「Is a baby bed necessary?」
「Various types of baby beds, which one is better?」
「Price differences, which one would suit my baby?」
The arrival of a newborn baby is always a mixed bag of excitement, nervousness, and anticipation for most parents. They are also often accompanied with a sea of wake-you-in-the-night questions: Newborns could sleep up to 16 hours a day, how can I assure my baby's sleeping? It's very vital to have a fit baby bed to make sure both the baby and the caregiver are well-rested. Below shows the ultimate buyer guide and has listed the types of baby beds that we can find in the current market, hopefully helping all the soon-to-be parents and newbie parents to know their needs and solve their concerns.
A detailed baby bed buying guide for newbie parents
1. Do I still need a baby bed when co-sleeping allows me to easily respond to my baby and makes breastfeeding easier?
「Co-sleeping helps babies feel safe and secure, and is less prone to crying.」
「When a baby is hungry, it's more practical and convenient to breastfeed.」
Most mommies think that co-sleeping will increase the baby's sense of security, also breastfeeding during the night can be easier and babies can be comforted immediately. So is it necessary to sleep separately? Despite the benefits mentioned above, co-sleeping is associated with an increased risk and impact such as sudden unexpected death in infancy (SUDI).
According to news reports, some babies have poor responses when they wake up from the night. When parents or objects (like pillows) unknowingly roll onto the baby at night, it would lead to injury, suffocation, or death. Besides, waking up frequently in the night to ensure babies' safety and sleeping may cause parents to suffer from low quality sleep. Therefore, experts recommend that babies should sleep independently and avoid co-sleeping with their parents.
A good baby bed is not only a good tool to help babies to foster independent sleep, in addition to ensuring the safety of the baby and the peace of mind of the parents.
2. Will babies be willing to sleep in a baby bed? It's a waste to buy it if babies are not sleeping on it.
「It's very hard to get the baby to sleep, as soon as I put him/her down on the baby bed, his/her eyes open immediately.」
「Repeating holding it and putting it down, babies could not sleep well and parents will be super tired.」
「No matter how you comfort it, babies rather calm down in their parents' arms than sleep in their baby bed.」
In many cases of frustration, parents often give up the baby bed and choose co-sleeping. The reason babies do not sleep in the baby bed is a lack of insecurity. Melatonin of a newborn baby is only released in extremely small amounts (Melatonin is a hormone produced in the pineal gland that helps with both sleep-onset and regulating sleep patterns), this caused most of the time babies are in the state of "light sleep", when parents are by their side and did not move them after falling asleep, then babies could sleep peacefully in the baby bed. Therefore, how to let the babies sleep independently in the baby bed accompanied by their parents has become the key to buying a baby bed.
3. If the use period is not long, should I buy a new or second-hand baby bed?
「Babies grow super fast and he/she won't be able to use it when he/she grows up. It is cheaper to buy second-hand ones.」
For pricey baby beds, many parents will prioritize lower-priced second-hand items. But for babies, "sleep" is the key to growth and development, they spend more than two-thirds of the day in sleep. Therefore, the safety of the baby bed has become very important, especially the stability of the traditional baby such as whether the baby bed will shake, etc. Besides, a newborn baby's skin is very sensitive and they will chew things to soothe themselves from teething. It's also very crucial to make sure the bedding is clean which contacts the skin and is near to the baby.
4. Can the playpen bed or playmat be used as a baby bed?
Most of the playpen beds and playmat are made of PE plastic, which is more elastic. A newborn baby's spine is soft and not yet fully developed, playing and sleeping on the playpen bed or playmat 24hours a day may affect the baby's bone development and may also cause rashes and other phenomena due to prolonged contact with the airtight materials. Hence, experts would suggest looking for the right firmness and breathability mattress for a baby bed.
Encyclopedia of baby bed: Must-know concepts before buying
After all the questions mentioned above are answered, another significant question emerges. There are so many types of baby beds, which one should I choose?
Every baby needs "sufficient and good sleep". Sleep can help the secretion of growth hormone, which helps to convert fat in the child's body into muscle energy and helps bone growth. On the other hand, studies have shown that sleep can help babies to differentiate people's emotional expressions in a positive way and when the baby falls asleep, the brain will secrete a variety of neurotransmitters to help send the "short-term memory" information originally stored in various cortical areas of the brain to the area where "long-term memory" is stored, helping enhance children's learning and solving problems skills.
In a nutshell, "sleep" is very important for the physical and mental development of a baby. Therefore, a baby bed that could assure the sleeping quality of a baby is vital which could also make parents rest assured.
1. Sense of security: Choose a baby bed that can accompany your baby to sleep peacefully
Parents accompany babies until they have fallen asleep and not moving them after falling asleep would make the baby feel secure in that environment to enter deep sleep faster.
According to medical research, nearly 70% of human growth hormone secretion comes from the deep sleep stage at night. Therefore, the quality of sleep has a non-negligible relationship with the baby's development.
Excluding physiological factors such as hunger and feeling hot, the key factor for babies to enter deep sleep is "sufficient security". When babies feel safe and secure, they will sleep well and grow faster.
2. Safety: the hidden crisis of traditional baby bed
There is lots of news about babies falling out from the baby bed or getting their hands and feet stuck when parents are not paying attention. Also, believing the sound of "BANG" and the sudden crying made many parents linger in fear. Due to an underdeveloped baby's body, any bump may cause bruising, redness, and even affect the future development of bones or other organs. Thus, parents should beware of the height difference between the bed and the ground and whether the gap between the pen is too large or too small when buying a baby bed, is there a risk of injury when parents not keeping eyes on babies.
Besides, since traditional baby beds often lead to accidents, the Bureau of Standards, Metrology, and Inspection of the Ministry of Economic Affairs imposed a mandatory requirement in September 2020 that traditional cribs must obtain an inspection mark before they can be sold, parents should check with the certification before purchasing a baby bed.
3. Practicality: baby bed which can use in multiple situations has a high CP value
There are all kinds of baby beds on the market, ranging from RM 150 to RM 3000. Other than the price, everyone would also be concerned about the usable years and function of the baby bed, some low-priced ones can only use up to 6 months, and some need to purchase additional components for refit to use up to 6 years old.
Besides, the weight will also affect the use of the baby bed. In the first year of birth, parents need to adjust the height of the bed every 1-2 months according to the baby's turning ability or crawling ability and it is not easy to disassemble and reinstall it. All these inconveniences make parents have to buy another baby bed and put it in another space for the baby to use, thus parents should also consider these daily convenience factors besides the price.
4. Other than the 3 major points mentioned above, parents need to beware of these when choosing a baby bed!
The following is based on the experience shared by many parents, to help you sort out the things you need to mind before purchasing.
◆Size: Please be wary of the actual size before purchasing. Although some baby beds are advertised as having longer usable life, yet babies grow fast and will not fit the bed soon.
◆Sturdy Support: The baby's spine is soft, so it is not suitable to stay in the poor supportive bed for too long, such as spring mattresses, which will affect the development of bones.
◆Mattress hardness: Before the newborn learns to turn over, the soft mattress may cover their nose and mouth, which may cause a suffocation hazard to the baby.
◆Stability of parts: Most traditional baby beds on the market require screws and other parts to build up. When the baby learns to stand up, the "creativeness" of shaking the playpen is often unexpected, so the stability of the bed must be tested again and again.
◆Safety label: The Bureau of Standards, Metrology, and Inspection of the Ministry of Economic Affairs of Taiwan stipulates that baby beds must-have safety certificates before they can be sold. Parents should double-check with the label before purchasing a baby bed.
◆Easy to clean: The baby bed is the place that the baby spent lots of time in, whether it can be cleaned quickly and conveniently is very important as it is related to the baby's sleeping environment.
◆The size of the playpen gap: Be careful of the danger of the playpen before purchasing because when many babies are turned over in a traditional baby bed, their hands and feet will get stuck in the playpen unknowingly.
◆Material: Before the baby's immune system becomes strong enough, a breathable and washable baby bed is very crucial to protect the baby.
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Baby bed comparison and recommendation
1. Comparison between four types of baby beds
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After knowing all the types of baby beds, do parents find that most of the traditional baby beds are with fences, a little high off the ground and would have doubts about the safety?
Recently, floor-standing baby beds have been designed to solve the hidden crisis of traditional baby beds and the following is a detailed introduction for you.
2. Baby bed recommendation - gunite safety floor baby bed
The floor-standing baby bed from Taiwan has received rave reviews because it solves all the worries that a traditional baby bed can have. Below are a few features to let everyone quickly recognize the charm of this crib.
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Ensure the sense of security and bring up a habit of sleep independently
Different from traditional baby beds, gunite's large space allows parents to sleep with their baby. First, gunite gives the baby a sufficient sense of security. After the baby is asleep, parents can return to their own bed to rest without interrupting the baby. Second, gunite allows both adults and children to rest well and helps to train babies to sleep independently from an early age.
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Integrally formed: Bed bumper, mattress and bedstead come in one：
Different from the traditional playpen, which has the danger of getting stuck, the gunite safety floor baby bed surround is integrally formed, so that the baby can freely move and explore during the period of rapid growth. Parents do not have to worry about their baby getting hurt playing or sleeping on the baby bed.
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Floor-standing: Prevent injuries from falling down：
Most of the traditional baby beds are built more than 60cm in height. The baby starts to learn to climb and stand after 5 months old, and it is easy to cause a fall crisis when the baby is trying to get up and turn around. The gunite safety floor baby bed is designed to be floored to minimize the probability of falling down.
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Usable until 6 years old: Multi-function, purpose and situation：
gunite safety floor baby bed surrounded sides are extensional, it's flexible and adjustable according to the needs, such as baby bed, playmat, etc. From newborn to 6 years old with just one baby bed, let babies sleep or play in an environment that they are used to from an early age.
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Detachable sheets: Easy and fast cleaning：
Babies often spill milk and sweat profusely, especially in the middle of the night, parents have to clean the baby due to wet clothes and sheets, some more have to wipe or even clean the entire baby bed which is time-consuming and laborious. Gunite safety floor baby bed is covered with pure cotton sheets and it helps as when the baby bed gets dirty, parents only need to remove the sheets and throw them into the washing machine. It is convenient and fast because parents do not have to worry and be in a hurry or panic.
After understanding the above introduction, do you have an idea for a baby bed in your heart?
It is important to make sure every baby has a good night's sleep.
Baby sleeps well and grows fast, the parents rest well and feel assured.
