3 Products You Didn't Know Are Sleep Hazards - Babies Development

These everyday items can unexpectedly become sleep hazards, particularly in certain situations, and where the baby is left unsupervised.

In this article I'll show you what these items are, and explain why they create an increased risk for your baby when they are left to sleep in them.

In fact, one of these items has been linked to several recent deaths in infants due to them being left to sleep in them.

That led to the U.S Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) and Fisher-Price issuing a public statement reminding parents not to let their baby sleep in them.

But please don't panic if you have these items or if your baby does fall asleep in some of them.

3 Products You Didn't Know Are Sleep Hazards

Leaving your baby to sleep in the car seat or capsule after you've arrived at your destination is often quite tempting but you might be surprised to hear that leaving your little one asleep in a car seat or capsule for an extended period of time, particularly when unsupervised, actually increases the risk of accidental suffocation, and positional asphyxiation.

Product 1

This is one of three everyday products that a baby, particularly a newborn, should never sleep in unsupervised or for long periods of time due to the increased SIDS risk.

In this article, you're going to learn about all three, starting with car seats and capsules.

The main purpose of a car seat is to protect infants and children from injury and death in car accidents.

They are not designed for safe sleeping.

It may be really tempting to leave your baby to sleep in a car seat after the journey's finished but it's really important to take that baby out of the car seat or capsule once you arrive at your destination.

Now, I know how hard this is.

The last thing you want to do when your baby is sound asleep in a capsule is actually wake them up and take them out.

But the reason I say this is because research has shown that when babies are left in an upright or slanted position, which is the position that they are in when they're in a car seat or a capsule, and they're unsupervised or they're in it for a long period of time, they may be placed at increased risk of Sudden Infant Death.

And there're a few reasons for this.

Firstly, when a baby is sitting in a car seat or a capsule, the baby's neck may actually fall forward and put them in that chin to chest position.

And when they're in this position, it actually blocks the baby's airways and can lead to positional asphyxiation.

Now, parents often use pillows as a way to counteract this but it should be noted that these pillows should never be placed in a car seat or a capsule and this is because babies can actually twist their head into that soft padding, which is being used to prop them up and that can lead to suffocation, or the pillow itself may move or it can exaggerate that chin to chest position.

Another reason the babies are at increased risk of sudden infant death is because when they're in a car seat, the extra padding in car seats, which are required to ensure your little one's safety in the case of a car accident can actually increase the baby's overall body temperature and result in overheating.

And overheating is a known risk factor for Sudden Infant Death in infants, and SIDS.

And lastly, if you use a car seat or the capsule outside of the car, then your baby's at risk of falling from the car seat or capsule or becoming trapped.

You might be thinking this is absolutely ridiculous.

I've never heard of it happening to a baby and it's certainly never going to happen to mine.

But the US National Center for Fatality Review and Prevention Data from 2004 to 2014 found that there were 11,779 infant sleep-related deaths during that period and of those, 348 occurred in sitting devices, and of those 348 deaths, 62.

9% actually occurred in a child car seat.

And what's really interesting is more than half, so 51.

6% of those deaths that actually occurred in a car seat happened at the child's home.

So it definitely can happen, and I know I was definitely surprised and disappointed when I first learned about this.

The purpose for this article is for you to simply understand the risks so that you're able to make an informed decision about whether it's something you're happy or comfortable doing with your little one.

If you're wondering what you should do instead, Red Nose Australia and the American Academy of Pediatrics recommend that once a car journey is over, you should remove the baby from the capsule or the infant car seat, and if they are asleep, you need to place them in a safe sleeping environment.

Red Nose Australia also does not recommend using capsules which can be easily moved from the car and used with a pram.

 

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And the reason for this again is your baby is still in that slanted position, which increases the risk of positional asphyxiation.

If naps are something you are struggling with, which is often why parents use car seats and capsules to help the baby fall asleep, then make sure you download my free New Parents Guide to Naps, which you can find by clicking the link in the description box below.

Next up is baby bouncers, rockers, swings and gliders.

These can be great tools for soothing a baby and keeping them entertained while giving you a few moments with your hands free.

However, these infant products should never be used for infant sleep and this is due to a number of reasons.

Firstly, when sitting in these devices, babies are kept in an inclined position and when the baby actually falls asleep in this position, their head can fall forward and that would push their chin down towards their chest, which can lead to the baby's airways becoming obstructed or blocked, and that results in positional asphyxiation.

It's really important to note that asphyxiation is a silent killer.

This means that when your baby is having trouble breathing when they are in these devices, there are no visible signs to indicate or warn a parent that something is wrong.

So even if you're in the same room and keeping an eye on your baby, it can still happen without you realizing.

Secondly, babies are also at risk of rolling on to their tummy or their side when they're in these devices, and becoming trapped, which can be a suffocation risk.

And thirdly, if your baby is spending too much time in that bouncer, rocker, swing or glider, the constant pressure, which is being applied to the back of your baby's head actually increases the risk of your baby developing a flat spot on the back of their head.

Again, you may be thinking, this is an overreaction but this year in 2022, the US Consumer Product Safety Commission informed consumers that at least 13 reported deaths occurred between 2009 and 2021 while infants were in the Fisher and Price Infant-to-Toddler Rockers and Newborn-to-Toddler Rockers.

While they specifically mention the Fisher and Price products, as I mentioned earlier, the risk of death is due to the position they were in while using these products, and not unique to these specific products.

Basically all bouncers, rockers, swings and gliders place babies in the same position, which means the risk is always present when using these types of products.

This doesn't mean that you have to eliminate them completely but Red Nose Australia and the Academy of Pediatrics recommend only using baby bouncers, rockers, swings and gliders for supervised play time.

So babies should always be carefully supervised and restrained while they're in these types of products, and the equipment itself should always be on the floor, never on counter tops, tables or other elevated surfaces due to the risk of them falling out of the devices and sustaining significant injuries.

And if you notice that your little one is looking sleepy, or they have fallen asleep while they're in these devices, it's important to take them out of the device and place them in a safe sleeping environment.

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Now let's talk about weighted blankets and weighted swaddles.

So they are often referred to as calming blankets, sensory blankets, anxiety aids, or support blankets.

Now, although there is some evidence suggesting weighted products may be beneficial to certain population groups, there are currently no studies that show weighted products or blankets or swaddles are beneficial for infants.

This can often be very confusing because advertisers often state that studies show that weighted blankets and sleeping sacks are safe for infants during sleep but the evidence they're actually citing is based on a single study, which was published in Advances in Neonatal Care in 2020.

And in this study, the weighted blankets were actually placed on 16 infants in an intensive care unit with neonatal opioid withdrawal syndrome for 30 minutes at a time.

Now when the blankets were placed on these infants, the infants themselves were actually placed on heart rate and respiratory monitors during that entire time, and there was a member from the study team who actually remained in the infant's room and directly watched that baby for the entire time that that weighted blanket was being used.

And the weighted blanket itself was only being used for 30 minutes at a time.

Now, in the home environment, it's obviously not possible to watch your baby the entire time that they are sleeping.

So you cannot assume that it is actually safe to used weighted blankets or weighted sleeping bags at home.

In fact, using weighted blankets or weighted swaddles or sleeping bags with an infant can actually cause harm.

And this is due three reasons.

The weight of the weighted swaddle or blanket could actually make it difficult for your baby to expand their chest and take in that air, which reduces their ability to breathe properly.

In fact, there are babies that have died when pressure is being applied directly on or against their chest.

Also, the additional weight of a weighted blanket or a sleeping bag can actually make it more difficult for the child to roll from their tummy onto their back if they accidentally roll onto their stomach and we know that sleeping on one stomach, particularly in the early stages of their life actually significantly increases the risk of SIDS.

Also, if you are using a weighted blanket, then the weighted blankets itself can actually cover your baby's face and obstruct their breathing.

And lastly, because there are no safety regulations for these products, they are often made from heavy or thick materials and that can increase the risk of overheating and overheating is a known risk factor for SIDS.

So although advertisers promise weighted blankets and swaddles or sleeping bags can actually help your baby fall asleep quickly, and extend the time they're asleep for, in my opinion, it's best to stay away from them completely.

In addition to weighted blankets and swaddles, there are several baby sleep products that seem completely harmless but significantly increase the risk of suffocation, overheating, positional asphyxiation, and more.

Thanks for watching and I'll see you next week.