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"Are Family Beds a Good Idea?"
What happened to newborns
sleeping all day and night? Why is your one year old
still not sleeping through the night? And will your
five year old ever choose to sleep in her own bed all
night?
For a few generations the thought of
sharing your bed with your children seemed not just
undisciplined but even archaic. That view still exists
in many Western countries. For years professionals encouraged
the trend towards independence in children as early
as possible. Mothers were urged to formula feed rather
than breastfeed. Babies slept alone rather than with
their mothers.
Now a whiplash effect has occurred with
many women looking to return to breastfeeding and the
family bed.
Why is it such a controversial topic?
For many new mothers the reports about increased suffocation
risk for infants sleeping in adult beds along with social
pressure to establish an independent child forces them
to rise several times per night and endless daily battles
to keep their unwilling child in a crib.
Is it worth it? Many mothers and fathers
are beginning to say NO.
In a report by Today's Parent magazine,
two-thirds of respondents said they sleep with their
baby "sometimes", "often" or "always".
Is it something you should try? If you already are,
is it safe to continue?
Many of the dangers attributed to sleeping
in adult beds comes from studies that included the risk
of the baby coming to harm on the bed itself - by wedging
between the mattress and the wall or other danger -
and babies who died from SIDS (Sudden Infant Death Syndrome)
in which no cause was found.
Despite that fact, professionals who
continued to look for methods of bed sharing that were
acceptable were unable to do so. While sharing a room
with the parents has been proven to cut the risk of
SIDS dramatically, sharing a bed just could not pass
the scrutiny of the medical community.
On the other hand, sharing a bed has
been a custom for centuries before average families
could afford separate beds, let alone separate rooms,
for each individual in the home. Many countries still
accept this as the norm and often boast good numbers
of healthy infants in the process.
So what will you do? More and more Western
families are seeing benefits of sharing a bed with improved
sleep for both mother and baby. Young children also
find comfort in a family bed. This can be particularly
attractive to working mothers who miss out on time spent
with their infants or children through the day.
However, a word of caution: adults who
are intoxicated, taking sleeping pills or other drugs
or are unusually heavy sleepers ARE a risk to infants
since they will not be as aware of the presence of the
baby and could potentially suffocate it. Infants should
also not share beds with other children for the same
reason - they just lack the ability to maintain awareness
of the baby while sleeping.
Mothers who nurse will also find the
baby will likely nurse more frequently in a shared sleeping
arrangement. But both baby and mother will not have
to fully awaken and on average will enjoy longer sleeping
periods - a benefit for everyone in the family. Whatever
you decide, you will find many parents divided on the
topic, so find what works for your family and stick
to it!
1howto.com
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