Mila
Kunis and Ashton Kutcher used a smart crib to soothe their baby to sleep.
(Photo: Getty Images)
More - Parents Ashton Kutcher and Mila Kunis have
nailed their bedtime routine: They used a smart sleeper to rock their youngest
baby to sleep.
During the February 14th podcast
“Armchair Expert
with Dax Shepard,” Kutcher shared how parenting 3-year-old Wyatt and
1-year-old Dimitri with Kunis, has changed their lives, particularly in the
area of sleep.
“For kid number two we got one of those Snoos,” said Kutcher.
“It’s an oscillating bed…it has a sensor in it so the louder the kid cries, the
faster it goes and puts the kid back to sleep.” The actor added that the bed
helped their youngest sleep a full six hours on the third day of life.
The Snoo Smart Sleeper — sold for $1,160 — was invented
by Santa Monica pediatrician Harvey Karp,
M.D., and designed to mimic his famous infant sleep strategy called “The 5 S’s” outlined in his 2002 book, The Happiest Baby on the Block. The method has become a
cult classic for sleep-deprived parents and involves five steps to calm babies
and lull them to sleep.
Based on the premise that newborns need a “fourth trimester” to
acclimate to the world, the method evokes two of the cozy sensations
experienced in the womb: Gentle jiggling and white noise.
The Snoo comes with a “5-second swaddle” which clips into the
sides of the bed, securing the baby on its back, (the safest position for infants to sleep) and jiggles and
emits white noise at the sound of a baby’s cry. If the baby is not calm within
one minute, the machine stops, signaling stronger needs like hunger or pain.
Other celebrities such as Molly Sims and Zoe Saldana are
fans and Justin Timberlake
and Jessica
Biel are Snoo investors.
Still, the bed has received criticism for its luxury price point
and the idea of a machine responding to infant distress. Some on Facebook
commented that the rocking sensation interfered with their babies’ ability to
self-soothe and that the attached swaddle presents a potential safety issue if
the baby needs to be retrieved quickly. Another wrote it was for “lazy
parents.”
“Up until 100 years ago, parents had so much support raising
their children — but we’ve walked back on that concept and its creating havoc,”
Karp tells Yahoo Lifestyle. “Sleep deprivation for parents is the main trigger
for postpartum
depression, obesity, stress, lowered breastfeeding rates,
and SIDS, in the case of parents falling asleep in bed with their infants.”
Karp maintains that Snoo is not designed to be a “replacement
parent” but rather an aid, not unlike a baby swing, a night nurse, or a family
member. “Parents use it at night but also during the day when they need to
place their baby in a safe environment while showering, for example,” he says.
The Snoo’s draw is both physical and psychological. “Babies
transition from sleeping in a noisy, busy womb to a silent still bed and that
can feel like sensory deprivation,” says Karp. “But babies whose needs are met
in a timely manner develop a sense of attachment and trust, whether that comes
from a parent, a swing, or Snoo.”
While he acknowledges the high price tag, Karp reasons, “It
factors into about five dollars per day, not unlike the cost of a cup of coffee
or a Red Bull.”
According to Andy J. Bernstein, M.D. a spokesperson for the American
Academy of Pediatrics and a physician at North Suburban Pediatrics in Chicago, while there’s
nothing inherently unsafe about Snoo, parents should be cautious toward
expensive baby gear marketed as necessities.
“These types of items can provide a false sense of security
allowing parents to let their guards down when they otherwise wouldn’t,” he
tells Yahoo Lifestyle. “They can also provoke anxiety if the device stops
working and parents then have to learn other methods for helping their babies.”
Parents
who enjoy the hands-on experience of soothing their children may not opt for
the crib, he says, “but for some working parents, especially those with
multiple kids to care for, it could be useful.”
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