Startle reflex

 
Babies, until the age of 3-4 months will display the startle reflex where they throw out both their arms as if having had a sudden scare.  The presence if this shows a nervous system that is working.   Theoretically, the thought is that when we were cavemen, this reflex was a primitive safety reflex.  Imagine we were a hairy race, I mean long hair all over our bodies.  If someone was holding a baby and for some reason the baby was to fall or be dropped, the reflex would provide a possibility of safety.

Babies also have a strong grasp reflex.  This is when we put our finger in their palm, they will grasp it very tightly. So, in the scenario mentioned, when a baby falls , they will startle, and whatever their palms touch, they will grasp onto.

The startle reflex comes into play with sleep also.  As with a lot of us, when we are going off to sleep, sometimes there is a sense of falling.  That is why  babies will show  the startle reflex when they are going off to sleep.  Often, but not always, this can wake them up, when they were almost off to sleep.

Babies sometimes will startle when they come into a light sleep state  for the same reason.

It is for this reason that we encourage young babies(under 3 months), to be wrapped or swaddled to go off to sleep.  Being swaddled gives them a sense of security when they startle by offering a firm resistance to their arms when they lift them in a startle.

Babies go to sleep easily when being cuddled against your chest  too. They can’t startle because their arms are next to your chest and can’t physically  reach out because your chest is stopping it.

By the way, babies sleep well on their tummies because they can’t startle.  Tummy sleeping is strongly discouraged because of SIDS risks.  This has been proven over years of research from this wonderful organisation.

Primitive cultures also note this. Through research, it has been shown that these cultures instinctively also put their babies to sleep on their backs for the same reason.

 

Night waking

 
Most parents tell me they can handle anything if they all get a good night sleep with no night waking by their baby or toddler.

Of course we all expect younger babies to wake at night for feeds.  When babies are older and start to sleep through the night even if only for a few nights, it can be really nice to get a whole eight hours in one go.  Some would say even four, five or six hours is heaven after months of interrupted sleep.   It is truly amazing what our bodies are capable of dealing with on little sleep.

Night waking can be annoying and confusing.

If day sleep is great and there are no other behaviour difficulties, it can mean they just need to go to bed a little earlier in the evening.   This may be particularly so if they are waking before midnight and then a couple of times after as well.

Remember sleep builds sleep.  So if sleep is interrupted, stop and think whether they are getting enough overall.

If they are really cranky before going to bed in the evening this can be a big red flag saying I need to go to bed earlier because I am just so tired I feel like %^&**^^%.

It isn’t always this straight forward, sometimes it is tricky to work out and can be just a habit that has formed.

Sometimes they may be cold and even though it sounds straight forward, this one is often missed because we think they can’t possibly be cold.  Remember their bodies are smaller than ours and have less heat producing ability in comparison to us.

If there are 2 parents sharing a bed they get warmth from each other. So stop and think about this one particularly if the waking is after midnight or just before dawn when the temperatures drop.

All in one suits are warmer than 2 piece pyjamas and sleeping bags can be a good substitute underneath  blankets.

I hope this gives some food for thought

Breastfeeding as a SIDS preventor

 
I heard this week that the SIDS organisation have recently announced that breastfeeding definitely is a protective factor against  SIDS.

For those who work with infants particularly, this is a long suspected fact however there has been no definitive announcement until recently.

The SIDS organisation was commenced in the mid 1980’s and since its inception, has significantly reduced the number of SIDS deaths in Australia and around the world.

The statistics since it’s inception are available on their website if you are interested. SIDS and Kids has over 20 years of research on infants and unexplained deaths.  The highest risk time for SIDS is between 2-4 months, continuing till 6 months at a high rate and on to 18 months at a lower rate.

From their research and statistics they have recently reviewed and come up with the recommendation that you breastfeed for as long as possible.

This is nothing startling to anyone I know, however from a safe sleep point of view it is a new statement.

I am guessing it is to do with the fact that breastfed babies tend to stir more frequently and so not get into such a deep sleep for as long.   Their research suggests the risk is reduced by half when you breastfeed for as long as possible.

All their previous recommendations apply. Their updated recommendations are as follows.

The six ways to sleep baby safely and reduce the risk of sudden and unexpected death in infancy:   

1.Sleep baby on the back from birth, not on the tummy or side   

 2.Sleep baby with head and face uncovered   

 3.Keep baby smoke free before birth and after   

 4.Provide a safe sleeping environment night and day   

 5.Sleep baby in their own safe sleeping place in the same room as an adult care-giver for the first six to twelve months   

 6.Breastfeed baby if you can.

In the times when breastfeeding is interrupted prematurely, implementing the additional recommendations about safe sleeping will continue to offer steps to reduce the risk of SIDS.

The link to their website-   http://www.sidsandkids.org/category/news/

Sleep Builds Sleep

 
Sleep , sleep and more sleep.  Those of you who know me and my philosophy on sleep which I learned from learning, observation and helping 100’s of families with this topic, know that I see that sleep builds sleep.

It becomes clear that as a baby or toddler and even children and adults manage to get more sleep, they find it easier to go to sleep  each time.  My theory is that they learn what to do, they learn that they feel better after good sleep, and they are no longer overtired which makes it harder to get to sleep for all of us because we are too wound up and find it hard to relax and switch off.

That is all very well and good but how do you get the sleep in the first place.

Starting the process is the most challenging part and does required understanding of sleep and consistency in what you teach your baby or toddler for sleep.

Routines are very helpful to help sleep grow.  They work by giving your baby or toddler consistent signals and habits in what to do.  Babies, toddlers and children thrive with consistent habits or routines because they can predict what will happen and so they feel safe and secure.  When their world is predictable, they know what to expect.

When you change what they know, they will protest initially because they want what they know.  With consistency and working in with how they are thinking, it can be achieved relatively painlessly.

Starting helpful sleep habits and routines early can be a great benefit to helping your baby sleep adequately.  When babies get plenty of sleep they are happier and enjoy their world much more, they are more interactive and responsive.

Parents consistently comment on how happy their baby is when they have managed to help them develop helpful sleep habits to get more sleep.

 

Nipple shields and Breastfeeding

A quick overview about nipple shields. Giving you the basics:
 

Generational allergy

 
I thought I’d share more interesting learnings from this weeks’ conferences. I have learned a few things to tweak my beliefs about breastfeeding, food, formula , allergy and more.

One of them is about the generational effects of formula. Even though I had learned of this previously, I now understand it much more clearly.

Basically, we are affected in part, by what our grandmothers ate and were exposed to as well as our mothers and of course our own exposure. It is widely accepted that it takes at least 3 generations to fix what has become problematic. Some of these unfortunate outcomes were forced upon our predecessors such as war, famine, government and clever marketing campaigns, to dupe people into believing untruths because it suited someone else’ interests (think Hitler for an extreme case).

Allergy is an interesting, upsetting and confusing topic. Breastfeeding is the number one element in addressing this out of control issue. It is a complex issue and I am not suggesting that addressing it from only one angle will fix it.

As I understand it, if we can support and educate families to breastfeed babies exclusively for as long as possible (up to 6-9 months), avoid giving anything artificial for as long as possible (including formula), over a number of generations we can reduce the number of people with reactions.

There are a number of hurdles to achieving this, but it is up to us to be committed and make change for the better. This includes being sensitive to those who dearly wish to breastfeed but cannot for whatever reason.

I think in time, human milk sharing will return as an accepted and necessary part of life.

Until then, supporting and educating people widely about the benefits of breastfeeding is our best chance . We can do the by supporting more people to consciously choose to breastfeed rather than formula. Many think choosing formula over breastfeeding is like making a choice of rice bubbles over cornflakes.

I could easily write for days on the benefits of breastfeeding not only for the baby, but for the mother, father, family and community.
Education and adequate support with sensitivity is the best way forward.

How is your baby sleeping with the arrival of colder weather?

 
Is your baby still sleeping soundly with this temperature change lately?? 

This time of year when the seasons and the temperatures change can be tricky. Knowing your baby is warm enough is a common thought of many parents at any time of year but particularly now.  Often it is still reasonably warm when they go to bed, but during the night and early hours of the morning , it all changes. The drop in temperature can be the single culprit for babies waking up pre dawn.

Even though they may seem warm enough, if this is happening and you can’t work out what it is, simply adding another layer of warmth may fix this and prevent or reduce the occurrence.  If it is warm when your baby goes to bed,  an option is to add a layer when you go to bed or at a night feed time.

A few tips for safety.

Always use breathable materials. Cotton is recommended because it is lighter.  A number of layers of thinner material is usually more efficient than one layer of thick artificial  material such as doonas.  Thicker doonas don’t breathe as much and can be the culprit of your baby over heating and becoming uncomfortable.

Always leave your baby’s head uncovered.  Your baby loses heat from their head.  It is a large surface area in comparison to their body and is useful to act as a little bit of a temperature control mechanism.  When they are up and about and outside and it is cold by all means put hats or beanies on their head, just not at night.  Hats can also move around at night in the cot and can be a suffocating hazard.

Sleeping bags are fantastic  for night time sleep  particularly when the temperature is dropping or is a bit changeable. When your baby is moving around in the cot, having a sleeping bag means that they will not kick off blankets and be cold and wake up. You may need to dress a few layers underneath the sleeping bag to help your baby’s comfort  level.  And there are a number of thicknesses of sleeping bag for different temperatures.

Sometimes it takes a little bit of trial and error to get the right one.   It is worth it for a good nights’ sleep for everyone.