Infants spend a lot of time sleeping so it is important to make sure they are completely safe during their favorite activity. KidsHealth.org suggests nearly 2,500 lives are saved each year due to focusing on putting babies on their backs to sleep. Putting baby to sleep on her back reduces the risk of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS), suffocation and the development of a flat head.
SIDS
One of the greatest risks of putting a baby down to sleep on his tummy is SIDS. SIDS is often related to suffocation but there are other factors involved. The American Sudden Infant Death Syndrome Institute (ASIDSI) elaborates that SIDS affects children under one and even after thorough investigation, the death cannot be explained. The Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis points out that when a baby is placed on his tummy to sleep he may not carry out the reflexes needed to be safe, including moving his head to improve his oxygen intake when necessary. The university suggests that this can often be attributed to a lack of experience with tummy sleeping. Babies who are used to sleeping on their tummies may have a greater chance of moving should their oxygen levels diminish.
Suffocation
A baby whose neck muscles are still weak may die of suffocation while on her tummy sleeping. The head must be lifted from this position to move the face away from anything blocking the airways. A young baby cannot move her head upwards should she find herself with her face up against a blanket, crib guard or any other object that can make breathing difficult. When sleeping on her back, she can roll her head from side to side to make breathing easier.
Positional Plagiocephaly
Regardless of whether your baby is sleeping on his back or tummy, the risk of positional plagiocephaly exists. Kidshealth.org defines this disorder as a flattening of the infant's head either on the side or the back. Tummy sleeping will increase the time a baby spends resting on one side of his head. Early in life an infant is unable to lift his own head enough to switch sides in the middle of the night. This concern can be avoided by changing the head position of your infant each night before putting him to bed. Flat head syndrome usually resolves itself by baby's first birthday.
