Baby Health And Safety
The Top 3 Sleep Related Health Issues for Babies – Learn Why Getting Baby to Sleep Through the Night is So Important for Your Baby’s Health
Author: Tasha
As parents we inherently have a desire to keep our children healthy, safe, and happy. One of the earliest hurdles we encounter to our children’s well-being is the issue of getting baby to sleep through the night. You may not realize this, but by delaying this skill you could be setting your baby up for more serious health related issues during their childhood and into their adult life. By establishing healthy sleep habits now, you increase your children’s chances of bypassing these challenges.
Obesity
Studies conducted at many well known research centers have shown that there is a connection between childhood sleep deprivation and obesity. At the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, researchers found that for each extra hour of sleep a child got, it reduced their risk of being overweight by 9 percent!
In a Harvard study, results showed that infants who slept less than 12 hours total in a day were twice as likely to be overweight by the age of 3 versus infants who slept 12 hours or more in a day.
Emotional Issues
For babies and children the emotional effects of sleep deprivation can be more extreme than that of an adult. Some of the emotional issues a child can experience are high levels of anxiety, depression, aggression, irritability, temper tantrums, excessive crying and fussiness and decreased patience.
These issues go hand in hand with the next set of problems lack of sleep can cause in children.
Behavioral Issues
If a child is not getting adequate sleep they can begin to display a variety of behavioral issues such as hyperactivity, poor concentration, poor school performance, poor impulse control, reasoning and memory, focus and a drop in their IQ.
If these symptoms sound similar to those of ADD and ADHD, they are. Here’s a fascinating scientific finda¦
Research in sleep laboratories have shown that many children have been misdiagnosed as having ADD/ADHD, when really all that was going on was chronic partial sleep deprivation!
In addition to the above, sleep deprivation in children suppresses their immune systems, increases their chances of injurious falls, and creates a vicious cycle of poor sleep habits that are hard to break the longer they go on.
Frequently Asked Questions
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QUESTION:
Please help! Am I being unreasonable about baby safety?
Hi, im 22 and i first time mum to be living in Germany, and my question is: do you think its unreasonable to disallow your newborn child into a house that is not baby safe?My husbands parents are kind of expecting to be able to have the baby for afternoons in their own house (rather then coming down to our granny flat down stairs to see the baby). However at the present point i am really concerned about the lack of general health and safety in their house, its a hayfever haven! There are hundreds of bottles of chemicals just lying around the place, even in areas where they prepare food. Not to mention the dangerous objects laying around the baby could get hold of, the dirty cat food bowls that sit around for weeks before being washed, the cartons of fresh milk that sit out all day in the warm, the cat hair that is never vacuumed from the sofa, dust sits everywhere in the lounge room; my hands burn just from touching their laundry or bathroom from the amount of chemicals used in them. And their cooking standards (ie not mixing raw meats ETC.) still shock me!
Don’t get me wrong, im no way an uptight, ritualistic, clean freak, and i realize that people from different countries do things different (I’m originally from Australia), BUT i do expect a little bit cleanliness around the house and chemicals (if one must use them) at least put away in a safe place if there is a baby around.
And I dont want to stop my husbands parents from having the baby, but the health and safety of the house makes me really anxious, and would rather not unnecessarily expose the baby to chemicals.
I was a nanny for quite a while before i was pregnant so im not completely naive as his parents like to think i am, but im really afraid to say something. Maybe im over reacting completely…? Either way none of the houses i worked in as a nanny, or my mother own house ever operated like this one. Should i say something?
Any opinions on this would be really appreciated. Many thanks and im sorry this got so long!
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ANSWER:
Momma knows best. That saying exists for a reason. From what you described I wouldn’t let a child of any age over there. It doesn’t sound safe.
Maybe just tell them you’d like for them to come visit you and your child but also be upfront as to why you aren’t comfortable in their home. A simple “we just don’t feel comfortable having the baby there because of allergies and so many chemicals being exposed and around.” If all else fails, push it off on the doctor and say that the doctor said that the baby needs to stay in their own environment due to allergies. Who is going to argue with you if you tell them “the doctor said”.If confronting it head on isn’t something you feel you can handle then offer to come over WITHOUT the baby and help them kid proof their home and explain that you aren’t comfortable with your child being in a home that isn’t child proofed for safety issues that they probably don’t realize with a young baby/child and could you come to help them child proof.
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QUESTION:
which is better for the baby’s health and safety: cloth diapers or regular disposable diapers?got to help with changing sister in law’s baby but hate the smell.
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ANSWER:
Cloth diapers are better for the child’s health. When disposables are being made the workers have to wear a environmental suit as they mix the chemicals for the disposable diapers.Disposables are made mostly of soft, fluffy pulp which is produced by chemically treating wood fibers. The pulp undergoes a whitening and softening process when it is exposed to chlorine-based bleaching agents, such as chlorine gas and chlorine dioxide. Now could you imagine all those chemicals near the sensitive parts of a baby?Cloth diapers are being made better than those of yester years. They are more absorbent and breathable than the disposable. They do not contaminate our environment by laying in a landfill. Basically a disposable diaper becomes mummified in a landfill because they are unable to break down in that environment. Thereby staying there for future generations.
Human feces can contain harmful pathogens (for example, babies who have been vaccinated for polio will excrete poliovirus) when feces is discarded with disposable diapers there is a potential for public exposure via rodents and bugs.
i’ve included some sites to check out with more information on cloth diapering and the pros and cons of disposable.
When changing the baby, rinse it in the toilet to remove any feces and then place the cotton diaper into the diaper pail with natural soap.
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QUESTION:
What bottles are safe for my baby?
After weeks of listening to the debate of whether or not BPA in baby bottles is bad or not I decided to err on the side of caution and purchase new bottles for my child.They interviewed the owner of Born Free baby bottles, leading you to believe this is one ofyour only options. I got on line to do some research. Now don’t get me wrong, my babies health and safety is worth any price, but the cost of these bottles prompted me to do further research and I thought I’d share my findings.
Born Free offers both glass bottles and BPA free plastic bottles: Glass bottles are ea / Plastic for 2. The nipples are 2 for
Nurture Pure offers Glass only at for 3 and 3 nipples for .50
Gerber offers 2 BPA free plastic bottles ~ Clear View and Fashion Tints – I haven’t been able to find them so I don’t have prices (I know they are alot less expensive than the others). When I called they offered to mail coupons.
On my quest for the Gerber bottles I went to Wal-Mart. Their Parent’s Choice brand offers BPA Free plastic bottles. A 3 pack is .96, the silicone nipples are 6 for .88. As that was my only choice at Wal-Mart I grabbed two. I’ve been using them since last night and my baby has no problem with them.Gerber actually has a toll free number on their site to call and they were very helpful. They told me the above bottles I mention were BPA free but their NUK bottles are not. The sip & smile and fun grips sippy cups are also BPA free (I have a toddler too).
I hope this info. helps some of you too. As I said ~ if need be I wouldn’t hesitate to spend the money on the more costly bottles but it’s good to know there are less expensive alternatives.
***NOTE*** I posted this info a few days ago and it got deleted because it was not in the form of a question. Truth is one of the breast feeding advocates replied with a rude answer so I sent a friendly e-mail to her explaining my situation and why I am unable to breastfeed (not that I feel I owe anyone an explanation!). She clearly responded by reporting me. Very nice.Breastfeeding moms really need to consider that some moms are unable to breastfeed and feel very badly about it. Without knowing a persons situation many of you are entirely out of line placing judgement. I think most of us realize “breast is best” and don’t need to be made to feel bad about not being able to do it. Please consider peoples feelings before you lash out.
Mother Martha, thank you for you response. I’m not a new mommy. Along with my 6 mos. old, that uses the bottles, I have a fast moving two year old. I also have tile flooring throughout my house and frankly I’m a bit of a klutz myself. Glass bottles are not an option for me.
***UPDATE*** After days of trying I finally got through to someone at AVENT (as those were the bottles I was using). Their bottles ARE made with polycarbonate which contains BPA.-
ANSWER:
MAM also makes BPA-free bottles. They are available online at target.com and walmart.com. .99 for (3) 5 oz or 9oz bottlesFYI – I just checked the target and walmart websites and both of them show out of stock for the girl (pink and green) 3-pack. Target’s website says the bottles will be in stock in 2-3 weeks. However, as of right now, both websites show that the boy (blue/green) bottles are still available – so you are thinking about using them, I would order now.
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QUESTION:
Is it possible to have a flat belly after 2nd baby?
I know its not important and I’m not planning another baby just yet but was curious to know if any mums managed to get a flat tummy after their 2nd pregnancy.
My daughter is 20 months now & I’ve managed to get my tummy back to almost washboard with luckily no c-sec overhang and the scar is barely visible. But my tummy was a huge 40 inches in pregnancy so it’d likely go that big again.
If I had another would it be harder to get it back flat again?Please don’t get angry at me, I am curious by nature, obviously the babies health and safety mean more than what your body looks like.
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ANSWER:
Yes very possible! My mom is very small, and she definitly doesn’t look like shes had 3 children!!
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QUESTION:
How do you ensure the health and safety of the mom and the baby during pregnancy?
how?-
ANSWER:
Doctors do their best, weighing, testing for protein in your urine and such, but you cant ensure good health during pregnancy, sometimes things just happen.
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QUESTION:
Babies rolling onto face to sleep, aaaghhh!!?
I have been struggling with this myself and just read someone else’s baby does the SAME thing. My twins will be 6 months on the 21st but they are preemies….8 weeks earlyThe article from yahoo……
Do you put your baby on her back?
Filed under: Newborns, Babies, Health & safety
When my older daughter was five months old, she started rolling over in her crib at night. Only, instead of rolling over and snuggling in with that cute butt-in-the-air pose that all parents know and love, she’d roll over, then fall back to sleep … face down in the mattress. I’d lie in my own bed, watching anxiously on the video monitor. My mind would tell me that she was fine, while my heart would fantasize about worst case scenarios until I had enough. I’d go in to gently turn her head to the side. She’d thank me by either waking up, furious, or by being back in the face down position by the time I hit my pillow. At her six month checkup, her doctor told me to leave her alone and let her sleep.I’ve never met a new parent who didn’t worry about SIDS, who didn’t fret about sleep positions. But the same study that found that running a fan in baby’s room may reduce the risk of SIDS also found that up to 26% of parents don’t heed the advice that babies should sleep on their backs. Babies seem to sleep better on their bellies, so I’m guessing a large chunk of that percentage are parents off poor sleepers. Still, over one quarter of parents don’t follow the single most important piece of advice when it comes to preventing SIDS? That’s amazing to me
I had one child would only nap during the day if I put her on her side, so I can relate. But I was never brave enough to let them sleep on their bellies until they were old enough to get there themselves. What about you? Did you let your babies sleep on their bellies?
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So as a result I am still swaddling my twins to protect them from accidentally suffocating themselves, they BOTH do it. They roll over no matter how many times I put them on their back and they keep their face staright down planted into the mattress, nostrils down to the mattress..They will not keep their heads to the side even, they move back once I reposition them.
Does anyone else’s baby do this?
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ANSWER:
angelcare movement monitorhttp://www.amazon.com/Angelcare-Movement-Sensor-Nursery-Monitor/dp/B0000CEDRO/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&s=baby-products&qid=1223668983&sr=1-3
It gave peace of mind and I could sleep
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QUESTION:
Where can I find a website which has the health, safety and security needs of a baby/child aged 0-3 years?
Links please, thank you.-
ANSWER:
you can go to parents.com it helps me alot with my daughter and shes 1year old
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QUESTION:
health issues about the safety of using swifter wet floor cleaners when babies and animals will be exposed?
I have heard that there is something in the liquid on the towel that is hazardous to a baby or animals health if they come in contact with the solution-
ANSWER:
Absolute scam, check the the hoax/scam websites and worry not. No one should be sticking there face in cleaning supplies however swiffer is no worse than any other cleaning solution.
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