In a world full of emerging technology, we are connected at all times – especially children. From TV to tablets, your little ones are immersed in the tech world from birth. So why not use it to your (and your babies) advantage? Check out the tech gadgets below that may just wiggle their way on to your list of favorite things!
Wi-Fi Smart Scale Lets Parents Monitor Weight of Infants and Kids
Childhood obesity has tripled in the U.S. since 1980 for children and teenagers ages 6-19. Now, the CDC reports approximately 17% of children and adolescents ages 2-19 years old are obese.
One way you can make sure your children have a healthy start from infancy is to monitor their weight. A new scale from Withings, for babies and children, features Bluetooth and Wi-Fi technology so you can keep a record of all your child's weigh-ins. The Smart Kid Scale can be used from infancy to eight years old, and sends all weight information to an app on your smartphone. You can keep track of you child's growth and share that information with doctors. The app also allows you to enter your child's height and compare that to typical ranges for their age.
"With the Smart Kid Scale, we're hoping to bring the same positive outcomes we've seen in adults with weigh tracking to the adults of the future," cofounder of Withings, Cedric Hutchings, said in a statement. "We've made it very simple for parents to track the weight progress of their children and therefore giving them a tool that will assist in turning their children into healthy adults."
Read More About The Wi-Fi Smart Scale
Baby Clothing Helps Prevent SIDS ->
Baby Clothing Helps Prevent Infant Death
A new breathing sensor system could be embedded in romper suits to help prevent Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS). Developed by researchers at the Fraunhofer Institute for Reliability and Microintegration IZM in Berlin, the system features a stretchable printed circuit board made of polyurethane.
The discreet circuit board fits to the contours of the body and alerts parents as soon as their child stops breathing. It's manufactured using routine industrial processes, meaning that it should be inexpensive if it eventually hits commercial shelves.
Read More About Preventing SIDS
Easy App Helps You Keep Track of Breastfeeding ->
SmallNest App Helps Parents Keep Track of Breastfeeding
Being a new parent is challenging enough with the lack of sleep and caring for a little one around the clock. And for many mothers, breastfeeding doesn't always come easily. A new app aims to make that a bit easier by helping tired new moms track and record when they've breastfeed their baby.
SmallNest is an iOS app that lets moms record how long their babies nurse and how often. This is important because for a baby to get enough calories and for a mom to establish her milk supply, it's typically recommended that she breastfeed at least eight to 12 times in a 24-hour period. With the app, moms can track this information — convenient when days and nights blur together for new parents. And for non-breastfeeding parents, they see when mom last breastfed, get to know the baby's pattern, know when it's time for another feeding.
With SmallNest parents can also track diaper changes and baby's sleep patterns.
The app requires to you login through Facebook but says it won't post to Facebook on your behalf. The company however did send stats on how many mothers breastfeed and how often, according to information gleaned from the app.