Baby Alarms 

Are they a good idea?

When I was a baby, the only thing my parents used to keep track of me in my crib were their own ears. I grew up in the days before all the fancy baby gadgetry and a baby alarm to keep tabs on the baby would have seemed as bizarre to my parents as a nanny spy cam. To keep track of what I was doing in my crib, they would stay within hearing range of my room and if they heard me cry out, they would come in and check on me. They did not have the luxury of a baby alarm sounding whenever I cried, like parents raising kids today do.

Unlike today when we not only have the baby alarm we now have a baby monitor with video.

The whole collection of baby monitoring devices began with a good idea. People were looking for a way to monitor their babies when they were far away, like downstairs in the kitchen while the baby was upstairs sleeping in its crib. A simple device called the baby monitor was born, and this is the least complex of all the monitoring devices. It’s a simple one-way speaker that allows you to hear what’s going on in the baby’s room from anywhere in the house. Next up in complexity for monitoring devices are the baby cams, which allow you to see as well as hear what’s going on in your baby’s room. Last is the baby alarm which actually monitors the baby for sound and then sets off an audible alert  for parents when the baby makes a noise.

 I’ve heard of parents using a baby alarm for newborns that goes off if the baby stops breathing for any amount of time. This is usually a solution for parents who fear that their child may be at risk for sudden infant death syndrome. Though the baby alarm has still not been shown to be effective in avoiding sudden infant death, and      some babies still die from this unknown epidemic every year. The baby alarm in this case, would provide the parents the peace of mind of knowing that they’re doing something, even if it’s not all that effective, to avoid tragedy.

The best advice I received when my son was small was to turn off the monitor and not worry so much because the baby would definitely let us know if he needed us. Babies can be very noisy, especially while they sleep, and it does no good to wake up for every little grunt or whimper through the night. A real problem will result in ear piercing cries that could travel through sheetrock and once you realize this, it makes buying a baby alarm or other type of expensive monitoring device seem silly.
You can check out some of the baby products available here.

This is not a comprehensive range of baby shopping yet, so please keep checking back

Please let us know if you think baby alarm or baby monitoring systems are a good idea or not.