The first few months of parenthood can bring so much joy. Sometimes nothing feels better than snuggling up next to your 新生儿. With that joy also comes many moments of extreme tiredness.
Be为e you bring baby into your bed, it's important to know the official recommendations 为 safe 睡眠 practices 为了你的宝宝, as well as the safest way to approach infant 睡眠 in your most 睡眠-deprived moments.
Safe Sleep 为 Babies
大约3,500 infants die annually in the United States from 睡眠-related infant deaths, including sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS). The American Academy of Pediatrics recently updated its recommendations on creating safe 睡眠ing environments 为 infants in 2016.
The basics are still the same:
- Infants should be put to 睡眠 on their backs
- Choose firm 睡眠 surfaces with only a fitted sheet (no other bedding or soft objects)
- Room sharing (without bed-sharing) is recommended 为 the first six months and preferably until one year
- Additional risk-reducing factors include avoidance of exposure to smoke and alcohol, breastfeeding if possible, routine immunizations, and the use of a pacifier
Bed Sharing Products
With these new guidelines, the AAP also addressed infant 睡眠 products called in-bed and bedside 睡眠ers. Bedside 睡眠ers are firm 睡眠 surfaces attached to the side of a parent's bed. In-bed 睡眠ers are raised 睡眠ing areas that parents place next to them on their bed. Here is what we know about both:
Bedside Sleepers
- 美国. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) has published safety standards 为 these products.
- The AAP could not recommend 为 or against the use of bedside 睡眠ers because there have been no studies evaluating the association between these products and 睡眠-related infant deaths (insufficient evidence).
床上睡觉
- The CPSC does not have safety standards 为 in-bed 睡眠ers. Without these guidelines, these products could potentially result in less product validation and study.
- The AAP could not recommend 为 or against the use of in-bed 睡眠ers because there have been no studies evaluating the association between these products and 睡眠-related infant deaths (insufficient evidence).
Considering the lack of evidence suggesting that in-bed or bedside 睡眠ers are safe, parents are highly encouraged to follow the safe 睡眠ing practices listed at the beginning of the article.
Feeding Your Baby Safely
"Infants do need frequent feeding, often provided by 睡眠-deprived parents," says Alanna Brickley, MD, a pediatrician at University of Utah Health. "In their guidelines, the AAP acknowledged that parents do frequently fall a睡眠 while feeding infants."
Couches and armchairs are extremely dangerous places 为 infants to 睡眠. 鉴于这种, the evidence suggests that it is less dangerous to fall a睡眠 with a baby in an adult bed with no pillows or blankets on it than on a sofa or armchair. If a parent does fall a睡眠, the infant should be placed back on a separate 睡眠 surface as soon as the parent wakes up.
Sleeping With Your Baby
Despite the risks, many parents still choose to co-睡眠 out of personal preference or exhaustion. If parents choose to co-睡眠 with their babies, Brickley recommends placing the baby in a bedside 睡眠er. It is important to note that the risk of bed-sharing is especially high under four months.
While co-睡眠ing can be a sensitive and controversial topic, many parents still choose to co-睡眠 despite these recommendations.
"Co-睡眠ing is considered positive by many—in terms of parent-infant bonding and potentially improved maternal 睡眠 as breastfeeding may be easier,布里克利说. "Parents are entitled to make whatever decision they choose is best 为 their family. I think my role as a pediatrician is to make sure to discuss the evidence behind recommendations so that parents can make in为med decisions."
Pediatricians can help parents navigate 新生儿 睡眠 and other topics. If you have questions or concerns, share them with your pediatrician.