Infant Health: Safe Sleep for Your Baby

Some of our readers are volunteering with new mothers and asked for health information, so we have been looking... Here is a great article by the National Institute of Health that comes complete with free multilingual printable information.

I also thought it a useful reminder that soft plushy surfaces can pose Sudden Infant Death (SID) risks to infants because a lot of new organic mattresses and padding is not as firm as regular bedding.

Three useful tips from the NIH site include:

• Babies sleep safer on their backs. Babies who sleep on their stomachs are much more likely to die of SIDS than babies who sleep on their backs.
  
  
• Sleep surface matters. Babies who sleep on or under soft bedding are more likely to die of SIDS.
  
  
• Every sleep time counts. Babies who usually sleep on their backs but who are then placed on their stomachs, like for a nap, are at very high risk for SIDS. So it's important for everyone who cares for your baby to use the back sleep position for naps and at night.

Also, given my experience with wonderful sinkable organic rubber tree derived latex mattresses at home, remember that if you sleep with your infant in your bed, the surface of your own bed will be important.

To read the entire article on Safe Sleep for Your Baby: Ten Ways to Reduce the Risk of Sudden Infant Death (SID) visit the NIH site. Those of you volunteering in the community will find the free printable material links there.