I would venture to say that the vast majority of injuries from infant bedding & furniture and toys is a result of improper set-up and assembly and also from lack of parental guidance/attention.
For instance, I saw something on t.v. recently about a certain brand of cribs being recalled because 3 babies tragically died. Well, when they got further into the story, in all 3 cases, the parents installed the sliding piece of the crib (that lowers & raises) upside down thus it was falling on it's own and the babies somehow got caught by it. Tragic? Of course. But recall worthy? No. Just because people don't know how to follow directions and/or refuse to use the assembly directions doesn't mean a product isn't safe.
Also, in terms of walkers making babies late in actual walking, this applies mainly to children who are already motorly delayed. Many studies have been done comparing children in 3rd world countries who are worn bundled on the backs of their working mothers constantly and children in other countries who have had all kinds of "freedom" and stimulation to help them achieve their motor milestones, and you know what? There was a very small difference in the time frame that children from each group met the walking milestone, thus showing that it's more of an ingrained feature than a truly learned one.
As a mother of a child who has had motor delays, I still employed the use of the Exersaucer and even the walker as a means of getting my child up off the floor where he spent all his time (he couldn't hold his head up off the floor when on his stomach until 9 months due to his "big" head size). However, he could sit up fine, so why not let him sit up in various positions and be stimulated in other ways? BUT he wasn't raised by the Exersaucer or the walker as I also did all kinds of exercises with him and therapy with him. And he's just fine today....no delays as he's caught up. Moral of the story? If you allow a toy to raise your child, there will be problems. But when used properly, all of these things can bring fun and excitment and stimulation into your child's life.
