remove everything that could probably make them sick, we wash down our surfaces with disinfectant etc. and we expose them to nothing therefore they cannot build up any resistance and the smallest germ causes a big reaction. I worried recently about a neighbours child coming into my house to play with my daughter - why? His house is shining, always clean very sterile (lovely house don't get me wrong) - mine - sticky finger marks on the telly, dog hairs on the mat in front of the fire (and on the sofa where she sneaks up!!) and a thin layer of dust on the fireplace. I was full sure he'd leave my house sick because he wouldn't be used to that. I still prefer my house though with the fingerprints - you know that someone lives there!!