Baby walkers—are they good?

Baby walkers (or push walkers with wheels) let babies stand and move around before they can walk on their own. But today's pediatric advice is against using them.

Here's why:

• Safety risk: Babies in walkers can suddenly speed up, tip over at stairs, or have falls and serious head injuries.
• Won't help with learning to walk: Walkers don't build the balance, hip, and core strength your baby needs to walk naturally. They can even lead to bad walking habits (like tippy-toe walking).
• Better options exist: Stationary activity centers, push toys (the kind baby pushes), and lots of floor play time help your baby build strength and balance at their own pace.

Bottom line: Skip the walker. Instead, let your baby crawl, pull up to stand while holding onto furniture, and use a safe push toy for support. That's the healthiest way.