Chances are, if your child slept with a paci, you can relate to this video. 
How cute is this little sweetie?
Archive for the 'Sleep' Category
Last month the FDA announced new sunscreen label regulations which will take effect in 2012. The FDA has been working on these regulations for 33 years, since 1978. In case you too are wondering what regulations take 33 years to create, we have provided a summary of the new rules for you below:
- In order to label sunscreen products as “broad spectrum,” sunscreens will have to pass a test that shows that they shield skin from both ultraviolet A (UVA) and ultraviolet B (UVB) rays.
- Only sunscreens rated SPF 15 and higher will be able claim, on their labels, that they protect skin from sunburn, wrinkles and skin cancer.
- Sunscreens that do not meet these standards will have to label their product with warnings to indicate that they do not protect skin from skin cancer or wrinkles.
- Sunscreen makers will no longer be able to claim that their sunscreens are “waterproof,” or “sweatproof.” As such, they will only be able to claim that their products are “water-resistant” and will have to specify whether the sunscreen works for 40 or 80 minutes.
- SPF ratings above 50 could be banned (this provision is still up for debate), unless the sunscreen maker submits data to the FDA, and provides sufficient proof that the sunscreen should be labeled as such.
With more than 1 million Americans diagnosed with skin cancer each year, skin cancer is the leading cancer in the United States. Of those 1 million Americans, approximately 68,000 are diagnosed with melanoma, and nearly 9,000 die.
Below are some sunscreen rules to make sure that you, and your babies, remain safe in the sun:
- Educate yourself on what sunscreen ingredients are safe/unsafe.
- Reapply sunscreen every 2 hours, and more often if your child is in the water and/or sweating outside.
- Cover up. Dress in lightweight clothing that covers the body.
- Minimize exposure between 10am and 4pm, when the sun’s rays are strongest.
- Wear a hat and sunglasses.
- Remember the acronym BEENS so that you don’t forget to cover often-forgotten spots with sunscreen: Back of knees, Ears, Eye area, Neck, and Scalp.
Happy Safe Summer Fun!
image courtesy pierrotsomepeople,flickr.com
Last year, the government issued new crib safety standards, replacing standards that had not been updated in nearly 30 years. Since 2007, the CPSC had recalled more than 11 million cribs, most of which have been drop-side cribs. Detaching drop-side cribs have been associated with at least 32 infant suffocation and strangulation deaths since 2000. The new crib standards now ban the manufacture and sale of drop-side cribs. Other provisions included in the standards will require stronger mattress supports, more durable hardware, and more rigorous safety testing.
The new standards will be effective in June of this year for all cribs manufactured, sold, or rented in the U.S. As this date approaches, the CPSC has received a number of questions on the new standards and in response, they issued a Q&A on their blog, OnSafety, last week. If you have a child in a crib or are planning to purchase a crib, it’s worth a read. If your child will be growing out of their crib soon and you’re thinking about selling or donating it, the new standards will apply to you too. Below are a few of the highlights:
- The new crib standards are effective June 28, 2011 and apply to all cribs, used and new, sold in the U.S.
- New cribs may be available for purchase before June 28th, but you’ll need to ask the retailer or manufacturer whether the crib you are considering meets the new standards.
- Traditional drop-side cribs will not meet the new standards. You may be able to obtain an immobilizer from the manufacturer or retailer to secure the drop-side, but it will still not meet the requirements.
- The CPSC has issued the following recommendations if you have a traditional drop-side crib and you continue to use it:
- Check CPSC’s crib recall list to see if it has been recalled.
- Check the crib frequently to make sure all of the hardware is secured tightly and that there are no loose, missing, or broken parts.
- If your crib has a drop-side rail, stop using that drop-side function and request an immobilizer if available. Immobilizers will vary depending on the crib.
- Consider another option such as a portable play yard, so long as it has not been recalled.
- If you decide to stop using your crib, drop-side or not, you cannot sell or donate a crib that does not meet the new standards. Instead, the CPSC says you should disassemble it and discard it.
- All daycare facilities, home daycares, and places of accommodation like hotels and motels have until December 28, 2012 to be compliant with the new standards.
You may be asking yourself, how do I know if my crib meets the new standards? Unfortunately, I don’t think you’ll be able to determine that. The details of the rules issued by the CPSC have this to say in response to a comment submitted which asked if they would provide a method of checking whether current cribs meet the new standards:
“Because the crib would be destroyed in the process of testing, it is impossible to test each crib. Therefore, we cannot provide methods to check existing cribs for compliance with the CPSC’s new crib standards. We also note that retrofits that would be appropriate for a recall might not be sufficient to meet the requirements of the new standards.”
There goes the resale market! My 1 year old is currently in a drop-side crib. For the near term, we plan to continue to use it and check it frequently and then discard it when she moves up into a big girl bed. If you have a drop-side crib, what do you plan to do?
Perhaps you can do what this resourceful owner did…
Drop-side crib upcycled into a compost bin; image courtesy NineInchNachos9, flickr.com
-Jasmine
Related Articles:
Massive Crib Recall Announced: What You Should Know
Creating a Safe Sleep Environment for Baby
Rest Easy with an Organic Mattress
Fantastically Funny Friday (2/25/2011) – Brilliant Baby
Photo courtesy CPSC
The CPSC and the FDA came together yesterday to issue a warning to parents and caregivers to stop using infant sleep positioners immediately as two recent deaths underscore concerns about suffocation.
You may remember the recent recall of the Nap Nanny. Well, now the CPSC is issuing a general warning with regard to sleep positioners after reviewing reports of 12 known infant deaths associated with the products which have occurred over the past 13 years. Most of the infants suffocated after rolling from a side to a stomach position. In addition to the 12 reported deaths, the CPSC has received dozens of reports of infants who were placed on their backs or sides in sleep positioners, only to be found later in potentially hazardous positions within or next to the sleep positioners.
The most common types of sleep positioners are:
- sleeping bolsters, usually a flat or inclined mat with round or triangular cushions on each side of a baby (see Figure 1) and
- wedge-style positioners, which elevate a baby’s head higher than its body, sometimes by placing the infant in an attached, diaper-like sling (see Figure 2).
With bolster-style positioners, if a baby is placed on its stomach or if a baby rolls from its side to its stomach, his or her mouth and nose can become pressed against a bolster or other parts of the device. Even if placed on its back, a baby may move upward or downward in the positioner, entrapping its face against a bolster or becoming trapped between the positioner and the crib side or bassinet.
A baby placed on a wedge-style positioner can scoot upward so that its head falls off and hangs over the high edge of the positioner, or the baby may scoot or roll down the wedge so that its mouth and nose are pressed into the positioner. The baby’s movement may also cause the positioner to flip on top of the baby, trapping the baby underneath the positioner or between the positioner and the side of the crib.
Many of these devices have been marketed with medical claims that they reduce the risk of SIDS by keeping a child on their back, help with food digestion and reflux (GERD), ease colic, and/or prevent flat head syndrome. However, the FDA and the CPSC have stated that there is currently no scientific evidence supporting these claims and they believe that any benefit from using these devices is outweighed by the risk of suffocation.
The FDA, which has jurisdiction over products making medical claims, is now contacting all manufacturers of infant sleep positioners, including those it had previously cleared with medical claims, and requesting that they stop marketing them until they submit scientific data showing that the benefits of their products outweigh the risk of suffocation or other serious harm. The FDA has also indicated it will be contacting retailers to ask them to stop selling the devices.
The FDA and CPSC warn parents, caregivers, and healthcare professionals to take this warning seriously and follow these recommendations:
(1) STOP using infant sleep positioners. Using a device to hold an infant in a particular position is dangerous and unnecessary.
(2) NEVER put pillows, infant sleep positioners, comforters, or quilts under the baby or in the crib.
(3) ALWAYS place an infant to sleep on his/her back, and not their sides, at night and during nap time.
FDA pediatric expert Susan Cummins, M.D., M.P.H., says, “The safest crib is a bare crib,” and summarizes the above recommendations with the “ABCs of safe sleep—Alone on the Back in a Bare Crib.”
If you enjoy reading PureBebe, please tell your friends and click on “Sign me up!” under “Email Subscription” on the right rail of the screen. By subscribing to our emails, you are telling us that you dig our site and want to read more of our healthy baby news and topics!
-Jasmine
Other recent recalls:
Similac Baby Formula Recalled
Nap Nanny® Recall: What you Should Know
CPSC Vote to Issue Safety Standards that will Eliminate Drop-Side Cribs
Massive Crib Recall Announced: What You Should Know
Double Check your Children’s Medicine
To subscribe to recall announcements and product safety alerts from the CPSC, click here.
Related Articles:
Creating a Safe Sleep Environment for Baby
Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS) – Reducing Your Risk
A Happy Baby is a Well-Rested Baby – Establishing a Bedtime Routine
Around the time of my daughter’s second birthday, she began experiencing night terrors. How did we know they were night terrors, you ask? We didn’t. But when my husband described my daughter’s episodes to our pediatrician, Dr. Ben, at her 2 year checkup, it was pretty clear to him that’s what they were.
Over the course of the previous week, she’d been waking in the middle of each night with a sudden and frightening cry (scared us half to death), and when we ran into her room she would be sitting up in her crib crying and/or screaming, sweating, disoriented, and inconsolable. She looked wide awake, but she didn’t act like it. Her eyes were wide open, but she had this blank stare on her face. If we tried to touch her or pick her up, she’d fight us off and cry even more. It was as if she didn’t know who we were. We couldn’t talk her down or out of it. I remember saying over and over, “Juliana, It’s Mommy. It’s okay. I’m here,” but any interaction with her just made it worse. So we just had to stand back and let her cry, and after a period of crying, typically 5-10 minutes, she would finally begin to calm down, lay down, and fall back to sleep. Come morning, it was as if nothing had happened. She had no recollection of her episode when we’d ask her what scared her the night before.
After this description, the pediatrician asked two questions:
(1) Does it happen about the same time every night?
Actually, yes. It was happening about 1 am every night.
The normal sleep cycle involves several stages, starting with light drowsiness moving into deep sleep followed by rapid eye movement (REM) sleep, in which the eyes move quickly and dreaming most often occurs. Each night, there are several cycles of non-REM and REM sleep. Night terrors occur during the deepest stages of sleep, stages 3 and 4 just before REM sleep (as opposed to nightmares which often occur during REM sleep). Night terrors will usually occur in the first half of the night, so Juliana’s timing wasn’t quite the norm but her pattern was consistent indicating that it was probably related to her sleep cycle.
As a side note, the fact that sleep terrors generally occur in the deepest stage of sleep explains a few things: (1) it is difficult to awaken someone in this stage of sleep, (2) someone awakened during this stage of sleep will be groggy and disoriented, and (3) it’s a non-dreaming state so there may be terror but no scary dream or object which has caused it.
(2) Do either you, your wife, or your families have a history of sleep walking or talking?
At the time, my husband wasn’t aware of any incidences.
What you’ll find, said Dr. Ben, is that you’ll begin to talk about it with your families and it’ll start to come out of the woodwork.
That is exactly what happened. My husband came home and asked me about it, and suddenly I remembered sleep-walking episodes that my little brothers and sisters had as well as stories from my mom of my dad’s sleep-talking. One of my brothers once walked home from a sleepover at a neighbor’s house and crawled right into bed. The next morning, our neighbors called in a fright trying to figure out where he’d gone and we found him in his own bed. My dad, on the other hand, was known to carry on business meetings in his sleep. Poor Mom.
So what could we do about it?
With our daughter, a pattern had emerged so our pediatrician suggested that, for the next 7 days, we disrupt her sleep cycle by waking her about 15 minutes before the time we anticipated an episode. Keep her awake for about 5 minutes, and then let her fall back asleep again. This should interrupt her sleep cycle and break the disruptive pattern that is causing her night terrors.
If she does experience a night terror, he said we shouldn’t do anything but keep her from hurting herself. Otherwise, don’t attempt to waken her or touch her. Just stay with her and wait it out until she falls back asleep.
Fortunately for us, as can be the case for many, we didn’t have to implement the doctor’s recommendations because that next week they began to go away on their own. But it’s nice to know what to do now should they happen again.
Besides genetics being a factor, other triggers such as sleep deprivation or fatigue, emotional stress, and/or a fever can lead to night terrors. So in addition to the recommendations above, some other suggestions from the Mayo Clinic you should consider to help prevent night terrors include:
(1) Establish a regular, relaxing bedtime routine. Engage in quiet and calming activities such as reading books, doing puzzles, or taking a bath.
(2) Get more sleep. Consider an earlier bedtime or a more regular sleep schedule.
(3) Put stress in its place. If your child seems anxious or stressed, try to identify stress triggers and eliminate them or talk to your child about coping with them.
And remember that, as scary as these are for you, your children likely won’t remember them and will outgrow them.
Please leave us a Comment and let us know your thoughts!
If you enjoy reading PureBebe, please click on “Sign me up!” under “Email Subscription” on the right rail of the screen. By subscribing to our emails, you are telling us that you digg our site and want to read more of our baby news and topics!
-Jasmine
Related Articles:
A Happy Baby is a Well-Rested Baby – Establishing a Bedtime Routine
Sleeping Issues, Parental No Nos & More: Interview with Dr. Lisa Hill, Part II
As I noted in a recent article on Creating a Healthy Relationship with Food, I had the pleasure of interviewing Dr. Lisa Hill, my childrens’ beloved doctor. This is the second part of a long interview. A tremendous thank you to Dr. Lisa and the rest of the staff for making this interview possible!
Dr. Lisa Hill, MD, FAAP
About Dr. Lisa Hill
Undergrad: University of Virginia, majors in Sociology & Urban Planning
Medical School: University of Pittsburgh
Residency: Fairfax Hospital, VA
Current practice: Capital Area Pediatrics
Years practicing medicine: 9
What is the most common ailment you’ve encountered for newborns, infants, toddlers?
Colds, viral upper respiratory infections – they’re going to get 12 of those the first year, maybe more. It’s hard because little people can’t tell you anything and when they’re sick they look so miserable. And when they have a fever, they’re not even my kids and it just breaks my heart!
But I think sometimes it can be frustrating because you never want to give them an antibiotic just because they have a virus. That makes people very upset sometimes. But viruses are not a bad thing. Your body needs to see those.
I tell parents that the babies have one bad winter, maybe two. But by the time they’re school age, they never come to see the pediatrician anymore.
What is the most common mistake you see parents make (whether health, safety, or nutrition-related)?
Wanting to be your child’s friend and not their parent. They don’t need more friends. They need a parent. Toddlers especially, with their frustration, they go from happy to mad in a nanosecond. But it really is unsettling for them when they don’t have structure or boundaries. They will cry a lot. And they are playing their parents like a violin. I always tell parents that if you don’t win these wars or battles when they’re toddlers, they don’t stop. They’re going to continue on when they’re teenagers.
I can understand when you work hard all day and then come home, you have these precious moments with your child. But you just have to say no. Kids will push the envelope all the time. And, you don’t want to over-indulge your children too much. Now adays, children can definitely be over-indulged.
What do you like least about your job?
It hasn’t happened yet, but when a patient gets really sick and dies. It will happen, it’s the law of averages. My patients now, I started with as babies and they’re now 8 or 9 years old. If one of them gets leukemia, it will be absolutely horrible. I don’t know how to detach from the kids I treat.
In every job there are annoyances and so when people come in and try my patience or nerves it doesn’t bother me much. Because it’s just 20 min of my day. However; losing a patient, that’s something that will be hard to bear.
I get questions all the time from parents whose children won’t stay in their beds – what do you recommend to parents?
Well I think you have to first start off with what parents are comfortable doing – closing the child’s door, etc. By the time they’re toddlers, a lot of sleeping issues are kind of like tantrums – they want it their way and they’ll pitch a fit if they don’t do things their way. What I usually recommend, is:
1) Start on a weekend.
2) When they come out of bed, keep taking them back to bed.
3) Let them know the tantrum behavior is unacceptable. You have to say the expectations that you’re setting and you have to tell them that under no circumstances will they be able to sleep in your bed with you.
What do you recommend to parents whose children have nightmares?
Well it’s hard because kids get nightmares and they get night terrors. Night terrors are a little bit different. They don’t know you’re there, you go in and they’re in a tranced state. You have to keep them safe.
With nightmares it’s hard because there are real fears there. By the time they’re school age they know they’re not real, but they still get really freaked out by it. The way you handle it can really help with their self esteem in terms of overcoming fears. Give them things to overpower those fears. Ask them if they’d like soft music, or whether they’d like to get up, etc. Maybe have them talk about their fears. Have them name the fear and talk about it. Offer to look under their bed if they say they have monsters under their bed. Whatever it is, talk about it with them and let them know that everyone has fears. I think when they’re awake and crying, just comfort them and then the next day you can talk about it.
But you have to be careful that they’re not taking advantage of you and you end up with them in your bed!
Please leave us a Comment and let us know your thoughts!
If you enjoy reading PureBebe, please click on “Sign me up!” under “Email Subscription” on the right rail of the screen. By subscribing to our emails, you are telling us that you digg our site and want to read more of our baby news and topics!
-Heather
Related Articles:
Creating A Healthy Relationship with Food: Interview with Dr. Lisa Hill
Creating A Safe Sleep Environment for Baby
Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS) – Reducing Your Risk
Image courtesy LOLGlitters.com
The most tragic thing for any parent has got to be the loss of a child, and how much more devastating and shocking is it when it comes suddenly and unexplained to their healthy young baby. My heart breaks for any parent who has lost a child to SIDS.
One mother, Mary Best, shared her heart-breaking story in the Back to School 2009 issue of Healthy Children, a magazine published by the American Academy of Pediatrics for parents:
On September 12, I took Will for his four-month checkup and first series of immunizations. Will and our pediatrician were like old friends, and after their usual playtime, Dr. Patel bragged that our little guy was fit as a fiddle.
Two nights later, we followed our regular routine — a bath, grooming, pajamas, prayers, goodnight kisses, and bedtime. I checked on him around 11, and he was sleeping soundly on his back. About 3:45 I woke up to check on him again, like I did every night. When I walked into his room, I sensed something was terribly wrong. Through the darkness, I could see he had rolled over and was face down in his crib. To my horror, he was not breathing. I applied CPR, woke my husband, called 911, and continued CPR. But he was gone.
A few hours after this hellish nightmare began, the police, detectives, EMTs, and coroner took my son away. Along with a part of me. More than two years later, I still suffocate from grief and guilt. Nothing in my life will ever hurt as much as losing my son.
As a mother, this story made me cry. As a mother of a 4 1/2 month old, this story also terrifies me.
Each year in the U.S., about 2,300 babies die from SIDS. SIDS is generally defined as the sudden death of an infant under 1 year of age where the cause remains unexplained after a thorough investigation. 90% of SIDS deaths, however, occur before 6 months of age, with most of them between 2 and 4 months. You can bet I will rest easier when my little girl is out of the danger zone. SIDS occurs during an infant’s sleep, be it naptime or nighttime, but occurs most frequently between 10 p.m. and 10 a.m. with the peak time of death around 5 a.m.
While there are many theories floating out there about the potential causes of SIDS, the prevailing theory is that SIDS results from three overlapping factors:
1. Critical developmental period (i.e. baby’s age). Infants who die of SIDS are in a critical stage of development of their immune, cardiovascular, and respiratory systems.
2. A biological vulnerability resulting from genetics and/or environment in the womb. Researchers are focused on the possibility of a brain defect in the part of the brain that is responsible for arousal. It is believed that these children are unable to arouse themselves when exposed to a lack of oxygen or too much carbon dioxide.
3. An outside stressor. An environmental cause such as stomach sleeping or soft bedding.
Across the spectrum of research, there are a number of factors that have been consistently identified as contributing risk factors for SIDS:
- Stomach sleeping.
- Sleeping on a soft surface.
- Maternal smoking during pregnancy. Accounts for over 60% of SIDS cases among smokers and 20% overall.
- Overheating.
- Late or no prenatal care.
- Young maternal age (i.e. <20)
- Preterm birth and/or low birth weight.
- Male gender. SIDS is more common in boys by a ratio of about 3 to 2.
- Babies born during the fall or winter. More SIDS deaths occur in the colder months, likely due to overdressing and as a result overheating.
- Siblings of a baby who died of SIDS. It is believed this is the result of a genetic connection; however, an alternative theory exists regarding the potential for toxins emitted from crib mattresses as they age. Given that mattresses are often passed down from one sibling to another, this is believed to be another possible explanation.
- Race. It is not known why, but SIDS death rates are highest among American Indians, Alaskan natives, and African Americans.
While some risks cannot be controlled, there are some proactive steps we, as parents, can take to reduce the risk of SIDS. The environment inside and outside of the womb have been identified as contributing to a child’s risk.
For expecting parents, consider these recommendations:
1. Get prenatal care early in and throughout your pregnancy.
2. Practice good nutrition throughout pregnancy to reduce risk of premature birth.
3. Do not smoke and avoid repeat exposure to second-hand smoke when you are pregnant.
For those of us who are now parents of infants, on Monday Heather provided a number of tips for creating a safe sleep environment all of which contribute to reduce a baby’s risk of death from SIDS. I do want to reiterate, though, that placing babies to sleep on their backs is the most important step you can take to reduce the risk of SIDS. Between 1992, when the American Academy of Pediatrics issued the recommendation, and 2001, the SIDS rate decreased by 53% consistent with the decline in the stomach sleeping rate. Heather also highlighted the importance of discussing your baby’s sleeping arrangement with your care provider. Many SIDS deaths in childcare have resulted from children being placed in a sleeping position that they are unaccustomed to. According to the AAP, unaccustomed stomach sleeping increases the risk of SIDS by 18 times.
In addition, consider these recommendations:
1. Choose a separate but nearby sleeping environment. The risk of SIDS has been shown to decrease when the baby is in the same room as the mother. The AAP notes that in Scotland and the UK, the recommendation is that the safest place for an infant is in a crib in the parents’ room for the first 6 months of life.
2. Consider offering your baby a pacifier. It is not known why, but the association of pacifier use with reduced SIDS risk is evident. The SIDS task force recommends pacifier use until 1 year and suggests that you should offer it to your baby when placing him or her down for sleep but do not replace it once your baby is asleep.
3. Do not rely on monitors (i.e. respiratory or cardiac) as a strategy to reduce SIDS. There is no evidence that these reduce risk, and they may promote a sense of false security.
4. Improve room ventilation by using a fan while baby sleeps. A recent study has suggested that using a fan in the room where baby sleeps reduces SIDS risk by 72% compared to no fan in the room.
5. Swaddle your young infant. Some studies have shown that while swaddled babies experience shorter and fewer arousals during sleep, swaddled babies sleeping on their backs are at reduced risk for SIDS. Keep baby’s head and face uncovered and once your baby can roll over, stop swaddling and consider a sleep sack.
6. Practice tummy time to strengthen baby’s muscles.
7. Consider purchasing an organic crib mattress.
For more information on SIDS prevention and research:
American Academy of Pediatrics
CJ Foundation for SIDS
American SIDS Institute
National Institute of Child Health and Human Development
Safe sleeping!
-Jasmine
Courtesy of abbybatchelder, Flickr
Yesterday’s article on the recall of Nap Nanny® baby recliners got us thinking. The fact that so many parents out there are still placing those recliners and other sleep aids in cribs encouraged Jasmine and me to focus on safe sleep this week.
Let’s face it – as new parents, we have so many fears. Fears that baby will choke on her own vomit, fears that her acid reflux will keep her (and her weary-eyed parents) awake all night again and the worse fear of all, fear that we’ll walk in and find our baby not breathing.
That’s why the thought of having something prop up an infant while they sleep sounds so appealing. At least it did to me. And this is precisely the reason my husband and I bought a sleep positioner (similar to the Nap Nanny, also known as a “sleep wedge”).
We placed the sleep wedge in our infant’s crib, secured the two long cylinders under her arms and said good night. That same evening, I called a nurse friend to discuss some breastfeeding problems that I had been experiencing. I was so excited about the sleep positioner that I told her about it during our conversation.
She told me to immediately go upstairs and to remove the sleep positioner from my daughter’s crib. She said that as a nurse, she is on a SIDS panel and has the unfortunate task of visiting with families who have lost babies due to SIDS. And she had visited far too many families over the years whose babies had suffocated on sleep positioners/sleep aids.
Needless to say, I will be forever grateful that I had that conversation with my nurse friend that evening.
Below are some tips from “A Parent’s Guide to Safe Sleep” from the American Academy of Pediatrics/Healthychildren.org on creating a safe sleep environment for your baby:
1. Place your baby in a safety-approved crib with a firm mattress and a well-fitting sheet (cradles and bassinets may be used, but choose those that are JPMA (Juvenile Products Manufacturers Association) certified for safety).
2. Place the crib in an area that is always smoke free.
3. Don’t place babies to sleep on adult beds, chairs, sofas, waterbeds, or cushions.
4. Toys and other soft bedding, including fluffy blankets, comforters, pillows, stuffed animals, and wedges should not be placed in the crib with the baby. These items can impair the infant’s ability to breathe if they cover his face.
Many parents love the look and feel of plush bumpers, which is not recommended by experts. If your child is anything like mine and moves around in her sleep, you’ll want a bumper to keep her arms and legs inside the crib but doesn’t endanger her breathing. These mesh bumpers
5. Breastfeed your baby. Experts recommend that mothers feed their children human milk at least through the first year of life.
Breastfed babies are at lower risk of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS). A study in New Zealand revealed that SIDS was THREE times higher in non-breastfed babies.
I made it to month 8 with my first daughter and have one more month to go (until a year) with my second daughter. It’s been fairly easy most of the year, but since my daughter started biting me yesterday (OUCH!), I’ll be weaning her when she turns one.
6. Always place babies to sleep on their backs during naps and at nighttime. Because babies sleeping on their sides are more likely to roll accidentally onto their stomach, the side position is not as safe as the back and is not recommended.
7. Don’t cover the heads of babies with a blanket or overbundle them in clothing and blankets.
8. Avoid letting the baby get too hot. The baby could be too hot if you notice sweating, damp hair, flushed cheeks, heat rash, and rapid breathing. Dress the baby lightly for sleep. Set the room temperature in a range that is comfortable for a lightly clothed adult.
Since most doctors recommend that you wait until your baby is one year old to use a blanket, I have used sleep sacks with both of my babies. Since my youngest is 10 1/2 months now, I put her in a sleeper and the sleep sack goes on over the sleeper. Sleep sacks come in both cotton and fleece. I use cotton for warmer nights and fleece for cooler evenings. Babies can’t kick off sleep sacks and they keep babies nice and warm.
Since 1 in 5 SIDS deaths occur while baby is in the care of someone other than a parent, it is extremely important to discuss your child’s sleep environment with baby sitters, child care providers, family, friends, and anyone else who might care for your baby.
Safe sleeping!
-Heather
Related Articles
A Happy Baby is a Well-Rested Baby – Establishing a Bedtime Routine
Courtesy of CPSC
The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) and Baby Matters LLC have announced a voluntary recall of 30,000 Nap Nanny® portable baby recliners. A four month old infant was found dead, hanging over the side of the Nap Nanny® and caught between her crib bumper and the baby recliner. Apparently, she was still strapped in her harness (see CPSC photo of incorrect use below).
Courtesy of CPSC
22 reports of infants hanging or falling out over the side of the baby recliner have been reported.
The CPSC says that “Consumers should always use the Nap Nanny® on the floor away from any other products.” The article further states that the product should not be used inside a crib, play yard or other confined area as the child could suffocate if she becomes trapped between the crib bumper and baby recliner. The Nap Nanny® should also not be placed on a table, countertop or elevated surface, since the child is at risk of a serious head injury if she falls over the side.
The Nap Nanny® has been sold in toy and children’s stores nationwide and online from January 2009 through July 2010 for approximately $130.
The CPSC has asked consumers that own a Nap Nanny to stop using the product immediately and to visit Baby Matter’s recall website or to contact the Company toll-free at (888) 240-4282 between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. ET Monday through Friday.
Other Recent Recalls:
Massive Crib Recall Announced: What You Should Know
Double Check your Children’s Medicine
Related Articles:A Happy Baby is a Well-Rested Baby – Establishing a Bedtime Routine
BREAKING NEWS: Today, the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) announced a 5-0 vote to issue mandatory safety standards that could, if passed, “eliminate” traditional drop-side cribs.
The CPSC article is here for your reference.
For more information on drop-side cribs and why they have been deemed unsafe, see purebebe’s recent article “Massive Crib Recall Announced: What You Should Know.”
Related Articles:
A Happy Baby is a Well Rested Baby: Establishing a Bedtime Routine
Rest Easy with an Organic Mattress
