The moment you get home from the hospital with your toddler, the one dilemma you will get to face is which position suits your toddler best. When talking about the sleeping positions of toddlers, the research around them keeps changing. One time the toddler sleeping face down is okay. The next particular position is fatal. Therefore if your toddler sleeps upside down, you are probably in constant worry whether the sleeping position is the right position. Here are some facts which can help you out if you want to clear the misconceptions about your toddler’s sleeping positions.
Risk of suffocation
Some time back, having your toddler sleep upside down was among the popular sleeping positions. The main reason being, when toddlers sleep upside down, the risk of suffocation when the vomit is high. Meaning when they sleep facing up, they may lack enough strength, which can help them throw the vomit to the side. Sleeping upside down, therefore, brings ease when the baby vomits, but then again later, the upside-down position has become at the center of debate where most experts call the position unsafe.
Expert view
The toddler sleeping upside down has been having become among the baby sleeping positions, which are fatal. Most cases whereby toddlers have been found dead have been as a result of an upside-down sleeping position. Nowadays, pediatricians advise parents to ensure their babies are sleeping facing upwards. Also, they have to cork the head of the baby. There is no explanation at all why these have to be done, but the position rarely has toddlers dying in their sleep. After most parents have taken a particular position and put their toddler’s sleep the same way, pediatricians have seen a decrease in deaths more importantly because toddlers in the position get to choke on their stomachs.
Disadvantages of the upside-down position
The number one disadvantage which has been seen is suffocation. When the toddler’s head is too close to the mattress, there is very little oxygen around the place. So every time they breathe in and out, there is very little oxygen for the entire process. Therefore the baby stands a risk of suffocating and dying. Simply put, the air in which the baby is sucking the entire time is not fresh, and therefore, they stand a risk of suffocation. Also, a soft mattress might seem like the best sleeping partner for your toddler, but such mattresses are the greatest contributors to suffocation. A firm mattress is the best sleeping partner for a baby all the way. Also, avoid soft pillows or any pillows around the toddler’s crib since these also get to limit the air which the baby breathes in.
Be careful of mattress bacteria.
Another reason which should push you to avoid the face down sleeping position is the fact whereby mattresses have bacteria. These you might not see, but having a baby’s head very close down might pose a challenge when sleeping because of the microbes. The face-down position is the main reason behind the sudden death of infant fatalities, whereby toddlers die without any symptoms at all. Also, to avoid such scenarios at whatever expense, let your toddler sleep in your room for the entire breastfeeding period. When your toddler is sleeping near you, your mother instinct will always push you to check up on them and ensure everything is fine, including the breathing. For your toddler to stay alive through their entire sleeping until they are old enough, you have to take as many precautions as possible.
Reasons for a toddler to sleep lying on their back
Sleeping on the back at times will help you the parent to check on your baby with ease. When a baby is sleeping upside down, you will not be in a position to check on them because the head is facing down frequently. Facing up also gets to enable you as the parent to frequently change the babies sleeping position if, by any chance, you feel they are getting uncomfortable. You will note at a very tender age most toddlers can’t move at all hence making the upside-down position risky. When the toddler faces upwards, their face will not come into contact with the mattress; hence you are certain of the toddler’s sleeping safety.
Low risk as the toddler grows.
As a parent, the sleeping position of your baby might begin to worry you again once they get older and can turn on their own. Most toddlers, once they can move, will often experiment with sleeping positions. Sometimes in the night, you will realize your toddler gets to roll over, and now he or she is sleeping upside down if you can notice those sleeping in the particular position you can choose to help them get to lay on their back or side. However, at the age when the toddler can move, one of the clear things is they are aware of various positions. Therefore when the toddler feels uncomfortable, they can change the position. As much as you as a parent will always find the reason to be vigilante, just be aware toddlers gain their independence too as time goes by, and your worries should therefore decrease.
When can the toddler sleep on their belly?
Finally, your question gets the answer you have been waiting for. Your toddler will be able to sleep on their belly when they finally can. On their own without being put in the upside-down position by you. As earlier on said, when the time comes, you won’t even know when your baby got to sleep upside down. So if your worries have been high on your toddler’s sleeping position, when they are younger, place them on their back and cork their heads. When they get older, they will find their perfect sleeping position, which will be mostly their perfect position. The sleeping position of your toddler is going to worry you most times, but be confident when they move from the very dependent stage, they will be just fine.