Helping Baby Sleep Safely and Parents Sleep Better
by Judith Palfrey, MD, Chief of Children's Hospital Boston's Division of General PediatricsNew parents have a lot of worries. Is their baby eating enough? Is she developing appropriately? Is she sleeping well? But the one that keeps them up at night is the fear of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome, or SIDS.
Characterized by the sudden death of an infant under the age of 1 year with no logical explanation, SIDS claims the lives of 2,300 babies annually and is the leading cause of infant death in the United States. Overall, babies two to three months of age are at the highest risk, regardless of gender, but SIDS is more likely to occur in males from 1 to 4 months old than in females of the same age.
Despite its obvious prevalence, doctors and researchers remain baffled by its cause. Thirty years of research, however, has shown some babies are more at risk than others, so the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) issued guidelines to reduce the incidence of SIDS. Those guidelines were updated in October to reflect issues that have become relevant since the last update in 2000.
Here are the American Academy of Pediatric's (AAP) most recent recommendations that parents should apply to reduce the SIDS risk:
- Prenatal care: SIDS tends to occur more often when mothers have little to no prenatal care. Frequent and consistent medical visits from the start to completion of pregnancy decreases the risk of a low birth weight or premature baby, both of which carry a high risk for SIDS. Mothers should also avoid smoking, alcohol and drugs during pregnancy, and maintain a proper diet.
- Back-sleep position: Placing the baby on its back reduces the incidence of SIDS more so than any other sleep position, including side-sleep, which was previously recommended to prevent possible choking. No conclusive evidence, however, exists that back-sleep increases the chance of choking. While the baby should never be placed on her stomach to sleep, parents should encourage some "tummy time."
- Proper bedding: A firm mattress and sleep surface is important in decreasing the risk of SIDS. Pillows, comforters, blankets, stuffed animals, should not be placed in a baby's crib. A firm mattress with a sheet is highly recommended.
- Temperature control: Babies should be kept warm, but should not be overdressed for sleep. The temperature in a baby's room should feel comfortable to a lightly clothed adult. Overheating may induce deep sleep, which is harder for a baby to wake up from if air restrictions occur.
- Avoid bed sharing: Although many mothers find bed sharing to be convenient and beneficial for breast feeding and enhancing the mother-infant bond, it can be hazardous. Soft surfaces and chances of overheating increase because adult beds do not conform to safety standards for babies. Instead of bed sharing, the AAP recommends room-sharing, where the baby's crib is located the same room, but parents and baby do not share the same bed.
- Pacifier use: The latest AAP recommendations support the possible use of a pacifier at sleep and nap time to reduce the risk of SIDS. The pacifier should not be forced, coated with any sweet substance or reinserted after the baby falls asleep. Mothers concerned that the pacifier will interfere with breast feeding should introduce the pacifier after one month or once breast feeding has been established. Giving the pacifier at bed or nap time will help the baby identify it with sleep and not hunger, which can aid in reducing nipple confusion.
For more information about Children's Hospital Boston, please visit our website at: https://www.childrenshospital.org/
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Never take any herb identity for granted. The best way to be sure that you are using the right kind of herb is by buying it. -
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Never take any herb identity for granted. The best way to be sure that you are using the right kind of herb is by buying it.
