UPDATED AAP sleep guidelines | New BABY SLEEP information from the American Academy of Pediatrics! - Certified Pediatric Sleep Consultant and Potty Training Coach

UPDATED AAP sleep guidelines | New BABY SLEEP information from the American Academy of Pediatrics!

There’s always new information coming to the surface. So today we are going to talk about the new American Academy of Pediatrics safe sleep requirements.

UPDATED AAP sleep guidelines | New BABY SLEEP information from the American Academy of Pediatrics!

We know about the back-to-sleep campaign to prevent SIDS and to prevent any unsafe sleep habits. But now we’ve learned even more about keeping our babies safe while sleeping. Having your baby sleep alone on their bag and in their crib, we know about using a fitted sheet, only no blankets, no bumpers, no levees, no pillows, no nothing. The only thing that should be in your baby’s crib is your baby. Some of the guidelines have been updated because there are new products on the market. There are new strategies that parents are trying because of these companies that are promoting their product as SIDS safe. And truth be told there’s no research to back that up.So we are going to dive deeper into that.

In the United States alone, 3,500 babies die because of SIDS or non safe sleep environments. And now that we know better. We can do better. And all of these new requirements and guidelines, they’re out there to keep our babies alive.

Babies should not be sleeping in anything other than a crib. Now of course there are going to be times where you’re out for a drive and your baby falls asleep in the car seat. The best thing to do in this situation is to bring your baby in the house, get them out of the car seat and put them to sleep in their crib. Wouldn’t you rather have your baby wake up from a nap in the car seat than to suffer from positional asphyxiation with their chin on their chest and not be able to breathe? Along with the car seat, babies really shouldn’t be sleeping in a stroller where they’re sitting upright or in a swing that may be inclined where again their chin is up against their chest and their breathing pathways are not clear. The American Academy of Pediatrics, of course, put in their updated guidelines that none of these products are marketed for sleeping.
The American Academy of Pediatrics advises against using commercialized products claiming to reduce the risk of SIDS. Now we’re talking about the owlet monitor that goes around your baby’s foot. There is no machine out there that can detect your baby’s breathing better than you as the parent. It’s almost like putting the responsibility of checking on your baby through the night on a robot or a machine, and it’s not something that we should really be using as that sense of security. If you want to use it as a backup to yourself then go ahead and take the information and do as you will with it. But, I want you to really think about the products that you’re using and what sense of security is it really giving you? Not only that, but I’ve heard several reports of items like the owlet that is giving off false alarms.
Have 15 to 30 minutes of tummy time every day, by the time your baby is seven weeks old to prevent plagiocephaly (baby’s flat head).
Tummy time needs to be under observation during awake time while you are right there with your baby. You don’t want them falling asleep on their stomachs.
The American Academy of Pediatrics have not found any evidence that swaddling prevents or helps avoid SIDS, it does not decrease the chances of SIDS happening. But what it does do is it helps prevent your baby from waking in the night because of that startle reflex. So we do advise to swaddle but not as a SIDS prevention strategy, more so as a startle reflex avoidance strategy. And to stop swaddling as soon as your baby is showing signs of rolling over. If your baby is rolling over while being swaddled, they cannot push themselves up with their hands because they’re in their swaddle and they won’t be able to push up and their face may be pressed against the mattress in which they won’t be able to breathe.
Any weighted sleep product is not recommended. Any weighted sleep sacks, weighted swaddle, any weighted products at all that are marketed for safe baby sleep, it’s not recommended, so don’t do it. There’s a board of pediatricians who are saying that these are not safe! Your kid needs to learn how to sleep, not swaddled, not having weighted blankets on them, but to sleep without those things.

If you are struggling to get your newborn to sleep, go get my newborn sleep course. This is going to be a full comprehensive course that’s going to cover the first few months of your baby’s life and it’s going to teach you all the things that you need to know to have a healthy sleep plan for your baby and your family to learn more about newborn baby sleep. And head to https://www.slumberandbloom.com/free-evaluation to set up a free introductory call with me. I would love to see if I can help your family work through your sleep struggles, so make sure you set up a call and we will discuss everything that’s going on and how I can best help your family.