Rock And Play
When the sun dips in the west and the night sets in, it is time for bed. Sleep is a necessary behavior in all living creatures.
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It provides the opportunity to rest, recharge and regain energy to face the next day.
Sleep experts have always recommended that adults should sleep for at least 8 hours.
This apparently is the minimum amount of time the body needs to fully recharge.
For any parent with a new-born child, all of this sounds like a fairy tale; a distant and long forgotten memory of times past.
Every parent knows that new-born babies are fussy sleepers.
They wake up at least three to four times a night crying for food, a clean diaper or attention.
The parents suffer from sleep deprivation from having to wake up so many times in a night.
Getting an infant to sleep is an arduous and almost impossible task.
In a bid to solve this problem, the company Fisher-Price’s Rock, in 2009, released a miracle-working product.
The product was designed to help babies sleep better and for longer.
The product was given the name ‘Rock and Play’.
The rock and play, was marketed as a bassinet that could double up as a sleeping area for children.
It was a small, compact, collapsible, lightweight and portable product, in which babies could be rocked, cradles and placed into sleep.
It was warm and snuggly and was equipped with tonnes of impressive features.
Not only could it vibrate but it could also play soft music to soothe a baby to sleep.
New born babies would not fuss during sleep time.
They would easily close their eyes and fall into a deep restful sleep for hours in the contraption.
The product was a god-send.
Parents and caregivers finally had the chance to sleep through the night without having to get up every forty-five minutes to tend to the baby.
Consequently, the product was a hit.
Over 4.7 million rock and plays were sold in a decade.
A cult following developed around the product.
Parents went round singing and evangelizing about the wonders of this product and recommended it to anyone and everyone who bothered to listen.
The rock and play, however, was a silent assassin.
It was discovered, after a decade of the product being in the market, that over 32 children had died whilst asleep in the rock and play.
Many of these children died from asphyxiation.
The American Academy of Pediatrics called the product “deadly” hence, forcing the Fisher-Price’s Rock company to stop production and recall all 4.7 million rock and plays from the market.
The recall of so many products sparked a lot of criticism.
Eyebrows were raised at the efficacy of safety regulations and standards issued by the Consumer Safety Commission.
Questions were raised regarding what exactly the problem with the rock and play was.
Why was it termed deadly and why wasn’t action taken much sooner?
To answer these many questions, it is best to start at the very beginning.
The invention of the rock and play.
The rock and play, was designed with young infants in mind.
Young babies normally have trouble sleeping.
They easily get irritated and will ordinarily never sleep through the night.
Parents and caregivers are therefore forced to wake up multiple times in the night to tend to their young ones.
This is a stressing state of affairs.
Being woken multiple times in the night deprives one of much-needed sleep.
The rock and play, was the solution to this never-ending problem.
This was a small, portable baby product that looked a lot like a bassinet.
For most part, the rock and play mimicked the womb’s environment.
It was compact and thus that it caressed the baby just like in the womb.
It could vibrate and play music soothing a baby to sleep.
When placed in the rock and play, babies would instantly fall asleep and stay asleep in this god-send contraption.
Many parent’s lovingly nick-named it the ‘Sanity-saver.’
It was an affordable baby product selling in stores for just 30 American Dollars.
It was small and compact.
This meant that it did not take up a lot of space.
Further, the product ensured “Great overnight sleep.”
Not only would the baby have a good night sleep but the parents would also sleep soundly.
It is quite easy to see why the product became so successful in the market.
The rock and play, was affordable and therefore parents on a budget did not need to break the bank to buy it.
With regard to design, the product was eye pleasing.
It was everything a parent would wish for their baby.
The inside surface was soft and snuggly, comfortable to sleep in. It was lightweight and portable.
This made it convenient, as it could also double up as a travelling crib.
It was everything one would wish for.
Even with this many wonderful features and characteristics, the product was eventually recalled.
It was termed deadly and all parents were advised not to use it. This begs the question; why?
The faults of the rock and play
After a decade in use, the safety of the rock and play was reviewed and found wanting.
This is after the American Consumer Product Safety Commission received complaints of the product and discovered that 32 children had died while sleeping in it.
This revelation led to an in-depth study and review of the product.
The findings were shocking and a little unsettling.
According to the Consumer Product Safety Commission, the design of the rock and play was its most dangerous feature.
The Rock and Play was small, compact and snugly. It was also designed at an inclination of 30 degrees.
This meant that whenever a baby would be set to sleep in the rock and play, they would be at an incline of 30 degrees.
Their head would always be at a higher position than their legs.
All of these features were found to be in complete disregard to safety recommendations issued by the American Academy of Pediatrics.
This association has conducted many years of research on matters about sleep and infants.
It is from this research that they have always recommended, that babies should be placed to sleep on their backs.
The Academy has faithfully popularized this recommendation through their Back to Sleep campaign.
They further recommend that babies should always sleep on a flat, firm and wide surface.
The sleeping area should be kept free from any soft mattresses, duvets, blankets, pillows or toys.
All of this is done to reduce the risk of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (hereafter SIDS).
SIDS is a condition that primarily affects young babies below the age of one year.
It is the shocking, unexplainable death of an infant.
The death remains unexplained even after a full and complete post mortem has been conducted on the body of the expired infant.
It remains a mystery even when a thorough medical examination has been conducted on the child’s medical history.
It is only concluded that an infant suffered from SIDS, after all other causes of death have been eliminated.
The causes of SIDS are not known.
There are no discoverable signs and symptoms to aid in the detection of the condition.
However, this condition has been attributed to developmental defects and delays in a child.
This coupled with other environmental factors such as temperature and quality of air in a child’s room increase the risk of SIDS.
To reduce the risk of SIDS, it is recommended by doctors and sleep experts that infants should be laid to sleep on their backs.
This ensures that their airways stay open and clear. A baby thus breathes properly and the risk of suffocation is eliminated.
The design of the rock and play was in complete disregard to these recommendations.
It was a stark contrast to what was considered ideal.
The rock and play, has an inclination of 30 degrees.
This meant that a baby placed sleeping in the product, would always have his head at a higher position than his legs.
This was dangerous.
If the baby was not safely strapped in, they could easily fall headward.
Further, if their heads fell, so that their chin rested on their chest, the baby’s airways would be blocked.
This would lead to positional asphyxiation, and the baby would consequently suffocate because of the position he had been placed in.
The second fault with the design would the snuggle fit.
Once babies grow older, they are able to turn in their sleep in a bid to get comfortable.
A snuggle fit meant that babies did not have enough space to move around.
Thus, if they turned to their side, they would end up face-down in the soft padding of the rock and play.
Being face down would deny them clean, fresh air.
They would be relegated to breathing in their own exhaled air.
The exhaled air is rich in carbon dioxide.
Breathing it in would lead to gradual and eventual suffocation.
Thirdly, the biggest fault with the rock and play, was the fact that it was designed and marketed for a great overnight sleep.
It was intended that by using the product, babies would be able to sleep soundly throughout the whole night and not wake up till morning.
The American Academy of Pediatrics points out that this is a fallacy.
According to the Academy, babies are not meant to sleep soundly for an entire eight-hour period like adults.
Babies have different sleeping patterns as compared to adults.
It is a matter of fact that babies sleep both during the day and night.
The sad and unfortunate truth is that they are meant to wake up every so often to be fed, changed and cradled in their parent’s arms.
Occasionally waking up in the middle of the dark night is a must.
This phenomenon is a normal developmental occurrence.
A baby will have its own sleeping pattern and routine, that will slowly evolve and line up with ‘normal’ human behavior.
Further, it is important to ensure that a baby never sleeps too deeply.
If a baby sleeps too deeply, the risk of not waking up increases.
The rock and play, was therefore fixing a problem that never needed fixing.
It was offering a solution to a non-existent challenge.
The product promised and ensured a good night sleep.
Babies that slept in a rock and play slept for a whole eight hours just like their adult counterparts.
They never woke up to be fed or changed.
Though their parents were able to catch a snooze, they never really appreciated the risks of having their babies sleep for so long.
Conclusion
These are the reasons why the rock and play had to be pulled from the market.
Though it did help to soothe babies to fall asleep and keep them asleep for longer, it increased the chances of SIDS.
It needed to be re-evaluated and redesigned to ensure the safety of young ones.
The Fisher Price’s Rock company was chastised for not involving experts during the design of the product and advised to do so in future.
The American Academy of Pediatrics, in its recommendation to the company, advised that when it came to redesigning the product, its inclination should be dropped from thirty degrees to ten degrees.
That would make sure that the threat of positional asphyxia was eliminated.
It is possible that this god-send, miracle-working product may make a comeback in the future.
Until then parents and caregivers will have to contend with waking every forty-five minutes to look after their babies.
Sleep deprivation is the occupational hazard of being the parent to a young child.
Further, parents and caregivers must take extra care when buying any baby products.
Always make sure that all products to be used in taking care of the baby meet all the recommended safety requirements.
They must all be beyond reproach.
Above all things being cautious, careful and always closely monitoring your baby is the only way to make sure your baby’s safety.