NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WTVF) — A lot of people enjoy those weighted blankets...especially at this time of year as the temperature starts to drop. But weighted blankets are not for everyone.
Weighted blankets are a popular trend for adults, but the American Academy of Pediatrics strongly warns that weighted baby blankets, swaddles and sleep sacks are not safe and not recommended for babies.
“One of the risks is suffocation," explained Dr. Wanda Abreu from the Columbia Presbyterian Morgan Stanley Children’s Hospital. "Babies can get trapped under the weight of the blanket and not be able to breathe or get enough air.”
A baby’s body is also inherently different from an adults’, and putting any weight on its chest is problematic.
“The weight on their chest, ribcage and abdomen can limit the ability for them to move the muscles required for breathing and this can lead to asphyxiation,” said Dr. Abreu.
Two main manufacturers of weighted sleep products for babies—Nested Bean and Dreamland Baby— both told Consumer Reports that a lack of reported injuries related to their increasingly popular products shows that they are safe.
But the Consumer Product Safety Commission has said that there is at least one infant death involving a weighted product.
“Parents will be even more trusting of products they see for sale if they have a label that says this meets industry standards, maybe not realizing that those standards are largely written by the companies that are making and selling those products,” said Consumer Reports' Lauren Kirchner.
Doctors recommend that babies should only sleep alone, on their back, on a firm flat surface, and with nothing else around them.
Congress passed the Safe Sleep for Babies Act last year which bans both inclined sleepers and crib bumper pads as they were blamed for dozens of deaths. But this law does not apply to things like baby sleep attire, like swaddles or sleep sacks.
