Is it Safe to Sleep with Your Baby?
By Gwen Morrison
Many mothers who breastfeed their babies discover the benefits of co-sleeping. While experts and parents debate this often controversial issue, more and more mothers are convinced that co-sleeping is the answer to those midnight feedings.
Nocturnal Nourishment and Nuturing
Studies have shown that breast-fed babies wake more frequently than formula-fed babies. The reason: Breastmilk is the natural food for infants. There is no harsh ingredient that requires extra digestion time. Breastmilk is “processed” quickly and efficiently by Baby, prompting the need for closer feeding intervals.
“Babies are nocturnal animals,” says Jolenne Short-Porter, R.N., IBCLC from Exeter, N.H. “In the early months, they need to nurse frequently for their growing needs, as well as mom’s milk supply. Nighttime nursing is necessary. Unfortunately, in our culture, we want our babies to sleep at night.”
Short-Porter reminds new parents that a baby who sleeps a lot is probably not nursing enough and could lose weight, which causes a new set of problems.
During the night, there are several ways to help ease the disruption when it comes to nighttime nursing. Short-Porter suggests that Mom nurses while lying down so that she can doze while the baby feeds.
“I have always practiced co-sleeping,” says Tina Warren, a mother from Tullahoma, Tenn. “I wasn’t exhausted all the time because it wasn’t like I was up for hours at a time. The baby would nurse and go back to sleep.”
Warren admits she likes her sleep but looks at the time spent with her infant as their own precious time. “It’s a wonderful bond,” she says. “It’s really easier than bottle-feeding. When you nurse at night, even if you don’t co-sleep, all you have to do is get the baby and hold him close and let him nurse. You can even do this lying down if you like.”
Breastfeeding provides such closeness between mother and child that it encourages calmness, and babies will often settle more quickly once awakened for a nighttime feeding.
“I breastfed both of my kids,” says Chris Sofge of Harrogate, England. “With my first one, we had a bassinet set up next to our bed so I could just pick her up and feed her. So often I just fell asleep while she nursed, and soon we all ended up sleeping together. It was less fuss in the middle of the night, and I got better sleep. I think she did too.”
To Sleep or Not to Sleep
“Human children are designed to be sleeping with their parents,” says Katherine A. Dettwyler, Ph.D., an associate professor of anthropology and nutrition at Texas A & M University. “The sense of touch is the most important sense to primates. The expected pattern is for mother and child to sleep together and for the child to be able to nurse whenever they want during the night.”
Dettwyler reminds parents that normal, healthy breast-fed and co-sleeping children do not sleep through the night. She is a firm believer that parents need to dispel the myth of needing eight hours of uninterrupted sleep when children are infants. Parents should instead view these nighttime interactions as precious and fleeting.
Before the 19th century, most infants slept in close contact with their mothers – usually in the same bed – and had frequent nighttime feedings. In many cultures, this is still the norm for babies and parents.
Lyn Scazafabo, R.N., IBCLC, is a lactation consultant for the Cooper Health System in Camden, N.J., where she runs the Breastfeeding Resource Center. She is also the mother of five breast-fed children and a strong advocate for co-sleeping while breastfeeding. “When you share the bed, there is very little disruption,” she says. “You snuggle the baby next to you and then nicely fall back to sleep. It makes breastfeeding much easier because the baby can feed whenever he wants without causing too much disturbance to Mother’s sleep.”
Many specialists support the idea of co-sleeping during breastfeeding. Though it is a personal choice for parents, it is definitely one that can help promote restfulness for the mother while providing necessary nourishment for the infant.
Dr. James McKenna, professor of anthropology and director of the Mother-and-Baby Sleep Lab at the University of Notre Dame in Notre Dame, Ind., pioneered the first behavioral and electro-physiological studies documenting differences between mothers and infants sleeping together and apart (in different rooms). He is known worldwide for his work in promoting studies of breastfeeding and mother-infant co-sleeping.
“First and foremost, co-sleeping is beneficial because it is what mothers and babies are supposed to do – what they have been biologically designed to do – as maternal proximity is expected by the baby’s body,” McKenna explains. “Clinically, from scientific studies, a co-sleeping baby sleeps longer, cries less, breastfeeds more, sleeps more lightly (in stages 1 and 2) and spends less time in a more mature stage of sleep …”
McKenna points out that his studies have proven that while it is true that breast-fed, bed-sharing babies awake and feed more regularly, Mother and Baby actually get more sleep this way. This is true because the co-sleeping baby does not really awaken for long periods of time during and after the feed, compared with the solitary-sleeping, breast-fed baby who often fails to settle after he is fed, keeping Mother out of bed longer.
“Another form of co-sleeping is room sharing; the infant’s crib or bassinet is within sensory range of the co-sleeping caregiver,” McKenna says. “Babies sleeping close but on different surfaces is a great alternative to bed sharing for parents that prefer less contact. For the most part, all that is achieved by bed sharing can be achieved by co-sleeping in the form of separate-surface-sleeping if the infant’s bed is next to the mother’s bed.”
Is It Right for You?
McKenna stresses that bed sharing should be limited to breastfeeding mothers who do not smoke or take drugs or alcohol. McKenna adds these important safety reminders: Babies should always be on their backs; other children should not be permitted in the bed at the same time; keep the baby’s head uncovered; make sure no ledges or spaces exist around your bed or its frame into which a baby could fall and make sure that mattresses without frames are at least a foot away from any wall or furniture.
“When [my babies] were nursing during the night, I had them sleep in a baby basket beside my bed,” says Andrea Mack of Toronto, Ont. “I didn’t have far to go when they woke up. With my first child, I often nursed her beside me in bed, lying on my side. Often we’d fall asleep there together – me with my arm around the baby – until I woke up again and tucked her back into the basket.”
Whether you decide to co-sleep in the same room, bed share with your infant or sleep in separate rooms, the most important thing to remember is that babies wake up often to be fed. Do what works best for mother and child to ensure that both are getting the most sleep and that baby gets all the nourishment needed to promote good health and positive growth.
