Traditional Maori woven basinets have helped reduced infant mortality rates but it's only targeting part of the problem

Since wahakura and pepi-pods' introduction in 2005, Sudden Unexpected Death in Infancy has dropped by 29 per cent.

The basinets make co-sleeping safer.

Despite its success, pepi-pod inventor Stephanie Cowan says the chance of sudden death remains high in babies exposed to smoking.

She says the pepi-pod and wahakura enable the smoke-exposed baby to have protection, but until we address the smoking itself, the problem doesn't change.