# Products That Back-Fire "Baby Einstein" Makes Infants Dumber By Bianca | Published 2007-08-11 | Life-Stages Source: Trend Hunter, https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/products-that-back-fire-baby-einstein-makes-infants-dumber References: [time](http://www.time.com/time/health/article/0,8599,1650352,00.html) The popular Baby Einstein series that was said to help babies get smarter, has proven to do the opposite. Everyone wants their little kid to be a genius, so it's no surprise thousands of parents went crazy for the DVDs, [books, CDs and toys](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/fabli). An article in Time Magazine said that these products could be a huge mistake in the learning development of children. **Implications** - The idea of Baby Einstein was to have your child sit in front of a screen and watch the video series. A new study on the products by Frederick Zimmerman and Dr. Dimitri Christakis from the [University of Washington](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/make-ai-mediocre-again) has found that the videos "may actually delay [language development in toddlers](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/ms-rachel-collection)." They also found that the products have the "strongest detrimental effect on babies 8 to 16 months old." ## Trend Insights (Trend Hunter) - Score: 5.4/10 - Popularity: 83% | Activity: 70% | Freshness: 8% - Audience gender: 50% men, 50% women - Primary generations: Gen Alpha, Millennial - Top markets: North America ## Categories [Trend Hunter](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends) > [Life-Stages](https://www.trendhunter.com/life-stages) > [Toys](https://www.trendhunter.com/toys) ## Key Themes ### Key Themes Behind This Trend - **Anti-screen Products:** A trend towards developing products for children that limit screen time - **Multisensory Learning:** Products that engage multiple senses for childhood learning - **Play-based Learning:** A trend towards using play-based learning to encourage childhood development ### Where This Applies - **Educational Toys and Games:** Opportunities for toy and game companies to produce innovative, play-based learning products - **Children's Television Programming:** A potential shift away from screen-focused programming towards multisensory options - **Child Development Services:** Services designed to assist parents in navigating the best approach to childhood development amidst emerging research ## Related on Trend Hunter - [Educational Language Toy Kits](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/babys-first-language-teacher.md) - [Sense Development Toy Kits](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/babys-first-shapes-senses-teacher.md) - [Kid-Focused Screen-Free Learning Kits](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/screenfree-learning-kits.md) - [Hybrid Educational Toy Designs](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/big-little-feelings.md) - [Baby-Focused Learning Toys](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/matchstick-monkey.md) - [Brain Development Smoothie Pouches](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/brainiac-foods-neuro.md) - [Interactive Educational Toy Lines](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/educational-toy-line.md) - [Gamified Children's Care Products](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/babyfirst-brand.md) - [Interactive Education Toys](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/ironing-time-learning-set.md)