The Baby Box Co. just launched a new program to provide safe-sleep certified Baby Boxes to all new parents in Ontario.

Jennifer Clary, CEO and Founder of The Baby Box Co., with one of the first Ontario mothers receiving their Baby Box. (CNW Group/The Baby Box Co.)
Jennifer Clary, CEO and Founder of The Baby Box Co., with one of the first Ontario mothers receiving their Baby Box. 

 

Each box will serve as the perfect care package to welcome your new little bundle of joy home. Each Baby Box will come with high-quality baby items, including:

  • A firm mattress
  • A waterproof cover
  • 100% cotton fitted sheet
  • A baby onesie
  • Pampers diapers and wipes
  • A diaper tote bag
  • Cloth breast pads
  • Baby body wash and shampoo
  • Teether
  • Good Night Sleep Site 
  • Vroom baby brain booting activities
  • Hello Fresh Free meal delivery vouchers
  • Parents Canada magazines

The box itself is meant to be used as a baby’s first bed. It can be used up to when the child is about 6 months old. The Baby Box Co’s core mission is to provide a safe sleeping environment for babies, in order to reduce SIDS (something that no mother should have to go through!) and other sleep-related infant deaths.

Each box meets relevant safety standards and Health Canada’s bassinet standard. All materials used are non-toxic and environmentally safe.

The box is available for FREE to all new parents who had or will have a baby after August 1, 2016. The one requirement, though, is that parents must complete Baby Box University. The course, primarily established in coordination with healthcare and child development professionals, aims to provide education and resources to new parents.

The Baby Box Program draws inspiration from an old tradition from Finland that dates all the way back to the 1930s. New mothers were given a Baby Box by the state containing necessities for newborns. And the box itself came lined with a mattress and became the baby’s first bed. How cute is that??

baby box
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The tradition started because of the high infant mortality rate in Finland back then (perhaps due to lack of proper education and items for care). In 1938, the infant mortality rate was 65 deaths for every 1,000 babies born (6.5%). Since the Baby Box program started, that rate has steadily declined to just 0.03% in 2013. Finland is now a country with one of the world’s lowest infant mortality rates.

Now, The Baby Box Co. is introducing this tradition in Ontario! Every year, 145,000 Baby Boxes will be distributed in Ontario hospitals, community agencies, and health centers, making it the largest Baby Box program in the world.

Canada’s other provinces – don’t worry! The Baby Box Co. is planning on launching similar programs in other provinces later this year.

To register, learn more, and to see a list of participating hospitals in Ontario, please visit http://www.babyboxco.com/blogs/news/all-about-ontario.