One of the first nurseries stuffs that a lot of parents buy is baby monitors. Having a monitor in a baby’s room to monitor the baby while sleeping can give a sense of protection and security for a nanny and especially parents.
The aim of having a baby monitor is to be aware of any problem that may happen to the baby.
But the most asked question is that: is it safe to use a baby monitor? Is there any impact on a baby’s health? Below is a quick explanation. This explanatory article will correct all the misleading information we might hear about a baby monitor.
Table of Contents
The Fact About A Baby Monitor
Nowadays, a lot of baby monitor’s system is wireless. It transfers information in two ways. It can be over a digital or analog frequency. The transmission of the digital one uses one of some technologies including DECTS or Digital Enhanced Cordless Communication, Bluetooth, and Wi-Fi. Each type of technology has a different frequency of strength. Meanwhile, the FM radio band is the media for the transmission of the analog one. It usually is at 40Mhz.
Even though some experts say that digital is considered more dangerous than analog, the problem is the wireless system itself. Every wireless baby monitor releases NIR. NIR is non-ionizing radiation and it affects our body in two types:
-
Thermal Effect
The ability when NIR can rise the heat is what the thermal effect means. Just imagine a microwave. You can heat your food in a microwave because there is NIR. When our body is physically near a mobile phone, the same thing will occur to our body’s tissue. So, a baby monitor can heat the body’s tissues because of the non-ionizing radiation. And when a baby is near with a wireless monitor, the impact is quite scary to imagine. The radiation can affect newborns and infants’ brain as it hasn’t developed perfectly.
-
Non-Thermal Effect
Next, the non-thermal effect becomes less case that almost rare to happen when assessing the NIR-emitting device including a baby monitor. The statement released by the American Academy of Environmental Medicine was quite shocking. The effects of NIR-emitting devices are including cancer, reproductive defects, genetic damage, nervous system dysfunction, neurological degeneration, cognitive effects, immune system defects, kidney damage, protein and peptide damage, and many more.
The Conclusion
Sometimes the ads of a baby monitor seem promising. And the industry or reputable brands give us strong testimonials about how safe their baby monitors are. But, Dr. Devra Davis PhD who is the founder of EHT or Environmental Health trust has a different opinion. This internationally prominent scientist stated that there was no single study could prove that the radiation exposure from microwave, mobile phones, Wi-Fi routers, cordless phones, cell towers, and even baby monitors is not dangerous.
So, as parents, you better choose a safer way to provide security related to your baby. Checking the baby directly or hire a nanny is a more recommended way than taking a risk by having a baby monitor with questionable damages that the baby may experience.