- There are so many high chairs out there
that range in price from extremely cheap
to extremely expensive.
But not all high chairs are great for babies.
As a pediatric occupational therapist,
I know that when you choose the wrong high chair
it can lead to babies who are fussy eaters,
mealtimes that are extremely stressful
and babies who simply will not sit still.
So to ensure that you choose a high chair
that's best for your baby,
I'm gonna share with you six key questions
that you should ask yourself
when looking at buying a high chair.
But before we do,
make sure you click on that free PDF document
in the description box below
which covers the developmental milestones
you can be expecting in your baby's first year of life.
This will give you an invaluable piece of mind
as you'll know what to expect and when to be concerned.
Also, if you wanna make parenting significantly easier,
make sure you start now by subscribing to my channel
and hitting that bell where you'll learn
the tips and tricks I've learned over the last 10 years,
practicing as a pediatric occupational therapist
and being a mom to two children.
So the first question you wanna ask yourself is
does the high chair have an adjustable foot rest.
A foot rest on a high chair is extremely important
because at six months of age,
your baby's not yet able to sit for a long period of time.
And that foot rest gives them the postural stability
they need to sit for a longer period of time.
An ability to use a foot rest on a high chair
is going to be extremely important at six months of age,
and future years of using that high chair.
There are some high chairs out there
that don't even provide foot rest support
like the IKEA Antilop high chair,
or there's high chairs
with semi adjustable foot rest support
where you can move the foot rest into three different slots
as your baby gets bigger.
I find that a typically a six month old, seven
and even eight months old,
generally can't reach that first foot rest.
So they're not actually getting any foot support.
Then you have high chairs that have foot rests
which have extreme adjustability.
Like the Stokke Tripp Trapp chair
which has multiple different slots,
which ensures that a baby at six months of age
will have that foot support straight away.
Now the Stokke Tripp Trapp high chair is a high chair
that I think is the best out there.
And I do recommend it to parents
and I use it at home with my children.
If you wanna know why
then click on the link above
where I go into more detail
about the benefits of the Stokke Tripp Trapp chair.
The second question you wanna ask is does the high chair
have the ability to accommodate a growing baby and toddler?
Now, what I mean by that is
you wanna check the overall weight capacity
of the high chair.
So some high chairs have a weight capacity
which is quite low,
like the IKEA Antilop high chair
which has a weight capacity of 15 kilos or 33 pounds.
Now my two year old son is already at 15 kilos.
So technically he wouldn't be able to use that high chair
and I'd then have to go and purchase another high chair.
Or you can get high chairs
that have a higher weight capacity,
like the Stokke Tripp Trapp high chair,
which has a weight capacity of 110 kilograms or 242 pounds,
which is huge.
Your baby and toddler and child
is never gonna reach this.
So that seating system will last from a six month old baby,
all the way into adulthood.
The other thing I look at
when looking at the ability to grow
is the ability to have that adjustable foot rest
and the adjustable seat height.
So you want a high chair
where you can adjust those levels
so that as your baby grows, you can lower that foot rest
and that seat height if required
so that they'll always have their ideal seating position
for meal times.
The third question you wanna ask is
is the high chair going to be easy to clean?
Meal times are gonna be extremely messy.
They're going to be messy when your baby's six months of age
when they're one and when they're two and three.
What we want to encourage is a messy meal time.
And that's because we know that babies
who play with their food and touch
and interact with their food
are less likely to be fussy eaters
and are going to eat a higher variety of food.
So we wanna embrace the mess.
So you want a high chair
that is going to be really easy to clean.
Otherwise, it's gonna be a very stressful experience
for you.
So high chairs that are generally easier to clean
are those that are made of plastic or wood
and they don't have any kind of covers on it.
So you can simply wipe down that material
that plastic or the wood
and then you've finished cleaning the high chair.
The ones that have a plastic cover over it.
Yes they're wipeable but food tends to get caught
in the creases of the covers
and also in the little slits
where the harnesses are thread through the covers.
So it's really difficult to clean.
The fourth question you wanna ask
is when my baby is sitting in the high chair
are they able to sit at the dining table
and eat with the family?
Again, we know that eating with the family
during meal times is really important
because it shows the babies how to eat the food
because we are eating them ourselves
and we're showing them what to do
with the food in our mouth.
We're also showing that babies
that the food is safe because we're eating it as well.
And this all results in babies
who are less likely to be fussy eaters
and will eat a variety of food.
So having a high chair which can go straight up
to the dining table is perfect.
There are high chairs that come with trays
which you can remove.
And then the high chair can just slide up
to the dining table.
But if that isn't able to occur,
then that high chair I would say is not ideal
because they have to use that tray.
The other added benefit
of being able to use the dining table
instead of a tray is that it's easier to clean up
because you simply just wipe the dining table
versus needing to clean that tray.
The fifth question you wanna ask is
does the high chair have a harness?
Now, a harness is important in the high chair
because it ensures your baby's safety.
They're always meant to be supervised
when using the high chair
you shouldn't be leaving a baby
when they're in the high chair,
but it just prevents them from being able to climb
out of the high chair and topple over.
What you can look at is with high chairs,
there's two different types.
You've got that five-point harness
which is the safest option.
So it goes over the shoulders,
around the hips,
and then there's a strap that comes up between the legs.
That's a safer harness.
The best harness available.
But it is more tricky to use.
And then you've got the three-point harness
which is a harness that just goes around the waist
and up between the legs.
Parents do find that easier to use
which might be something you want to consider.
I would generally lean towards the five-point harness.
And if a high chair that you're looking at
doesn't have a harness at all,
then I would think that that high chair
isn't necessarily the safest option.
Now, the sixth question you wanna ask yourself is
whether or not the high chair is affordable for you.
Now, you do have a variety of costs for high chairs.
There are cheaper versions and more expensive versions.
Personally, I bought the Tripp Trapp chair
for my first child
and for my second child I bought a mocker
because it's slightly cheaper
but it has the same features of the Tripp Trapp chair.
But if you're looking at buying a cheaper chair
just make sure you look at
the overall weight capacity of the seat
and ensure that you're not gonna need to buy a new chair
at two years of age
when your baby no longer fits that high chair
because they're over the weight capacity
of like say 15 kilos
which then increases your overall costs
of purchasing high chairs for your baby.
Now you will notice
when you're looking at purchasing high chairs,
there are additional features
that you can get in the high chair.
These features I do not think are required in a high chair
and that is the ability to recline the high chair,
simply because at six months of age,
when you're first introducing solids,
babies should be upright in their seat
or slightly off upright.
We don't want them reclined or lying back really far
because that isn't a safe position to be in when eating
it's safer to be upright.
And then when they're upright
they're also able to use their hands well and see the food.
The other feature I don't think is important in a high chair
is wheels.
And that's simply because I have never seen a parent wheel
a high chair from one room to another.
Generally once a high chair is set up in a house
it stays in that same position
every time I come and visit.
So it's not being moved around.
Another feature I don't think it's important in a high chair
is portability.
And that's simply because I have never moved my high chair
from my house to another house.
Generally, if I'm going to a restaurant
I'll use the high chairs there.
And if there's not a high chair,
then I would use the pram
with the baby sitting upright in that pram.
And the last feature I don't necessarily think
is important in a high chair
is the ability to fold a high chair.
And that is simply because at six months of age,
yes, your baby's only having solids one time a day.
And after that mealtime,
you might fold the high chair and put it away.
But by 12 months of age,
your baby's going to be having meals five times a day
which means every two and a half hours
they're going to be eating in the high chair.
I have not seen parents fold up high chairs
and put it away in between each meal time,
unless space was limited.
And if that was the case, then yes,
looking at a high chair that has that ability to fold
is important.
So parents, those are the six key questions
you need to ask yourself to ensure
that you choose the best high chair for your baby.
And also some additional features in a high chair
that I don't think are required.
Make sure you click on that free PDF document
in the description box below.
And hopefully I'll see you next week
where I'll share more parenting tips and tricks.
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