DAUPHIN COUNTY “SAFE SLEEP INITIATIVE” – TIPS ON HOW TO KEEP YOU INFANT SAFE WHILE SLEEPING AND NAPPING

Each year in the United States, thousands of babies die suddenly and unexpectedly. Some of these deaths result from unknown causes, such as Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS), while others are from known causes, including other sleep-related causes of infant death.

Share your room with baby. Keep baby in your room close to your bed, but on a separate surface designed for infants, ideally for baby’s first year, but at least for the first 6 months. Room sharing reduces the risk of SIDS. Baby should not sleep in an adult bed, on a couch, or on a chair alone, with you, or with anyone else, including siblings or pets. Having a separate safe sleep surface for the baby reduces the risk of SIDS and the chance of suffocation, strangulation, and entrapment. If you bring your baby into your bed for feeding or comforting, remove all soft items and bedding from the area. When finished, put baby back in a separate sleep area made for infants, like a crib or bassinet, and close to your bed. Couches and armchairs can also be very dangerous for babies, if adults fall asleep as they feed, comfort, or bond with baby while on these surfaces. Parents and other caregivers should be mindful of how tired they are during these times. There is no evidence for or against devices or products that claim to make bed sharing “safer”.

Do not put soft objects, toys, crib bumpers, or loose bedding under baby, over baby, or anywhere in baby’s sleep area.  Keeping these items out of baby’s sleep area reduces the risk of SIDS and suffocation, entrapment, and strangulation. Because evidence does not support using them to prevent injury, crib bumpers are not recommended. Crib bumpers are linked to serious injuries and deaths from suffocation, entrapment, and strangulation. Keeping these and other soft objects out of baby’s sleep area is the best way to avoid these dangers.

If you, or the caretaker of you infant ,do not have a safe sleeping place, please contact Dauphin County Children and Youth Services (717-780-7200) and they will assist you in obtaining a safe sleeping place for your loved one.

Additional Information on “Safe to Sleep” can be found at https://safetosleep.nichd.nih.gov/ or https://www.bing.com/videos/search?q=safe+sleep+video+baltimore&view=detail&mid=0CD0CCF38570E3777B580CD0CCF38570E3777B58&FORM=VIRE