Sleep Safe and Sound HW Mag_Page… · Check your baby’s sleeping quarters Make sure the crib,...
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20 SamsClub.com/healthyliving January/February 2012 Baby Safety by Heidi Murkoff O f course you want your baby to sleep well. Even more important, you want your baby to sleep safely. While you’ve probably heard plenty about the risks of sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS)—and taken many precautions to protect your little one against it—you may not know that there are other largely preventable causes of sleep-related deaths. In fact, as SIDS rates have dropped due to greater awareness, the number of babies who suffocate because they get trapped by bumpers or in gaps or get tangled up in blankets has increased in the past few years. That’s why late last year, the American Academy of Pediatricians (AAP) issued a new set of safety guidelines that are designed to protect babies while they sleep— and to help parents rest easier at night. Check your baby’s sleeping quarters Make sure the crib, bassinet or portable play yard meets all safety standards and comes with a firm, tight-fitting mattress. If you’re using hand-me-downs, make sure the crib doesn’t have drop-side rails, isn’t missing parts and hasn’t been recalled (visit the Consumer Product Safety Commission at cpsc.gov to double-check). From crib bedding to room sharing, here’s how to ensure better—and safer—sleep for you and your baby, from the author of What to Expect When You’re Expecting The American Academy of Pediatricians (AAP) issued a new set of safety guidelines that are designed to protect babies while they sleep. Always put your baby to sleep on her back Bedtime or naptime, babies are safest when they sleep on their backs. Not their tummies, not their sides. Don’t listen to friends who tell you that their newborns snooze better on their bellies. Instead, save tummy time for daytime play sessions when you or another caregiver can keep a close eye on your little one. Once your infant is a pro at rolling over—from back to belly and from belly to back— she may roll onto her belly on her own, and that’s nothing to stress about. Her new mobility keeps her safer. But for safety’s sake, continue to start her off sleeping on her back. Banish soft bedding To reduce the risk of SIDS and other sleep-related injuries or deaths, keep all comforters, blankets, pillows and stuffed animals out of the crib. Instead, cover the mattress with a tight-fitting cotton sheet and nothing else. Don’t use a wedge or sleep positioner, either. Ditch the crib bumpers Once considered nursery essentials, bumpers of all kinds—even firm or tight-fitting ones—are now a nursery no-no, since they’ve been linked to suffocation and other causes of crib deaths. Worried that your little one might bump her noggin or get her tiny feet or arms stuck in a bumper-less crib slat? Don’t be. Experts say those risks are minor compared to the risk posed by bumpers. Sleep Safe and Sound
