Remind me why using an old crib mattress is bad?

If a child is almost 2 years old and not at risk for SIDS anymore, is there any reason why she can't sleep on an old crib mattress? As in, a really old one -- like almost 40 years old???

Sarah and I are going to visit my parents next month (Amy is staying home with Daddy). My mother is planning on using the same crib she has had since I was a baby. She promises she will make sure it's up to current safety standards.

I know a lot of people will have a heart attack just at the thought, but I feel I really have no choice on the crib and just have to trust her. (She's generally trustworthy.) However, I do not want Sarah sleeping on a 37-year-old crib mattress, but I can't think of any good reasons why it would be so bad (again, assuming the springs aren't sticking out or something).

I would be happy to mail my mom a check to go buy a new mattress, but I think she's getting exasperated with me, so I'd like to have a good objective source to cite when I tell her why it matters. Help!

 

Dust mites, allergens and general 37 year old gunk and goo. Plus, old mattresses aren't very soft, they tend to have springs right under the surface of the fabric because the materials they used 40 years ago (cotton mostly) for padding will decay and shift.

 

QUOTE(Her Royal Jennyness @ Sep 24 2007, 06:41 PM) [snapback]421231[/snapback]
Dust mites, allergens and general 37 year old gunk and goo. Plus, old mattresses aren't very soft, they tend to have springs right under the surface of the fabric because the materials they used 40 years ago (cotton mostly) for padding will decay and shift.

Ohter the ew, this was the first thing that came to mind, dust mites and allergens, and being one that is really sensitive to that stuff I would probably push for new.

Good luck, could you pick one up when you get there, or enlist the help of someone else there?

 

Yup, the dust mites and allergens is what would set off my alarm bells. One of my girls is already diagnosed with asthma-like symptoms, though, and my husband has asthma, so I am probably more sensitive to that that some people. (Though obviously not more than the other posters in the thread, LOL!) Seriously -- where has this mattress been stored for the last 30 years? If it's just been shoved in a corner of the basement or the attic -- NO WAY!

 

maybe if hauling in a brand new mattress to your mom's house would be offensive, maybe you could just bring in a complete mattress cover -- an allergen one. spray down the mattress with lysol then put the mattress cover on it then the mattress pad, then the sheet.

just a thoght.

 

Yeah, I would be having an allergy attack too. Can you bring a PNP for the trip? Or direct her to a consignment shop with one fairly cheap?

 

Thanks everyone! I told her I would send her a check for a new one. Sarah did have a cough nearly all of last winter and was diagnosed with RAD (which hopefully won't turn into full-blown asthma) and had to use an inhaler for a couple of months, so I used that as my primary reason. My mom said "I see your point(s) -- well taken."

 

I like the idea PP suggested about enlisting the help of someone else. Brother, sister, IL locally that could pick one up for you and 'sneak it in"?