Buying guide
What not to buy for your baby
Three categories – what is not advised, what nobody uses and what only makes sense for some. Plus a simple rule for everything that is not on the list.
In short
- A few products are not just useless but at odds with the safe sleep rules – cot bumpers, pillows, sleep nests.
- Many “must-haves” solve problems you will never have. If they do appear, the product arrives by courier the next day.
- The basic rule – buy after you have felt the lack, not before.
Baby shops are built on one emotion: the fear that you are not prepared. That is where the lists of a hundred products come from, and the feeling that if one is missing, something will go wrong. It will not. A newborn needs a safe place to sleep, food, clean nappies, a few clothes and a car seat. The rest is negotiable.
We have split the things to skip into three categories, from the most serious to the merely wasteful.
1. What is not advised
This is not about wasted money, but about products that contradict the safe sleep recommendations or are a known source of accidents. We rely on the recommendations of the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP, 2022), the same ones we start from in the cot guide.
- Cot bumpers. They seem to protect, but a safe cot is an empty cot. The bars are spaced precisely so that you do not need them.
- Pillows, quilts and thick blankets in the cot. A sleeping bag suited to the season replaces them all.
- Positioning pillows and anti-reflux wedges. Your baby sleeps on their back, on a flat surface. If the doctor recommends something else for your child, they will tell you how.
- Soft nests (baby nests) used for sleep. They are fine for keeping your baby next to you, awake and supervised. They are not a sleeping place and are not put in the cot.
- Inclined cradles and bouncers as a sleeping place. If your baby falls asleep in one, move them onto a flat surface.
- The baby walker. It does not help your child walk sooner, and falls down stairs and access to things at height make it a common source of accidents.
- Amber necklaces and long dummy chains. Any cord around a baby’s neck is a risk.
- An extra mattress placed on top of the one in a folding cot or a co-sleeper, “to make it softer”.
- Breathing sensor monitors bought in a panic – paediatricians do not recommend them as a prevention method (see the detailed analysis).
2. What almost nobody uses
Nothing on this list is dangerous. It just takes up space.
- The wipe warmer. You hold the pack in your hands for a minute.
- Baby scales. Your baby is weighed at check-ups. Weighing every day at home causes more worry than information. The exception: if the doctor asks you to.
- The special nappy bin with dedicated refills. A bin with a lid and ordinary bags, taken out often.
- Shoes for newborns. Socks do until your baby is walking.
- “Occasion” clothes in size 56. They will be worn once, if you get the chance.
- Big cosmetics sets. A fragrance-free wash gel and a cream for the nappy area. That is all, at the start.
- The duck-shaped bath thermometer. Your elbow is the thermometer. If you want one, that is fine – but it is not a necessity.
- The portable dummy sterilizer, the designer bottle dryer, the teat-cap organiser. The whole category.
- Cot bedding in seven-piece sets. Of the seven, you use the sheet.
- Toys for the first three months. Your face is the toy.
3. What only makes sense for some
These are things that are useful in some situations and pointless in others. Do not buy them beforehand; first find out which situation you are in.
| Product | Makes sense if… | Otherwise |
|---|---|---|
| Breast pump | you go back to work early, your baby cannot latch directly or a lactation consultant recommends one | you wait; it arrives in a day |
| Sterilizer | you use bottles every day | a pan of boiling water, when needed |
| Bottle warmer | you often feed expressed milk or formula, at night | a mug of warm water |
| Changing table | you have the space and a bad back | a chest of drawers at the right height, with a changing mat |
| Monitor | your baby sleeps in another room, far from you | you hear them anyway – see the monitor guide |
| Separate carrycot for the pushchair | you give birth in autumn or winter and walk a lot | a seat that reclines fully |
| Dedicated changing bag | you like a particular one | any rucksack with pockets |
| Bouncer | you need two free hands in the shower or when cooking | a blanket on the floor |
| Nursing pillow | you breastfeed and your back hurts | an ordinary, firm pillow |
Things you buy too much of
Sometimes the problem is not what, but how much.
- Size 1 nappies. Some babies skip it within two weeks. One pack, two at most. More in how to choose nappies.
- Size 56 clothes. You will get them as gifts. Buy a few and top up.
- Bottles and dummies. Babies have preferences. One or two, to try, not a set.
- “Backup” formula. If it is needed, the doctor tells you which, and pharmacies are open.
- Blankets. Two thin ones. Each relative will bring another.
The rule for everything that is not on the list
When you come across a product we have not written about, ask yourself three questions:
- What problem does it solve, and do I already have it? If you do not have it yet, do not buy yet.
- How quickly can I get it if it turns out to be needed? Almost everything arrives in a day or two.
- Does it fit with the safe sleep rules and the car seat harnesses? Anything that goes in the cot or between your child and the harnesses deserves a second look.
The only things that need to be bought in good time are those that require fitting, trying out or airing: the car seat, the pushchair, the cot with its mattress. We wrote the buying guides for those. For the rest, the newborn checklist shows you the minimum, and the shopping calendar tells you when.
Our recommendation
Buy after you have felt the lack, not before. The first month with a baby will tell you more about what you need than any list – including ours.
Frequently asked questions
Why are cot bumpers and pillows not advised for babies?
International safe sleep guidelines (AAP) show that fabric bumpers and pillows increase the risk of accidental suffocation, blocked airways and overheating, without bringing any real benefit. Babies do not need pillows, and the gap between the bars of approved cots is calculated precisely for safety and optimal ventilation.
Is a baby walker recommended for learning to walk?
No, paediatric societies firmly discourage the use of baby walkers. A walker does not help a child walk sooner (it encourages faulty toe-walking and poor posture) and it is one of the main causes of serious accidents at home through tipping over or falling down stairs.
Why is it advisable to put off buying the breast pump and the sterilizer?
Because you cannot predict beforehand how breastfeeding will go. If your baby feeds exclusively at the breast without difficulty, these devices may stay unused. If specific needs appear, they can be bought or rented within 24 hours of coming home.
Think it could help someone else?
Send the guide to your partner or to a friend who is expecting a baby.