The two American Academy of Pediatrics

The two American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) and the Consumer Product Safety Returns (CPSC) have advised that it is dangerous for adults or children to share a bed with an infant. Then, there All About Futons are anthropologist like Dr. McKenna who else claim that mothers and babies are suffering from and adapted since the beginning of time to sleep at the same time. This is completely confusing to new parents who are trying to make the finest choices for their family.

First to define - Co-Sleeping is a universal term for sleeping in proximate location. Bed sharing is the specific act of sleeping with a child in the same bed. Room showing is the term used for baby slumbering in the same room as the father and mother (proximate location) but not on the same sleeping surface. Everyone agrees that space sharing is a desirable behavior for the patients parents and infants. Bed sharing would be the hot-button topic that gets every person riled up and making value judgments. It's gotten so good that some parents lie with their family and doctor about practicing bed sharing. Dr. McKenna writes:

"For the overwhelming majority of mothers and babies around the globe today, co-sleeping is an unquestioned practice. In much of southern Europe, Asia, Africa and Principal and South America, mothers and children routinely share sleep. In many cultures, co-sleeping is the norm until children are weaned, and some continue long after weaning. Japanese parents (or grandparents) normally sleep in proximity with their kids until they are teenagers, referring to this specific arrangement as a river - the mother is one bank, the father another, and the child sleeping between them is the drinking water. Most of the present world cultures exercise forms of co-sleeping and there are very few nationalities in the world for which it would ever even be thought acceptable or desirable to obtain babies sleeping alone.

Co-sleeping might be practiced in a variety of ways around the world. In Latina America, the Philippines, and Vietnam, some parents sleep with their child in a hammock next to the bed. Other folks place their baby in a wicker basket in the bed, between the two parents. In Japan, many moms and dads sleep next to their baby about bamboo or straw mats, or even on futons. Some parents just room share by putting your baby in a crib or bassinet which is kept within arm's reach with the bed. Most cultures that regularly practice co-sleeping, in any form, include very rare instances of SIDS. SIDS incidents are among the lowest in the world throughout Hong Kong, where co-sleeping is extremely usual. "

I agree with Dr. McKenna BUT with a few caveats. First, PREVENT confusing the terms. Let's just simply talk about bed sharing since most of health professionals agree on room sharing. Next, let's get clear about what else is going on. In Asian countries, back slumbering is the norm for babies. Placing babies on their backs has always been typically the custom in eastern countries. Within the United States, we are still working to encourage parents that back sleep is the most suitable for baby. Further, I how to start many American families that sleep on bamboo or straw pads.

NOW, we are getting to the heart for the matter. The bed. The bed in the United States can be significantly different than most countries of the world. Our beds are soft plus filled with softer stuff like quilts, bed comforters, blankets, pillows, and pillow cake toppers. Lots of soft stuff! We have all varieties of mattresses. We have "sleep number" beds made of air, water beds, foam mattresses and more. That's what endangers our babies. The bed.

Of course, many of us still have examples of poor parenting verdict. Parents that are drinking, smoking or even drugging should not be sleeping with their child. But, by in large, we now have well-meaning, really tired parents of which just want to get some sleep. Instead of vilifying parents let's focus on getting the experts to agree to give one single, simple personal message. If you plan to sleep in the same bed otherwise you baby, do not have soft bedding within your bed.

Recent research demonstrated that risk-free sleep is a group of behaviors -- not just a single behavior such as placing a baby on his or her back again. Parents have "tools" today to keep their babies safe during sleep. Make use of as many of those tools as possible in your babies first year. Finally, understand that babies have very few protective components as newborns. They are not able to go away or push away from a great obstruction and they need to be able to arise to get their needs met. Although newborns sleep up to 16 hours on a daily basis, it is not in long, continuous segments like most adults crave.

You are the parent or guardian. You get to decide what works best for you plus your newborn.