New Study Shows Sofa Sleeping is Deadly for Babies

New Study Shows Sofa Sleeping is Deadly for Babies

Although it may be hard to put your baby in the crib when he falls asleep while your lounging on the couch, recent study results may cause parents to rethink where they allow their baby to sleep.

A recent study released in Pediatrics showed that one of the most dangerous places for a sleeping baby is a sofa. Of the nearly 8,000 infant sleeping deaths in the United States, the researchers found that 12 percent were sofa related. The results shocked study co-author Jeffery Colvin who said “Sofa’s don’t even come to mind when people think of places where infants sleep. The proportion was much, much higher than I ever could have guessed.”

Approximately 4,000 babies die of SIDS ever year in the United States. SIDS is sudden infant death syndrome which usually occurs while a baby is sleeping. The number of deaths was cut in half when doctors started encouraging parents to place babies on their back while sleeping. From the study, out of the infants who died from sleeping on a sofa, 40 percent died from suffocation or strangulation, 36 percent had an undetermined cause of death, and 24 percent died from SIDS. The findings from the study also showed that the majority of babies who died on a sofa were more than likely accidental. Most situations occurred when an adult was sharing the sofa with the baby. For tired parents of newborns it can be easy to not realize how exhausted you are which can lead to falling asleep on or with your baby.

Parents should always put babies in their cribs for sleeping, even during naps. The best thing to remember are your ABC’s of safe sleeping: infants must sleep alone, on their back, and in a crib. There should never be quilts, pillows, or other soft objects in the crib with them while they are sleeping.

Source: WebMD, Pediatrics, Fox News