Dummies and Cot death

[GingerBearingGifts]

BBC Breakfast - report says that they reduce the risk of SIDS. But also that if you give a baby a dummy, not to take it away again as the risk increases more than for a baby who hasn't had a dummy.
So do we maintain a nightly vigil over the crib to ensure the dummy doesn't fall out?
And what about babies like mine who rejected a dummy outight?

I think she was making the link between sucking a dummy at night and sucking a breast - wasn't too random

anyway I'll let her defend herself

Sucking a breast all night????????

(ouch)

LOL my DS would if he could

So would dd2! I have to surreptitiously slip her fingers into her mouth in the dead of night sometimes.

To me it does seems strange though that the human baby needs to sleep with a piece of silicon in its mouth to increase its chances of staying alive!

Roobie - What, just as weird as the fact we now have to cook meat before we eat it or our bodies can't digest it.....or we catch horrible infections???? Early humans always ate raw meat.

Its synthetic evolution.... no longer survival of the fittest. We are flawed.

I co slept with DS and Bfed not really through choice I would just fall asleep with him feeding. He had the most horendous eczema so there was very little sleep n our house.

This time DD will not co sleep. What worries me is that she always rolls on to her tummy in her cot. SHe is 10.5 mths old now and almost always sleeps on her tummy. We follow all the other guidelines. Should I be woried?

I would have used a dummy had either of my children been willing and I can't really understand the strength of feeling against them. It is interesting how people's revulsion of dummies can affect the way they view this study.

OK but at least meat is natural - dummies are a mechanical intervention, do our brand spanking new babies really need such things?

Eaney - It doesn't matter if they sleep on their tummy once they can roll there themselves.

Don't have anything against dummies by the way, was just thinking about them in a different way.

Roobie -You're not suggesting they make dummies out of human flesh are you??????

dear lord that would be a thing! maybe in the future extreme earth mother types will have their nipples removed (once they no longer need them for bfing of course) and made into natural dummies!?

lol... or they could improvise with other parts of the body if they were planning on having more kids! How about ear-lobes? They're pretty useless parts aren't they?

Isnt that what wet nurses were for in the "olden" days?????????

Sorry Enid, but there is very little evidence that breastfeeding does prevent SIDS. I'd obviously like there to be more, as I breastfed both my kids and really do think it is a wonderful thing in general. But it is not a proven thing by any means. Most studies do not show an association, and those that do indicate a weak link.
Dummies show a much, much more dramatic effect in study after study. Not just this one by any means (which isn't that small). The American Academy of Paediatrics recommended dummy use to prevent SIDS a while ago after reviewing all the MANY studies on SIDS (which adds up to a big study) and found that the advantages outweighed any possible disadvantages.
As I say, I have co-slept (and continue to do so, rather against my will ), ds had a dummy, dd does not. Both were breastfed, but ds was mixed fed, so I think I've pretty much covered all the bases there.

And both children have slept on their tummies from the moment they could roll! I have never worried about them, except of course, to assume they have died in the night if they slept for any length of time, that being so unusual.

actually having thought about this if I ever had another child I'd use a dummy.

well there is no way I am going to change the way I parent because of this article

if my new baby dies of cot death then you can all feel free to wag a finger

Now now Enid... that was harsh!

well its sort of true

if I dont use a dummy despite research saying I should and my baby dies, then someone, somewhere will judge me for it, thats life.

as far as i know the top people say that there is no increased risk of SIDS in co sleeping after the baby is 8 weeks old, unless you smoke, drink, or are on medication. Just what i remeber from a BBC interview.

aloha, I am not learned on studies so cannot quote chapter and verse. I am not sure about how breastfeeding per se can reduce SIDS but I do know that there are experts who believe that co-sleeping can reduce SIDS. The basis is that babies' sleep is shallower when they co-sleep. The danger of deep sleep is that some vulnerable babies' respiratory systems are so immature they can "forget" to breathe - that is one of the many theories about SIDS, a condition doctors still don't fully understand. Then again, it could be because mother is right next to baby and could easily rescue if baby gets into breathing difficulties.

But of course this theory contradicts the other more mainstream one about co-sleeping increasing the risk of SIDS because parents who drink./do drugs/sleep deeply /soft bedding can smother etc. Hence, not being a big brain, I just go ahead and do what's right for dd.

My HV (harshly or realistically (?)) said, when we discussed co-sleeping, that "Well, some babies are just going to die anyway" I rather liked her honesty.

urgh, aloha, just re-read my message and it came out as if I was mocking you. Not at all .