Baby Diaries: A Guide for New Mothers: Part 4 – Keeping Baby Safe
April 25, 2009 by Anne Lyken Garner
Published in Motherhood
This is a guide for new mothers which is not written from a medical point of view because you will have all the help you need from that aspect of things. In this series you will find information about what to expect from your new baby and advice on how to cope with all the novel factors that invariably arise with having a baby for the very first time. This series is not meant to be a medical journal, so please see your doctor or health professional if you have reason to be concerned about your or your baby’s health. In this section we will indentify the best ways to keep baby safe. Click on my name above to find the other articles in this series.
Many of us have older relatives who’ve had multiple babies die before they were a year old. Of course babies survived, but too many of them died unnecessarily. Thankfully, health care and advice for keeping our infants safe have gotten significantly better during our generation, and is steadily evolving for the better.
After bringing baby home it’s very important to pay keen attention to his/her safety and prevent accidents and mishaps before they occur. Infants move around more than we expect they could, and can easily change positions before we’re aware that they’re able to move. Taking care of how well we sterilise and clean their feeding equipment is also a matter of concern. Here are some ways that will help.
Safety in Putting Baby to Sleep
- The official advice given in Europe is to put baby to sleep on his/her back – not front or side. Don’t worry about them vomiting while asleep. If they do, it will run down the side of their face. I’ve wiped my share of sick off my infants’ faces while they were sleeping.
- When placing baby in the cot, make sure that their feet are near the foot of the cot. This means that their heads are somewhere in the middle of the mattress and their feet are almost touching the bottom. This is opposed to the way we sleep with our heads at the top of the bed on a pillow. Babies wriggle down, and if their heads are close to the top of the cot, there is a danger that they will wriggle down into the space below and get tangled up in the blanket.
- Babies don’t need pillows. Mine were just fine without them. They only got pillows after their second birthdays.
- Babies should not overheat. Never put their cots near to a radiator, or near to a window. Blankets are preferred to duvets, as you can take a layer off if you find that your infant is a bit too hot.
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April 25th, 2009 at 8:35 am
I read somewhere that among gypsies (Romany) that the custom is for young families to live with parents or in-laws till the new couple is competent in baby care. Goodness knows, I was ignorant enough with my first child. I’ve probably broken about every “rule” you set forth in the above. I’ve always been puzzled by the not sleeping with your child thing. It has been my observation that a 7 pound baby can scootch an adult off the bed because the adult will give way to the child. I’ve slept with my own children when they were small (ok, I was a lazy mom–breast-feeding is handy that way; you can cuddle up and both go to sleep), with puppies and kittens who had been orphaned, and I have yet to squish any of them.
April 25th, 2009 at 9:48 am
Hi, Daisy. Thanks for your comment. Yes, people do squish their babies by accident. There was a young woman on the news just last year who’d fallen asleep and rolled over on her baby, killing her by accident. Also, some dads drink. When they get to bed, they don’t know their feet from their heads.
Cot death is a very sad situation, and research in the UK have shown that babies are less likely to be injured when they do *not* sleep in the same bed with adults. Ask any health professional.
April 25th, 2009 at 11:21 am
I have followed your series with interest. You give some good advise.
One of my three children had trapped wind very badly and an old midwife suggested a pacifier dummy,apparently it actually helped stimulate the baby to burb by activating the stomach juices and allowing the wind to rise, it helped and made our lives a little better, I hated it but it was for the good of my baby.
April 25th, 2009 at 12:22 pm
Oh I wish you had been around years ago when I had my daughter. Reading this I’m wondering how she survived at all lol. Excellent article Anne as usual. Young mothers should really benifit from this series.
April 25th, 2009 at 5:53 pm
Anne, thanks for another segment on baby care. You are doing an excellent job.
April 25th, 2009 at 9:26 pm
This is great for all mothers!
April 25th, 2009 at 10:15 pm
Another great one. I think this is the most important guide of all. Bravo.
April 26th, 2009 at 7:11 am
A great guide with many valuable tips on caring for babies!
April 26th, 2009 at 10:34 pm
I wonder how any babies survive. Most of us are young and inexperienced when we have our first one and we break all the rules but most of them do survive. Maybe the young mothers who read this will follow the rules if they have time to read it. Great collection of advise.
April 28th, 2009 at 4:55 am
Thanks for your comments, everyone. Ruby, research has shown that the occurence of cot death has fallen dramatically since health providers are advising parents to put their infants to sleep on their backs, to not sleep with them etc.
My grandmother had 14 children. Only seven of them survived. My aunt had 2 babies die. I’m sure we all can say that our older relatives had surviving children, but they also had many that died too.
May 6th, 2009 at 12:36 pm
Essential reading for all new mothers again. The cot death issue used to terrify me.