AAP Release New Guidance For Preventing SIDS

hoosiermama-2 · October 2016

You've probably read or heard this already, but just in case.
https://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-way/2016/10/24/499188246/pediatricians-release-new-guidance-for-preventing-sudden-infant-deaths
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Parents can reduce the risk of sudden infant death syndrome by keeping their child's crib in the same room, close to their bed, according to the American Academy of Pediatrics.

That's one of the key recommendations in new guidance released today aimed at preventing SIDS, which claims the lives of approximately 3,500 infants every year in the United States. That number "initially decreased in the 1990s after a national safe sleep campaign, but has plateaued in recent years," the AAP adds.

The pediatricians say that children should sleep in the same room but on a separate surface from their parents for at least the first six months of their lives, and ideally the first year. They say that this can halve the risk of SIDS.

whaat · October 2016

I've bee in seeing this everywhere today but wasn't this already a recommendation? I feel like I've been reading about this for at least my entire pregnancy.

hoosiermama-2 · October 2016

@whaat Not sure! I just read and heard about it last night. AAP only posted it to their site yesterday, 10/24.

MrsBigTime · October 2016

whaat said:

I've bee in seeing this everywhere today but wasn't this already a recommendation? I feel like I've been reading about this for at least my entire pregnancy.

I think co-sleeping (sleeping in same room, not same bed) has been found to be the safest, but I don't think it has ever been an "official recommendation."

Here is my 2 cents on SIDS, just because the fear will soon hit us all and it is a real fear. I've been a Peds ICU nurse for nearly 7 years and all the cases of accidental sleeping deaths have involved unsafe conditions (sleeping with a sibling, ill/drunk/smoker parents, pillows in the bed, etc.) anything else sudden is a congenital anomaly that was missed (often a cardiac condition).

Iy is a real danger, and an absolutely horrible thing for anyone to experience, and I don't want to minimize it, but know that you are doing your very best by providing your baby with the safest option by following safe sleeping practices and allow yourself to somehow sleep, despite the scary things that seem to lurk around every corner!

PrettyPalomino · October 2016

Thanks for that @mrsbigtime , I'm not a big fan of the fear mongering. To say sleeping in the same room reduces SIDS cases by 50% can make a mom think that putting baby in the baby room doubles her chances of SIDS. Not a pleasant logical deduction...

MrsBigTime · October 2016

PrettyPalomino said:

Thanks for that @mrsbigtime , I'm not a big fan of the fear mongering. To say sleeping in the same room reduces SIDS cases by 50% can make a mom think that putting baby in the baby room doubles her chances of SIDS. Not a pleasant logical deduction...

Totally agree!

hoosiermama-2 · October 2016

Ew, for real?

What about a mom who simply thinks, having my baby sleep in the same room makes her 50% safer? Maybe I'm too optimistic [never been told that in my life!], but I can't help but think AAP is just doing their best to provide the most helpful information possible. Not fear mongering. Sheeeeeesh.

PrettyPalomino · October 2016

I think the recommendation also bothers me because I'm of the opinion that the better quality sleep I get, the better I can take care of my baby in waking hours, and I'm trying to mentally prepare myself for the mommy-shaming to come if I decide to put my baby in her room alone very early on as my sister did. She found that baby in the room increased her anxiety drastically because of the little sounds her baby made (was that a choking sound??) and I just think if you opt for all other safety measures (no pillows, blankets, bumpers, teddies, back is best, etc.) I'm not sure baby in the room or not would make a difference outside of congenital reasons for death. If you are able to sleep soundly with baby in the room, you aren't going to be able to hear a heart attack/seizure or what have you (God forbid).

hoosiermama-2 · October 2016

Lord, please don't let anyone mommy-shame you! I will check someone so hard and fast if they try to shame me in any way, lol! Ridiculous.

PrettyPalomino · October 2016

hoosiermama said:

Lord, please don't let anyone mommy-shame you! I will check someone so hard and fast if they try to shame me in any way, lol! Ridiculous.

Might turn out to be just the SIL who does lol

MrsBigTime · October 2016

PrettyPalomino said:

I just think if you opt for all other safety measures (no pillows, blankets, bumpers, teddies, back is best, etc.) I'm not sure baby in the room or not would make a difference outside of congenital reasons for death.

That's was my point - I hope I was able to relay that! No mom-shaming from me (I've truly seen things worth shaming...)!!

Knottie1458416769 · October 2016

Some of these guidelines have always been talked about but just never made formal - like certain states just started banning the sale of crib bumpers.
i love technology and we bought something called the owlet baby sock - monitors oxygen and heart rate as baby sleeps. One less thing to worry about I guess

kmmnocal · October 2016

I think the biggest issue for me is while new guidelines like these (or the articles that pop up from time to time that say American women don't breastfeed long enough) are touted as very important — but the rest of our social system hasn't caught up. Ok, sure, I'd love to keep baby in her bassinet next to me until 6 months or a year, but babies have agitated sleep, I'm a light sleeper, and I'm expected to go back to my full-time work within a couple of months of her birth. Monitors like the Owlet are great for peace of mind, but at $250+ they aren't a reality for every parent. Or, for moms who would love to exclusively breastfeed for a year, but that means sitting in an actual closet in an office (or a bathroom or their car or worse) to pump because employers can't support longer family leave. While nothing comes before the safety of my baby, it's unreasonable to continue to place heightened expectations and regulations on parents without supporting them on the other end. Something has to give.

hollowway · October 2016

I think I'll just go by my instincts like I did with DD. She slept in my bed the first year. Having her close to me, so I could feel and hear her breathing was actually a relief. And trust me, I got a lot of mom-shaming from people for it. It felt right. Still does.

MrsBigTime · October 2016

MaMaBear1323 said:

I think I'll just go by my instincts like I did with DD. She slept in my bed the first year. Having her close to me, so I could feel and hear her breathing was actually a relief. And trust me, I got a lot of mom-shaming from people for it. It felt right. Still does.

I'm a PICU nurse, my bed sharing is my dirty little secret!

hollowway · October 2016

MrsBigTime said:

MaMaBear1323 said:

I think I'll just go by my instincts like I did with DD. She slept in my bed the first year. Having her close to me, so I could feel and hear her breathing was actually a relief. And trust me, I got a lot of mom-shaming from people for it. It felt right. Still does.

I'm a PICU nurse, my bed sharing is my dirty little secret!

I won't tell ;-)

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