A stuffed teddy bear that appears to be breathing was designed to comfort fussy babies in the crib. It didn't do much in terms of reducing the babies' crying, but it seemed to help their mothers reduce their stress and depression levels, says a University of Connecticut study published in the April issue of the Journal of Developmental and Behavioral Pediatrics.

The researchers gave either a Breathing Bear or a regular teddy bear to 72 5-week-old infants who were described as fussy by their mothers. To assess the effect of the bears on the babies, the mothers were asked to make regular reports over five months on the amount of crying done by their infants.

The mothers also filled out several questionnaires that gathered information about their infants' temperament and the mothers' own feelings of depression and stress during the study period.

The study found no major difference in the mothers' estimates of crying between the babies who had the Breathing Bears and babies with regular teddy bears. However, the mothers of babies with Breathing Bears did say their infants had better temperaments two to three months after the study.

Interestingly, mothers of babies with Breathing Bears reported feeling less depressed and stressed. The researchers suggest the Breathing Bears may have reduced the babies' intense crying and had other positive effects for the babies through their interactions with their soothed mothers.

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