A concerning new study suggests that swaddling your baby is actually quite dangerous.
The research indicates that swaddled babies are 50 to 60 percent more likely to die from Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS), according to a University of Bristol statement.
Many people swaddle their babies because they think it simulates conditions in the womb, but the new research indicates that there are hidden dangers to doing this. It’s a particularly bad idea for babies over two months of age because they are old enough to roll over onto their stomach — the back is the safest position for a baby to be in.
Experts advise parents to always place their newborn on their back, and to not swaddle too tightly. Also, you should keep pillows, blankets, and other potential hazards away from them.
“The focus of our review was not on studies about swaddling – a traditional practice of wrapping infants to promote calming and sleep – but on studies that looked at Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS),” lead author Dr Anna Pease, from the School of Social and Community Medicine, said in the statement. “We tried to gather evidence of whether there was an association between swaddling for sleep and SIDS. … We only found four studies and they were quite different, and none gave a precise definition for swaddling making it difficult to pool the results. We did find, however, that the risk of SIDS when placing infants on the side or front for sleep increased when infants were swaddled.”