Internet parenting hacks have saved us all from more than a few sticky situations (anyone remember these genius picnic hacks for hassle-free outings?)
But sometimes it's worth taking them with a pinch of salt and some good old common sense thrown in for good measure, because the internet is a big place and every one makes mistakes.
One such 'hack' has made headlines after a parent's novel way to rock their baby to sleep received a barrage of criticism from Reddit users.
In a thread called Parenting Hack KitchenAid bouncer w/ White Noise, the user posted a clip of a sleeping baby in a bouncer, attached to a KitchenAid by a thick rubber band.
The band is hooked round the mobile hanging over the cot, and then around the mixer part of the machine. As the mixer rotates, the bouncer rocks back and forth, leaving the mother free to go about other business.
Image: Imgur
The clip has been viewed nearly a million times, but most commenters were quick to condemn the hack as 'dangerous' and 'extremely stupid.' The comments were filled with horror stories of people who had been trapped in rotating machinery and lost limbs.
'My father-in-law had his left arm and right leg sucked into and mangled in a massive machine with spinning parts,' warned one horrified commenter. 'When it caught his arm, he tried to pull it out, and braced his right leg on the machine to get leverage. The machine took his leg too. Said he was screaming for help, but the machines were too loud. Both limbs were amputated.'
'When (not if) that piece of cloth catches, it will dump the baby into the mixing paddle where an arm or leg will likely catch, spinning the baby around in the mixer until baby dies or someone stops the mixer, whichever happens first.
'If you don't believe me, look up the multitude of videos on youtube of industrial accidents involving spinning equipment like lathe,' said another.
Others were keen to point out that though certainly risky, the contraption didn't post the same level of danger as industrial machinery.
'I could see the baby getting pulled toward it as it catches and getting whacked in the head by the paddle but getting any arm or leg into it is wildly improbabl[e],' someone argued. 'The hand or leg would get swatted away before it threads itself through the paddle.'
One dad even joked, 'As a new dad I still wouldn't trust it. Needs a fidget spinner or two to guarantee safety.'
It's divided the internet, but what do you think of this parent's DIY contraption? Tell us in the comments below!
