What To Do If My Baby Turns On His Tummy While Sleeping?
You leave him in the crib for five minutes and he lies on his stomach while he sleeps. If this scene repeatedly happens to you with your baby, you will need to monitor his sleep hours more closely. Doctors associate this posture with the occurrence of sudden infant death syndrome.
It is believed that around 10,000 children die in the world annually as a result of this type of event. One vomit is enough to cause suffocation and complicate the breathing capacity of an infant. Children from one to four months are the most vulnerable.
However, the question of the postures of our little ones when sleeping is much more complex than it may seem. Fortunately, we can take some preventive measures to keep the little ones in the home safe.
What is sudden infant death syndrome?
SIDS refers to the unexpected death of children under one year of age, even when they are in excellent health. It is also called ‘cradle death’ and it is still an unsolved mystery for the scientific community.
In most cases, autopsies do not show a cause of death for the baby. Even when there are only theories about its occurrence, specialists believe that there are triggering elements for these events.
The most complex theory indicates that everything is due to an anomaly in the micro-awakenings of the victims. However, some specialists speak of a drowning favored by certain external situations ; sleeping on your stomach could be one of them.
Children from one to four months should be watched throughout the night to avoid these unwanted episodes; it is not a good habit to leave the baby unattended because he is not crying.
The most vulnerable baby population is infants up to four months. However, it is advisable to review the postures of children up to the first year of age. In the tests on babies, nightly check-ups are usually done to verify that everything is in order.
Co-sleeping and other sleeping habits for the baby
Supporters of co-sleeping say that active surveillance is one of the advantages of this family practice. In practice , the nightly check-up is the best strategy for parents to avoid SIDS.
If your baby is on his tummy while sleeping, you may want to change his position a little from time to time. In this way, we will avoid dangerous and uncomfortable postures at times when the baby still does not have control of his body, sleep and movements.
When the child lies on his stomach while sleeping, you have to alternate his position. Creating the habit of having the infant sleep with the chest up or on one side is an excellent alternative.
Some parents prefer to place them face down, with the intention that the child sleeps soundly; but this would not be recommended for the first few months.
Another good option is to place children on their backs with their heads on one side. In this case it will be good to make some changes in the position of the neck to avoid pain due to bad posture. The fetal position is much more advisable if we can accommodate them in this way.
In addition to this, another important issue is that during the first three months we must also monitor the formation of the infant’s head. If we put it on its back for more than three hours, it also increases the risk of plagiocephaly.
Other steps we can take to avoid SIDS
- If the baby develops a lot of reflux, the mattress can be raised by about 45 degrees.
- It is necessary to avoid wrapping the baby with the sheets and make sure that he does not do it involuntarily.
- Toys in the crib can cause suffocation and poor positioning. It is best to remove them from the crib during naps.
- Excess clothing and temperature rises can cause problems for children. The correct thing is to tuck them in without exaggerating with the thickness of the fabrics.
- We must avoid toxic substances in the room, such as paints and poisons for pest spraying.
Once the year is over, our little ones will have greater control of their awakening and also of their movements. In a short time, we will observe that they themselves will seek their positions and will get up in the face of any problem.
It never hurts to check if we feel the baby’s breath when he is sleeping; a little movement or the sound of the air in your mouth will be enough to know that everything is fine. This care will be essential to guarantee the health of newborns in their first months of life.
