Is Co-Sleeping Safe For Your Baby?

“Lack of sleep” takes a new trend when you’re the mother of a little baby whom you take care of and watch over night and day. And in this context, co-sleeping with baby  may seem an interesting idea with all the benefits mentioned in many resources and websites, like protecting baby from cold and extending breastfeeding sessions.

However and despite all these possible advantages, medical groups from around the world warn parents that co-sleeping might be very risky for a baby’s life and safety, as it may contribute to the following:

• Suffocation from sleeping on the tummy, face down on a mattress, pillow, blanket or other kinds of beddings, or by covering a baby’s head with one of these covers or layers.
• Suffocation from getting trapped between the mattress and the bed, the wall or anything else.
• Strangulation due to a baby’s head getting stuck in the bed’s frame.
• Suffocation after the baby’s mother rolls accidentally over him. This could happen if the mother takes calming medications or if she’s one of those people whom waking up is hard to do.

Moreover, co-sleeping with baby may negatively affect their habits and push him to consider bedtime a chance to bond with his mother, and this can create a big problem for her at nap times or every time she wants to put him to sleep before her bedtime.

Taking into consideration all these disadvantages, we advise you to sleep with your baby in the same room but not in the same bed, and always make sure that he sleeps lying on his back, in a bed that has barriers and a thick mattress, but no pillows, shock absorbers, wool covers, heavy blankets or toys.

And last but not least, make sure to stay by your baby’s side at bedtimes, not by sharing with him the same bed but the same room, as it would be the only way for you to get enough sleep, meet your baby’s needs on time and prevent him from SIDS.

Read More: How Many Naps Does Your Baby Need?