recommendations; the safest place to sleep your baby is in a cot next to the parents bed for the...
TRANSCRIPT
Recommendations;The SAFEST place to sleep your baby is in a cot NEXT to the parents’ bed for the first six to twelve months of life as this has been shown to lower the risk of SIDS.
Issues?
Sharing a sleep surface with a baby must be avoided in the following circumstances where
• Baby shares the surface with a smoker• Care-giver is under influence of alcohol or drugs that
cause sedation• Caregiver is overtired• There is adult bedding, eg doonas, pillows• Baby could get trapped between the wall and bed,fall
out of bed or get rolled on• Baby is sharing bed with other children or pets• Baby is placed to sleep on sofa or couch, beanbag,
water bed or sagging mattressBabies must never be left alone on an adult bed or put to sleep on a sofa/couch
SHARING SLEEP SURFACES WITH A BABY INCREASES THE RISK OF SIDS AND FATAL SLEEP
ACCIDENTS IN SOME CIRCUMSTANCES
• Put baby on the back to sleep (not on the tummy or side).
• Make sure the mattress is firm and flat
• Make sure that bedding cannot cover the baby’s face. Use only lightweight blankets, keep pillows,
doonas and any other soft items well away from the baby and make sure there is nothing soft underneath the baby e.g. lambs wool.
• Place the baby at the side of one parent - not in between two parents, as this would increase the likelihood of the baby becoming covered or slipping underneath adult bedding.
• Ensure that the baby is not close to the edge of the bed where he/she can fall off. Do not place pillows at the side of the baby to prevent rolling off. A safer alternative is to place the adult mattress on the floor.
• Ensure baby is not wrapped if bed sharing with a care-giver
• Pushing the bed up against the wall can be hazardous. Babies have died after becoming trapped between the bed and the wall.
• As an alternative to bedding, an infant sleeping bag may be used so that the baby does not share the adult bedding. A safe infant sleeping bag is one with fitted neck and armholes.
Monday, Nov 07 2011 www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-2054393/Bad-news-dads-Babies-share-mothers-bed-age-good-hearts.html
“Bad news for dads: Babies 'should share mother's bed until age three' because it's good for their hearts”
Sleeping alone makes it harder for mother and child to bond - and damages the development of the brain, leading to bad
behaviour as the child grows up, researchers fear.Dr Nils Bergman, of the University of Cape Town, South
Africa, says that for optimal development, healthy newborns should sleep on their mother’s chest for the first few weeks
After that, they should stay in the mother’s bed until they are three or even four years old.
With special thanks to Professor (Adj) Jeanine Young FRCNA
PhD BSc (Hons) Adv Diploma Nursing RGN EM Neonatal Nurse Nursing Director - Research, Royal Children's Hospital & Health Service
Children's Health Services
Adjunct Professor, Research Centre for Clinical and Community Practice Innovation, Griffith UniversityAdjunct Professor, School of Nursing and Midwifery, Queensland University of TechnologyAdjunct Associate Professor, The University of Queensland, School of Nursing & Midwifery
Bialocerkowski AE, Vladusic SL, Choong WN. (2008) Prevalence, risk factors, and natural history of positional plagiocephaly: a systematic review. Developmental Medicine and Child Neurology 50(8):577-586.
Byard, R Krous, H 2003, ‘Sudden Infant Death- an overview and update’. Paediatr Dev Pathol, vol. 6, no.2, pp. 112-117
Consultative Council on Obstetric and Paediatric Mortality and Morbidity 2011, ‘Annual Report for the Year 2008, Incorporating the 47th Survey of Perinatal Deaths in Victoria’, Melbourne. Sighted September 2011http://docs.health.vic.gov.au/docs/doc/Annual-Report-for-the-year-2008
Hutchison BL, Mitchell EA, Thompson JM. (2006) Non-synostic plagiocephaly and brachycephaly: anoverview. Current Pediatric Reviews 2(1): 33-39.
Krous H, Beckwith J, Byard R, Rognum T, Bajanowski T, Corey T, Cutz E, Hanzlick R, Keens T, Mitchell E 2004, ‘Sudden Infant Death Syndrome and unclassified infant deaths: a definitional and diagnostic approach.’ Paediatrics, vol.114, no.1, pp.234-238.
Wong FY, Witcombe NB, Yiallourou SR, Yorkston S, Dymowski AR, Krishnan L, Walker AM, Horne RS, Cerebral oxygenation is depressed during sleep in healthy term infants when they sleep prone.Source Pediatrics. 2011 Mar;127(3):e558-65. Epub 2011 Feb 28.
For further information contact SIDS and Kids Victoria 03 [email protected]
Jill Green National Coordinator of Education and Bereavement [email protected]