Baby Pillow, To Use Or Not Use
Many baby pillows with various types of design and decoration are available at stores and craft shows. Parents, or their family or friends, may be tempted to buy a baby pillow as a personalized gift for a new baby. But is a baby pillow safe for your baby? Before anyone decides to use a baby pillow in the crib with a small baby, there is some frightening information that should be known.
SIDS, or Sudden Infant Death Syndrome, is said to be the leading killer of babies between the ages of one to twelve months in the United States. In the early 90s, based on reports out of Europe and Australia, the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) released a recommendation that babies not be placed on their tummies for sleep. In 1994, the Back To Sleep campaign was initiated as a joint effort by several national agencies and consumer groups. Several studies were performed to evaluate the effect of the Back To Sleep program on the incidence of SIDS. These studies showed the rate of SIDS decreased by 50%, but other related factors were also discovered. A task force formed by the AAP issued a new statement in 2005 to include recommendations on all the new findings. Foremost, babies must be laid to sleep on the back only, not on the side. Included in the recommendations was a clearly defined list of items to place in the crib: a firm mattress, a fitted sheet, and the baby. If a bumper pad is used it must not be a loose, fluffy type. No baby pillow or toys or other objects should be included. In response to increased incidence of flat head syndrome, alternate methods of prevention were advised. The AAP felt the use of alternate positioning or a baby pillow were not worth risking SIDS.
There is a baby pillow on the market, called Baby Sleep Positioner, which includes the recommendations for SIDS prevention in its advertising. Made of foam, the purpose of this baby pillow is to support the head while keeping the baby positioned on the back. The statement released by the AAP is clear that it does not endorse any specific commercial products. If parents are considering the use of the foam baby pillow sleep positioner, checking with their Pediatrician first is probably the safest approach.