Infant & Toddler Seating
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One of the questions I get asked most often is what is my favorite high chair for a baby? I thought it would be helpful to address this in a blog post where I could talk about what I look for in seating for babies and kids, why its important and then link a few of my favorites for you.
The issue that I see with the majority of high chairs on the market today is that they are missing out on one very fundamental requirements that help children be independent eaters at mealtime. In order for children to sit up, to see their food, to be able to pick things up with their fingers or to utilize a utensil and then to properly digest their food, they need to be S T A B L E. And that is what I find that most highchairs on the market today are lacking in - stability.
STABLITY IS IMPORTANT
Most highchairs have a reclining back, not seating baby (who has unstable core muscles as it is) in the proper position for feeding. For the life of me, I cannot understand why a highchair would need to be reclined for an infant who is learning to self feed and swallow. Besides an unstable back rest, they typically have the foot rest for high chairs wayyy off and leave babys feet dangling during mealtime. This is also very proplematic because when we’re eating, it is important for our bottoms and our feet to be stable. The more stable of a base we have, the more it gives us the freedom to use our best fine motor skills for feeding.
In other words, how is a child, who is learning to eat something like soup, for example, able to do such a difficult task of bringing the soup to their mouth, when theyre wobbling back and forth in space?
So - feet stable, back support. Those are so important. Look for a high chair with an adjustable foot rest that can grow with your child. Make sure the back rest (if it is adjustable) is always in an upright position so that baby doesn’t have to do a core workout during their entire meal.
This is the same for toddler. Toddlers and older children who are seated at a table need to have their feet on the floor or on something stable. No dangling feet. Stable feet helps them to use their utensils better and also can help those kiddos who have issues sitting sit still during mealtime. Grab a few shoe boxes and tape them to the bottom of your childs chair if you need to. This is a trick we use for table wigglers often in therapy.
TRAY HEIGHT
The height of the tray is important too. It needs to be at elbow level so that baby can 1) see their food properly and 2) reach and obtain the food. Often times I see babies with their trays way too high and they cannot effectively use their upper extremities to grab and obtain the food.
I see this often with toddler seating too. It happens because children are small and they’re often sitting in an adult size chair at an adult size table. Kids need to be able to be above their food at eye level. Grab a few pillows or some good old fashion phone books or a booster seat to make sure your kiddo is seated properly to use their fine motor skills during mealtime.
90-90-90 RULE FOR KIDS SEATING
Children at mealtime need to be at 90/90/90 degrees - meaning look for a 90 degree angle at their hips, knees, ankles and even their elbows! 90 Degree angles also plays a role in proper digestion too.
MY FAVORITE HIGHCHAIRS & TODDLER SEATING
With all that being said, I figured it would be helpful for me to recoccomend a few brands that I approve of. You can find them all below. They vary in size, material and price but they all meet my basic requirements for stability. Many of them grow with your child from an infant all the way into childhood, which I find very nice. So they might cost a lot upfront, but in the long run, they will more than pay theirselves off.
Click on the image below to find out more about each chair.
