Nested Bean Review: Honest + Unsponsored Mom's REAL Opinion

A great sleep sack has the potential to help both baby and mom sleep through the night.

Baby is warm and cozy and mom has peace of mind knowing her little one is safe and comfortable!

This Nested Bean review is based on our ACTUAL experience with this product and includes:

what does the Nested Bean do
our real-life comparison of life with and without the Nested Bean
is the Nested Bean worth it
are weighted sleep sacks safe
what does TOG mean
how to choose the right sleep sack
what age should you stop using a sleep sack

Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links and I could earn a commission at no cost to you if you make a purchase using them.

Nested Bean Review: Honest + Unsponsored REAL Mom’s Opinion

My 10-month-old’s sleep schedule has been all over the place for a while now (Gosh, I wish there was a Snoo for babies this age, haha), so we decided to give a weighted sleep sack a try.

We used HALO Sleepsacks in the past with my oldest daughter but purchased a Nested Bean after a family member recommended it.

What does the Nested Bean do?

The Nested Bean differs from other wearable blankets in that it features a weighted area between 1 to 5 ounces on the chest.

Non-toxic poly beads fill the chick you see on the sack to give your baby what Nested Bean calls “The Cuddle Effect“.

The product is meant to simulate the natural touch your child feels when you hold them.

This is also exactly why I decided to give the product a shot – when Nadia wakes up overnight, the simple touch of my hand on her chest or back is usually enough to soothe her back to sleep!

What does 1 ounce feel like?

The 1 ounce weight contained in the smallest version of Nested Bean products is similar to the weight of 2 K-Cups.*

Head over to your cupboard to give it a try!

*Based on Starbucks Pike Place K-Cups with a weight of 0.5 to 0.6 ounces each.

Price

Compared to the HALO SleepSacks we’ve tried, the Nested Bean is a bit more expensive.

HALO SleepSacks start at $24.99 while Nested Bean Zen Sacks and Swaddles start at $32.99.

But for $8 more, the promise of a better sleep was worth a shot!

More reviews for moms and dads:

Material

Nested Bean Classic Sacks and Swaddles are made from 100% cotton while Premier Sacks and Swaddles are a 70% bamboo and 30% cotton blend.

We tried out a Premier sack and love how soft the fabric feels.

My sister’s Nested Bean Classic Swaddle is 100% cotton and there is definitely a difference between the TOG and feel of the fabrics.

Nested Bean TOG

TOG measures thermal resistance – higher TOG ratings mean warmer fabrics.

Nested Bean TOG ratings are as follows:

Swaddles

Zen Swaddle Premier – 1.0
70% bamboo, 30% cotton

Zen Swaddle Classic – 1.5
100% cotton

Sacks

Zen Sack Premier – 0.3
70% bamboo, 30% cotton

Zen Sack Classic – 0.5
100% cotton

Zen Sack Winter – 2.5
100% cotton, poly-fil

Is Nested Bean good?

I’m going to be completely honest with you – I’ve never tried a weighted blanket before and thought it might be a gimmick.

But either I got Nadia down for a nap at the perfect time or the sack worked wonders the first time I tried it!

My 10-month-old who’s been napping for between 20 to 30 minutes once a day for the past 3 weeks took a 1.5 hour nap the first time we used this.

Overnight, we’re still experiencing our routine 3am wakeup but the usual disturbances between 5:30pm to 10:30pm have stopped.

From our experience so far, Nested Bean is a great product that’s aided in prolonging the length of my daughter’s sleep.

Is the Nested Bean worth it?

For the extra $8 it costs to give this a try over other traditional sleep sacks, I think Nested Bean is absolutely worth a shot!

It helped my baby who’s been a notoriously bad sleeper for a while now and I hope it can help yours too.

Are weighted sleep sacks safe?

Weighted sleep sacks are still relatively new to the market but the results look promising.

Sleep sacks were first developed by Bill Schmid under the HALO brand after he tragically lost his firstborn to SIDS in 1991.

This father and engineer came up with the idea of sleep sacks as a safe alternative to using loose blankets in a crib in order to prevent another family from suffering a loss.

Unlike regular loose blankets, sleep sacks fasten with either zippers or buttons to keep the sack in place on your child and promote safe sleeping conditions.

And they’ve proven to be effective.

A 1998 study from the Netherlands found that “cotton sleeping-sacks” decreased the risk of sudden unexpected death in infancy (SUDI, including SIDS) by 65 percent.

Today, the usage of weighted sleep sacks amongst parents and even medical facilities has grown tremendously.

Following a promising study of the “Safety, Feasibility, and Effectiveness of Weighted Blankets in the Care of Infants With Neonatal Abstinence Syndrome”, weighted sleep sacks are seeing an introduction at the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit of Good Samaritan Hospital in Cincinnati, Ohio:

“Upon consult with a commercial company, a weighted sleep sack was developed that subscribes to safe sleep guidelines.

Our team is in the process of implementing this new product that will provide weighted intervention while role modeling safe sleep practices for families.”

Are Nested Bean sleep sacks heavy?

No – I was really surprised at how light our Nest Bean was when I opened it up!

The Nested Bean Zen Swaddle Classic weighs a total of 337g while a HALO Cotton Sleepsack Swaddle comes in at 295g.

That’s a difference of just 42g (0.09 pounds).

Basically the same as a Club House spice bag – I checked my cupboard to get a feel for this and I recommend you do it too!

Are sleep sacks safe for babies who can roll over?

Yes, sleep sacks are safe for babies who can roll over.

However, swaddling is NOT safe for babies who can roll over.

It is extremely important to discontinue swaddling use once your baby has learned to roll over which can occur as early as 2 to 3 months of age.

What age should you stop using a sleep sack?

There are no official guidelines as to when parents should stop using a sleep sack but you’ll find that most manufacturers don’t make sleep sacks for children beyond 36 months (3 years old).

After this point, there are wearable footless sleep sacks available for early walkers and big kids ranging from 2T to 6T!

What do you wear under Nested Beans?

It depends on the temperature of your home and the TOG rating of your sleep sack.

My daughter is currently wearing a Nested Bean Zen Sack Premier (0.3 TOG) with a cotton sleeper underneath.

The temperature in our home is 72 Fahrenheit (22 Celsius).

Has there been a Nested Bean death?

There have been no deaths caused by Nested Bean products reported to Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC).

Consumer Product Safety Commission (2004–2012) Restrospective Review

According to this 2014 study reviewing the safety of swaddle wraps and wearable blankets:

“Over 1 million swaddle wraps have been sold in the United States, with only 18 cases reported to the CPSC in 8 years involving swaddle wraps”.

Of the 10 wearable blanket and swaddle wrap deaths reviewed in this same study, 70% included additional risk factors, most often in the form of soft bedding.

In one of these deaths, misuse of a swaddle wrap was described:

“the mother had removed the Velcro wrap from the product and continued to use it after the 5 month old infant had outgrown the swaddle wrap.”

Interestingly, all 12 incidents where swaddling with a regular blanket occurred resulted in death.

The information in this review demonstrates similar findings to the Dutch case control study in terms of the effectiveness of sleep sacks.

Is Nested Bean safe?

Nested Bean products are designed to be safe and have been declared as “exceeding regulatory measures” by the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSIA).

Tests include mandatory and voluntary components that were completed more than 8 times during the product development process.

More tips for new moms:

How to Wash Nested Bean Sleep Sack

To keep your Nested Bean in the best condition possible:

Clasp the shoulder buttons (to prevent them from getting caught on other fabrics)
Turn the sack inside out (to prevent buttons from unclipping)
Wash in a front loading machine
Wash in cold water on a gentle cycle with mild laundry detergent
Gently tumble dry using low heat

Nester Bean: United States Retailers

You can purchase the Nested Bean sleep sack at the following American retailers:

Nested Bean: Canada Retailers

Nested bean weights sleep sacks are available at the following Canadian retailers:

You can also check out Poshmark and Facebook Marketplace to potentially save a few dollars on a used Nested Bean swaddle or sack.

Nested Bean Review: Final Thoughts

As I write this, I’ve watched my youngest roll over from her back to her stomach a few times.

A weight of 5 ounces (142g or 0.31 pounds) concentrated on her chest is not heavy enough to prevent this 20-pound 10-month-old child from rolling over.

That’s just 0.31 pounds or 1.55% of my daughter’s body weight.

The entire bamboo sleep sack weighs 226g (0.49 pounds or 2.5% of her bodyweight) – far below the American Academy of Pediatrics’ (AAP) recommendation that weighted products be 10 percent or less than a child’s body weight.

Nested Bean’s 100% cotton sacks are slightly heavier though.

Thus, a child should weigh at least 7.4 pounds to use the 337g (0.74 pounds) Zen Swaddle Classic safely.

Infant Clothing vs Sleep Sack Weights

In order to see whether or not the weights of Nested Bean sleep sack and swaddle products are reasonable, I weighed a variety of baby sleepers – clothing items manufactured to be safely worn during naps and overnight sleep.

Of the brands surveyed – H&M, Carter’s, Children’s Place, Pekkle – I found that most newborn-sized sleepers weighed between 168g (0.37 pounds) and 281g (0.61 pounds).

Nested Bean products, which range from 226g (0.49 pounds) to 337g (0.74 pounds) are similarly weighted to the clothing you dress your child in every day.

In terms of weight distribution, the only real difference is the concentration of between 1 to 5 ounces (28 to 142g) in the chick at the center of the sleep sack’s chest.

Our Nested Bean sleep sack has improved the quality of my 10-month-old baby’s daytime naps – from 30 minutes to about 1.5 hours at a time – and I hope it can help you too!

Be sure to follow all safety guidelines and check out Nested Bean’s entire lineup for each product’s minimum weight recommendations.

For more safe sleeping tips for infants, check out these AAP guidelines.

Happy snuggling, friends!

Nested Bean Review: Honest + Unsponsored Mom’s REAL Opinion