Love Them Protect Them Infant Care

Safe Sleep:
Back to sleep is best

Providing a safe sleep environment is the single most important step you can take to reduce your baby's risk of SIDS (Sudden Infant Death Syndrome), suffocation and accidenal infant deaths.

Placing your baby on his or her back for sleep is recommended. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) state that properly positioning an infant for sleep can decrease the risk for SIDS. Sudden Infant Death Syndrome or SIDS is the sudden and unexplained death of a baby under 1 year of age.

Consistently placing a health baby on his or her back for naps and at night has been to reduce the risk along with the following:
Always place your baby on his or her back to sleep, even for naps.
Place your baby on a firm mattress, such as in a safety-approved crib.
Remove soft, fluffy and loose bedding and stuffed toys from your baby's sleep area.
Make sure your baby's face and head stay uncovered during sleep.
Do not allow smoking around your baby.
Don't let your baby get too warm during sleep.
Make sure everyone who cares for your baby knows to place your baby on his or her back to sleep.
Keey your baby's sleep area close to, but separate from, where you and others sleep.
Think about using a clean, dry pacifier when placing the infant to sleep.
Avoid products that claim to reduce the risk of SIDS because most have not been tested for effectiveness or safety.
Do not rely on home monitors to reduce the risk of SIDS.

Most babies are comfortable sleeping on their back if they are placed that way from the time they are born. Unless there is a medical problem the hospital staff should place your baby on his or her back to sleep when your baby is born. If they don't, it's okay to ask them to do so.

You can place babies on their stomachs when they are awake and someone is watching. This "Tummy Time" helps your baby's head, neck, and shoulder muscles get stronger and helps prevent flat spots on the head.

No Co-Sleeping

Thinking of sharing a sleep surface with your infant, don't! Remember, adult beds, sofas and chairs, including recliners, are not safe for sleeping babies and can greatly increase the risk of SIDS, suffocation and accidental infant deaths.

Adult beds are not safe for sleeping babies! Here's why:

Adults or siblings in the bed can accidentally roll too close to or onto your baby while they sleep.
Babies can get trapped between the mattress and the wall, headboard, footboard or other piece of furniture.
Your baby could fall from the bed and get hurt or fall into a pile of clothing or other soft items on the floor and suffocate.

It is also unsafe for other babies, small children or pets to sleep with your baby.

Make sure your baby has a safe place to sleep when visiting or traveling.

Room sharing is safer than bed sharing!

You can place your baby's crib or other separate sleep surface in your room, near where you sleep. Research show that being in close proximity to your baby during sleep can greatly reduce the risk of SIDS.

If you need assistance in obtaining a crib for your baby, please call First Candle at 800-221-7437.

Resource: Babies Sleep Safest On Their Backs Brochure from The Dept. of Health & Human Services 

Resource: Bedtime Basics, First Candle/SIDS Alliance

Resource: CDC http://www.cdc.gov/PRAMS/dataAct2002/infant_sleep.htm and First Candle http://www.firstcandle.org

For more information on sleep position, SIDS, or the Back to sleep campaign contact The National Institutes of Health at 800-370-2943 or http://www.nichd.nih.gov/publications/pubs/upload/bts_safe_environment.pdf

Car Safety

The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends that all infants should ride rear-facing starting with their first ride home from the hospital.  They should remain rear-facing until they reach the highest weight or height allowed by their car safety seat’s manufacturer.  At a minimum, children should ride rear-facing until they have reached at least 1 year of age and weigh at least 20 pounds.

Tips:
Not all car seats fit safely in all vehicles
When the car seat is installed, be sure it does not move side-to-side or toward the front of the car
Do not use a car seat that has been in a crash, recalled, is too old, or has any cracks in its frame, or is missing any parts
Be sure to send in the registration card that comes with the car safety seat.  It will be important in case the seat is recalled

Want to ensure your baby’s car seat is installed correctly?
Locate an inspection station for help in English and Spanish at www.seatcheck.org or call toll free at 866-SEAT-CHECK (866-732-8243)

Resource: American Academy of Pediatrics http://www.aap.org/healthtopics/carseatsafety.cfm

For more information on infant car seat recalls contact the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration at www.nhtsa.dot.gov/

Furniture safety

The American Academy of Pediatrics injury prevention program recommends the following for infant furniture safety:

Cribs:

The slats should be no more than 2-3/8 inches apart.  Widely spaced slats can trap a baby’s head.
The mattress should be the same size as the crib so there are no gaps to trap arms, body, or legs. 
When setting up the crib, read the directions and if there are loose or missing parts, do not use the crib.
Never leave the crib sides down when the baby is in the crib.
Hanging crib toys (mobiles, crib gyms) should be out of the baby’s reach and removed when the baby first begins to push up on hands and knees  or is 5 months old, whichever occurs first.
Children should be taken out of a crib by the time they are 35 inches tall.
Never place a crib near cords from a hanging window blind or drapery. 
Inspect every crib you child uses for safety – grandparents home, baby-sitter’s home, or child care center.

Bedding:

Remove pillow, pillow-like bumper pads, quilts, comforters, sheepskins, stuffed toys, and other soft products form the crib.
Consider using a sleeper or other sleep clothing as an alternative to blankets, with no other covering. 
Do not place baby on a water bed, sofa, soft mattress, pillow or other soft surface.

Portable Cribs & Playpens:

Never leave the side of a mesh playpen lowered because a baby can become trapped and suffocate.
Make sure that there are no tears, holes, or loose threads in the mesh.  Make sure the mesh is securely attached to the top rail and the floor plate.  If staples are used, make sure they are not missing, loose, or exposed.

Always be aware of furniture toppling; including dressers, televisions, and other objects that may be tempting for an infant or toddler to climb or pull up on.  

Resource: American Academy of Pediatrics http://www.aap.org/family/inffurn.htm

For more safety information on cribs or other infant products contact the Consumer Product Safety Commission at 1-800-638-2772 or http://www.cpsc.gov/

Shaken Baby Syndrome

Shaken Baby Syndrome is defined as a brain injury occurring in a child under age six that is caused by shaking the child vigorously back and forth.  According to The Shaken Baby Alliance, thousands of children each year are victims of this form of head trauma.  It is usually at the hands of a frustrated caregiver, is considered a serious crime, and is a severe form of child abuse.

What happens when a baby is shaken?

A baby has weak neck muscles and a large, heavy head.  Shaking makes the fragile brain bounce back and forth inside the skull and causes bruising, swelling and bleeding, which can lead to permanent, severe brain damage or death.  These injuries may not be immediately noticeable.  Symptoms include extreme irritability, lethargy, poor feeding, breathing problems, convulsions, vomiting, and pale or bluish skin as noted by the, National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS).     

Shaking a baby can cause blindness, deafness, paralysis, learning disabilities, seizures, permanent brain damage and even death.  NEVER shake a baby or young child.

Treatment for Shaken Baby Syndrome

Emergency treatment for a baby who has been shaken usually includes life-sustaining measures such as respiratory support and surgery to stop internal bleeding and bleeding in the brain.  Doctors may use brain scans, such as MRI and CT, to make a more definite diagnosis.   Some children may require lifelong medical care.

Shaken Baby Syndrome can be prevented.  The following are tips noted by Oklahoma Abuse Prevention Specialists:
Never, for any reason, shake a child, especially under the age of six!
Always provide support for the baby’s head when holding, playing or transporting
Remember that all babies cry, some a lot, during the first few months of life. 
Make sure everyone who cares for the child (daycare, babysitters, relatives) knows the dangers of shaking babies and young children
Play gently with babies

Babies cry for many reasons.  If your baby won’t stop crying, check to see if he or she:
Has a rash, clothing pinching, or is teething
Is cold or hot
Has a fever
Is in pain or sick
Needs a pacifier
Wants to be held and cuddled
Check to see that the baby’s basic needs are met (food, diapering, burping, clothing)

Safe ways to calm a baby:
Sing or play soft music
Hold the baby against your chest, pat on the back gently, and walk around or rock back and forth.
Hold the baby’s arms close to his or her body; swaddling or wrapping comforts some babies
Take baby for a car ride
Take baby for a walk if weather permits
Burp him or her
Maintain calming movements for about 5 minutes at a time

If you feel tempted to shake a baby:
Stop!
Count to 100
Ask for help
Call a friend or relative
Leave the baby in a safe place and go into another room where you can’t hear the crying for 5 to 10 minutes
Repeat to yourself, “Babies need to cry, babies need to cry”
Take 10 deep breaths. Then take 10 more.
Play some relaxing music
Exercise

If a baby is shaken, even if you feel embarrassed or guilty, take the baby to the emergency room immediately! Quick medical attention can prevent future problems and may even save a child’s life!

Resources:  Never Shake a Baby Campaign committee, National Institute of Health, and The Shaken Baby Alliance.

Office of Child Abuse Prevention, Oklahoma State Department of Health (405) 271-7611

Prevent Child Abuse Oklahoma (405) 232-2500

NINDS at http://www.ninds.nih.gov/disorders/shakenbaby/shakenbaby.htm?css=print

The Shaken Baby Alliance at www.shakenbaby.org