Most Baby Sleep Aids Don’t Work. Some Are Downright Deadly.

Every parent would love to get more sleep when they have a newborn. The problem is clear: babies are “bad” sleepers. They get up at all hours of the morning and night, and that means Mom and Dad have to get up, too. Many parents are willing to pay a lot for help getting their baby to sleep – especially if both parents work. The manufacturers run the gamut from parents who design products based on their own experiences with their infants to large corporations.

According to a recent Washington Post article, the promise of peaceful slumber has developed into a “sleep industrial complex.” Manufacturers sell $300 million baby sleep aids on a yearly basis. Self-rocking bassinets can cost as much as $1500. Cribs with “laser-cut air holes in clear acrylic sides” cost $3200. Unfortunately, the reality is different than the dream. In many (probably most) cases, these products and devices won’t save parents from constant nighttime interruptions and early-morning fatigue. Even worse, many of them put your baby at serious risk.

Why infant sleeping is such a safety concern

While sleep seems so natural for adults, sleeping is dangerous for babies. For children under one-year-old, the leading cause of fatal accident deaths is dying unexpectedly during their sleep. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 3,400 infants die each year due to Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS) and other related causes. Experts say that that the sleep products are a factor in these deaths.

But as the Washington Post explains, the safest “sleep environment for babies according to experts is also the simplest: a bare and flat surface, free of bedding or stuffed animals, with the baby on her back.” The problem is that that bare surface method seems too cold for parents, and babies generally don’t like the bare surface method, either. The thought process for many moms and dads is that “babies need to be nestled in plush surroundings…stoked by the child-rearing beliefs of older generations and decades of consumer marketing.”

Larger companies are producing dangerous baby sleep products

Fisher-Price’s Rock ‘n Play infant sleeper sold 4.7 million products starting in 2009. There were complaints though that the sleeper failed to comply with safe-sleep standards. The sleeper inclined/rocked instead of lying flat. Several pediatricians complained to Fisher-Price. It took until 2019 for serious concerns about the sleeper began to be heard. After 30 infants died after using the sleeper, Fisher-Price agreed to a recall. Different businesses that had their own Rock ‘n Play versions recalled their sleepers too.

According to testimony before a US House Oversight and Reform Committee hearing, the Rock ‘n Play may be responsible for as many as 90 infants deaths. Parents whose babies died, according to the Washington Post article, were “stunned to discover they could buy a baby product that had not been proved safe.” The Rock n’ Play sleeper wasn’t required to meet federal product safety standards.

Parents say that they just “assumed” a regulatory such as the Consumer Product Safety Commission had approved the baby sleep product. The parents are surprised to learn that the CPSC and other federal agencies generally only get involved – AFTER problems and complaints become known. Federal agencies can’t always force a recall. They may need to go to court to force the recall.

Not all infant sleep products are dangerous, though

On the successful safety side of the sleep aid product business, according to the Washington Post article, is the $1,500 Snoo bassinet, invented by a pediatrician (who constructed an empire from his “Happiest Baby on the Block” books) that appears to follow safety guidelines. The product can also be rented for $139 a month.

What are the mandatory safety standards for baby sleep aids?

Some products are subject to “mandatory safety standards, such as standard cribs, bassinets and strollers. The rules, for example, limit the space between crib slats, to prevent strangulation. They control how steeply bassinets can incline. And they regulate stroller design to avoid pinching fingers.”

The Consumer Product Safety Commission, in response to the Rock n’ Play loophole, just voted to mandate that all infant sleep products meet current safety standards starting in 2022. The ban is likely to affect sleepers and other sleep-aid products for infants. Stores should stop the sales. Parents should return or destroy the covered products.

The vote (or future votes) could also affect in-bed sleepers that are made to allow infants to share their parent’s bed. The CPSC vote was supported by many pediatricians and advocacy groups, but was opposed by manufacturers who argue that that “the new rule wasn’t justified and could lead to unintended consequences as parents leave their babies to sleep in even riskier places — like their beds.”

Rachel Weintraub, general counsel at Consumer Federation of America, stated that the manufacturer’s argument is not persuasive. She said, “That’s not a reason not to do the right thing.”

For now, “Bare might be best.”

At Cunningham & Mears, our highly skilled Oklahoma City product liability lawyers work with product safety experts to help prove baby products, electronic products, drugs, car parts, and other products are defective. In product liability cases, there is no need to prove negligence. We file wrongful death cases when children or adults tragically die due to a product defect. We file personal injury cases when product defects cause brain trauma, broken bones, bones, and any type of injury. To file a legal claim for compensation, contact us today in Oklahoma City, or call 405-232-1212 for a free initial consultation.