Our pick of the best toys to help the baby fall asleep.
Photo by hessam nabavi on Unsplash
Nothing is as good-looking as a sleeping baby. Unfortunately for most parents, getting their kids to sleep isn’t always a walk in the park. Sleep is important for your little one, and it’s just as essential as good nutrition. It’s when your baby is curled up in bed that they grow, their brains develop, and their immunity is enhanced.
So, what can you do to get your fussy or sleep-regressed baby to fall asleep during their bedtime?
One of the highly recommended solutions for soothing your baby to sleep is a sleeping aid. A baby sleep aid is anything that helps your baby fall asleep easier without your assistance or presence. Sleep aids help calm and settle your little one during their bedtime. While sleep aids are not a substitute for cuddling or rocking your baby to sleep, they are recommended, especially when you, a sleep-deprived parent, need some nap time.
A baby sleep aid should be more of a soother than a play or skill toy. For instance, a comforter that imitates your closeness during sleep or a product that produces white noise are both good baby sleep aids. So is a product that uses special lights to lull your baby to sleep.
Do baby sleep aids work?
Many sleep specialists recommend that there should be no toys in a baby’s cot. Brightly colored toys or gadgets in your infant’s crib can distract your little one making it impossible for them to sleep.
However, sleep specialists also make an exception when it comes to special toys that your little one needs to fall asleep. These toys offer the needed soothing comfort to help your baby relax. And this exception is often made for good reason as there is reason to believe that sleep aids do work.
In one experimental study that targeted newborns, 80% of the babies exposed to hear white noise playbacks fell asleep voluntarily within five minutes. On the other hand, only 25% of the infants in the control group fell asleep voluntarily.
Besides, the use of baby sleep aids such as the pacifier helps your baby fall asleep and lowers their risk of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS).
Safety first
If you intend to use a sleep aid to help your baby or your grandchild nap, it’s important to adhere to some safety precautions to ensure your baby is safe.
Some of these precautions include:
- Avoid placing baby sleep aids with cords, ribbons, or ties in your infant’s crib, as these can wrap around your baby’s neck
- When using sleep aids that produce soothing sounds, keep the sound to a minimum
- Never tie a sleep aid around your baby’s hand or neck
- Purchase baby sleep aids that can’t come apart when your little one is sleeping
Best baby sleep aids to help your infant fall asleep
And now onto our top sleep soothers that can help your little one fall asleep faster. These toys have been carefully selected to ensure they help send your baby to the land of nod in no time.
- Baby shusher
If you’re like most parents, you probably shush your baby to sleep. But you’ll agree with me that hushing a fussy baby to sleep takes a lot of hard work and patience.
Thankfully, the pNeo baby shusher is here to do the heavy lifting for you. This product works in the same way as you shushing your little one to sleep, only that it’s better as you don’t have to be physically present when this is happening. The baby shusher produces white noise that calms your restless baby. The rhythmic shushing sound can go on for half an hour, but you can also time it for 15 minutes.
This is one of the few baby sleep aids that can be used right from birth as it’s very small such that it doesn’t interfere with your baby’s sleep. Its small size also means you can carry it everywhere even while traveling. It can also be used to soothe your baby while carrying them as it has a removable waist strap. It also comes completely set up with 2 AA batteries that can last up to ten hours.
You’ll also love that the baby shusher is affordable, unlike some baby sleep aids that will cost you an arm and a leg.
The lull doll is a soother with a soft plushy feel and a little voice box at the back. When you squeeze this sleep doll, it plays the recorded sounds of a woman’s breathing and heartbeat. These sounds can go on for 12 hours, giving your little one comfortable sleep the whole night. The doll imitates the closeness of a caregiver with its soft feel and soothing sounds.
Lulla dolls can also be used to soothe your baby, who is a light sleeper, back to sleep. Besides, you don’t have to put the doll inside your infant’s crib as it has an outside crib attachment to keep your little one safe.
For added comfort, you can hold the doll close to your body before you put it near your baby’s crib so that it has your familiar scent.
Nattou is perfect for reassuring a baby who often wakes in their sleep. This baby sleep aid has sound sensors that are activated by your baby’s gurgle or cry. This product produces a nightlight glow in seven different colors. You can adjust the color and light intensity using a button at the base of this product.
The soft light reassures your baby that there is always a glowing friend watching over them when they wake up.
This child-friendly product has no cables attached to it, so it’s safe to put in your baby’s crib. You also don’t have to worry about overheating bulbs with this product.
This toy is recommended for older babies who may appreciate some light reassurance more than the sound of white noise.
Ollie is a baby sleeping aid with multiple features. Some of the features include soft lighting and volume adjustable soothing sounds such as:
- A heartbeat
- White noise
- Rainfall
- Lullaby
This product also comes with a cry sensor that detects when your infant wakes up or starts crying. The cry sensor triggers the production of white noise, which helps soothe your baby back to sleep. Ollie also comes with a Velcro strap that can be used to attach the toy to your baby’s cot.
This is an extremely versatile toy that will look good in your infant’s nursery. You need to be aware that this toy is always on standby mode, which means it needs to be recharged now and then. Have rechargeable batteries next to your Ollie, and you’re all set
Swaddling helps your baby feel snug and secure, encouraging them to sleep. But if you’re a first-time parent, it can be difficult to swaddle your baby correctly.
Thankfully, the ErgoPouch cocoon swaddles sleep bag makes swaddling your baby easy. This bell-shaped sleeping aid has a 2-way zipper and arm poppers. The bell-shaped bottom gives your baby enough room to move their legs and promotes healthy hip development. The 2-way zip is perfect when you’re changing your baby’s nappy as you don’t have to wake or take them out of their swaddle bag. This is a child-friendly product made from a cotton stretch outer material and bamboo viscose inner material. It’s also easy to use as no wrapping is required.
The good thing about this sleeping aid is that you can also use it as a sleeping bag once your baby is a little older. To use it as a sleeping bag, open the arm poppers and let your baby sleep with their arms out.
Conclusion
Undoubtedly, sleep is important for both you and your baby. If you’re a mom who is desperate for something that can help your little one nap throughout the night, try one or two of the above baby sleep aids. Hopefully, you and your baby will get the much-needed sleep.