A number of common nursery products can be unsafe for babies, according to a sleep expert. And it’s related to development of infants. Amanda Jewson told CTV’s Your Morning on Friday that certain products could create an obstruction for breathing in infants who have still-developing airways. When their heavy heads go down, their breathing can be affected. “They are still figuring out how to move and move themselves away from danger,” Jewson explained. “Recently rolling babies may not be able to roll in a way from scary things or bad things.” A 10-year study of infant sleep-related deaths in the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) found that “several hundred infants” fall victim to sleep-related deaths in sitting devices like car seats, bouncers or swings used improperly for routine sleep, every year. The study examined 11,779 infant sleep-related deaths and found that three per cent died in sitting devices, most in car seats. In most instances, the car seats were being used improperly, a press release for the study published in 2019 said. “About 3,700 infants die every year from sleep-related deaths, which include sudden infant death syndrome, accidental suffocation and strangulation in bed, and other ill-defined deaths,” it said. When asked about whether inclined sleepers, swings and rockers could be dangerous for babies, the sleep expert answered: “yes.” “People often panic when we talk about inclines, mostly because we use those for car seats,” Jewson said. “But remember that things like car seats can be clipped in at an appropriate angle so baby’s head stays in a safe way.” She added that parents should be careful when removing a car seat and to not use it incorrectly outside of the car. “It clips them kind of back, and it can’t be replicated outside of the car. Ninety per cent of car seat deaths happen when the car seat was being used incorrectly, so that’s key,” she said. Speaking about crib bumpers, the sleep expert said it’s a “big no,” because it’s full of fabric and padding. “A bump or even a bruise is harmless compared to a baby who rolls and puts them in a suffocation risk zone,” Jewson said. “It’s still fabric against the airway. It cannot be used.” Resold under new names According to the sleep expert, items like weighted sleep racks can be an issue if a baby is unable to move away from danger. However, items like regular sleep sacks or swaddles are not dangerous as long as babies have full movement in their hips. When asked about loungers and nets, Jewson said she doesn’t understand “why this was ever on the market.” “You will see these products be recalled, pulled off the market, and then resold under other things under other names,” she said, repeating that it surrounds the baby with fabric and padding. The item looks like an inflatable raft that becomes similar to a nest, the sleep expert explained. “Parents are taking these, putting them in the crib, doubling the risk of putting that padding against a hard surface. If you’re doing that, please stop,” Jewson said. “It is a significant safety concern.”
