JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – A Consumer Reports investigation finds more infant sleep products can cause baby deaths.
Last week the Consumer Product Safety Commission called for a ban on sales of all inclined baby sleepers. The popular product has been implicated in at least 64 infant deaths across the country.
Many parents believe these "in-bed-sleeper" devices are safe, because it carves out a space for the baby when you put it in the bed with you. But the CPSC found at least 12 babies have died while in the sleepers.
Consumer Reports crunched the data from 2012 and 2018. The investigation found:
- Three babies died in the Baby Delight Snuggle Nest Infant Sleeper, which has sidewalls of mesh and fabric.
- Two deaths involved the SwaddleMe By Your Side Sleeper, which has a flat mattress and low mesh sidewalls
- Two deaths involved the DockATot, which is pillowlike and has a soft side bumper
Consumer Reports found five additional deaths linked to unidentified in-bed sleepers.
In some deaths, an independent medical examiner concluded: "the in-bed sleeper was not a contributing factor to the child's death."
Still, safety experts with Consumer Reports believe that none of these products have been adequately safety tested and none adhere to safe sleep recommendations from the American Academy of Pediatrics and other health agencies. Some are designed to have padding and soft surfaces that can block a baby's airflow, suffocating them. It also encourages bed-sharing, a practice that itself increases the risk of infant death, according to the investigation.
Bottom line -- experts say always put babies to sleep on their back in a bassinet, crib, play yard or bedside sleeper with no padded sides or blankets.
For more sleep advice, parents can follow the Safe Sleep recommendations from the American Academy of Pediatrics or call their pediatrician and ask for help.