If you’ve ever rushed into your baby’s room in the middle of the night to make sure they were still breathing (uhhh...who hasn’t?) then it may be time to upgrade your baby monitor. The new generation of baby tech is a far cry from the days of clunky, Walkie Talkie-esque options, and there are now baby monitors to track breathing, movement, heart rate, sleep position, and temperature. These days, most, if not all, even come with night vision so you can feel like the parent version of James Bond.
When you transition your baby into their own room, or for those moments when they baby is sleeping soundly and you’re trying to do all the things you need to do (laundry, meal prep, eat a full meal, nap, watch TV, exercise, call your mom, and scroll Instagram... all at the same time) having a breath-tracking monitor can be especially comforting. The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends room-sharing until 6 months old to minimize the risk of sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS) and other sleep-related injuries (though they also recognize that more research is needed on the topic). While a baby monitor won't prevent SIDS, they are designed to at least alert the parents if baby's breathing becomes irregular or if they stop breathing all together. For some folks, a breath-tracking monitor has the potential to cause even more stress on a new parent, especially if it signals a false alarm, but for others, they offer peace of mind. It's up to you, the parent, to decide if this type of high-tech gadget is appropriate for your nursery. If it is, here are some options that check all the boxes.