Keeping our babies safe during the night is a huge stress point for most parents - this is the one time of day where we won’t be watching them constantly! And we want to make sure that they’re as safe as they are comfortable.
With a lot of conflicting sleep advice out there, it can be difficult to know whether or not you’re doing the right thing. If you’re ever in doubt, speak to your healthcare professional or midwife.
We’ve selected 5 of the most important crib safety tips for your baby to ensure safe sleeping for your little one and a restful night for you.
1. Place your baby on their back
The most common (and important!) piece of advice for ensuring crib safety is to place your baby on their back when they sleep. When placing your baby on their back to sleep, you significantly reduce the risk of SIDS (Sudden Infant Death Syndrome).
When a baby sleeps on their stomach it can become difficult for them to breathe due to pressure and potential airway blockage.
Once your baby is able to roll over unassisted it becomes safer for them to sleep on their stomach - though it’s still important to begin the night by placing them on their back.
2. Consider the mattress
To ensure crib safety, it’s important to place your baby on a firm surface. This is important for safe sleeping and also crucial for their development. When your baby starts moving, they’re going to need a firm surface that they can use to push themselves up, sit on, and eventually stand on!
It’s also important to make sure that the mattress fits your baby’s crib perfectly - this is to ensure that there are no gaps around the edge. Once you’ve found the ideal mattress, why not style it with an ocean-themed fitted sheet featuring sea creatures to make bedtime more fun?!
3. Remove stuffed toys and loose blankets
Stuffed toys and loose blankets pose a suffocation risk to infants. Remember to remove all soft toys from their crib before you put them down to sleep, and secure any blankets by tucking them underneath the mattress.
We’ll talk about a safe alternative to blankets now...
4. Use a sleeping bag
Baby sleeping bags are the ultimate must-have item for safe sleep! Here’s why…
Sleeping bags are extra long to ensure that your baby has lots of room to kick about as well as being at less risk of overheating. The fact that their arms are free will also make it easier for them to keep cool.
Having their legs secure inside a sleeping bag means that they won’t get trapped between the crib bars - because yes, that happens!
5. Ensure the hardware is secure
This might sound obvious, but take the time to make sure that your crib is put together correctly. If you’re not sure, you could ask a professional to put it together for you.
Takeaway
So there you have it! 5 simple crib safety tips to ensure that both you and your baby get a good night of sleep.
Have we missed anything? Let us know in the comments!
Photo by Leah Kelley from Pexels.
