Bed sharing is still a deadly problem
Bed-sharing has been the most important concern for Paediatric Death Review Committee and the Deaths Under Five Committee. According to statics, there have been about 41 deaths attributed to the practice of bed sharing in Ontario.
“We don’t know how many children are bed-sharing without incident, but we thought it would only be responsible of us to report this number of children are dying,” said Karen Bridgeman-Acker, a child welfare specialist who worked on the report. “We think bed-sharing is definitely a factor in those deaths.”
But parents are recommended to assess bed-sharing practices, with babies sleeping in cribs inside the parents’ bedroom instead of sleeping directly on the bed.
“If there is an increased number of deaths in the bed-sharing situation, it might just be because there is an increased number of (parents) bed-sharing,” said Dr. Aurore Cote, who co-authored the Canadian Paediatric Society’s statement on safe sleep for babies. “We have plenty of data to show this is the case.”
The society recommends babies sleep in a crib in the parents’ bedroom, Cote said, but doesn’t discourage cuddling with the child to ease breastfeeding. She pointed to evidence that autopsies of babies who died in cribs or after sharing their parents’ bed sometimes reach the same conclusion: that cause of death can’t be determined. It’s wrong to call the first situation “crib death” while labelling the latter an actual cause, Cote said.
Parents who use drugs or alcohol or who use too many pillows and blankets are also reasons bed-sharing goes awry, said Teresa Pitman, spokewoman for the La Leche League of Canada, which teaches women how to sleep safely with their babies to facilitate breastfeeding.
“I certainly recognize the concern, when you look at babies dying,” she said. “I just think there might be a different approach to making it safer, rather than turning away from it.”
Via Canadian Press
Tags: babies, bed, blankets, canada, canadian paediatric society, cause of death, child welfare specialist, crib death, la leche league, pillows, sleep
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