Having your baby facing away from you in their buggy is not the done thing,

[wrinklytum]

So says research from Dundee University.Apparently they are much better off in a buggy that faces the parent.

Sighs at self.Yet another parenting issue I have failed on.

As a mum of 3 under 15 months my lot were doomed. Was impossible to buy a double rear facing one at the time and 1 was on a buggy board.

All 3 had excellent speech and are very literate so they clearly survived their pushchair deprivation

By nannynick on Mon 24-Nov-08 13:35:25
I loved this comment one of the observers made:
"Couldn't there be sideways facing buggies, where the child can see the parent and the world at the same time, and engage?"
Hmm, interesting idea. Would need to design such a buggy before any research could be done, as I don't know of any Sideways Facing buggies on the market.

orbit stroller can be faced sideways

You found one... US distributors only alas it seems. Cost $700-$900 hmm, tad expensive!

doesn't meet uk standards atm.

cups of tea -
easy to be in for 2 hours a day

walk to school (30 min)
walk home (30 min)
pick up dd2 from preschool (30 min)
walk back again (30 min)
pcik up dd1 from school (30 min)
walk home for last time (30 min)

yikes - that is longer than 2 hours!
poor dd3 - she is 2
she sometimes walks back from the school

cups of tea -
easy to be in for 2 hours a day

walk to school (30 min)
walk home (30 min)
pick up dd2 from preschool (30 min)
walk back again (30 min)
pcik up dd1 from school (30 min)
walk home for last time (30 min)

yikes - that is longer than 2 hours!
poor dd3 - she is 2
she sometimes walks back from the school

But won't they get buggy-sick, looking out sideways, Misdee?

one word: sling

the ultimate forward facing baby carrier.

dd2 is now 8 wks old and has never been in a pushchair.

i dont know if kids get buggy-sick facing sidewayslol.

i just know a lot about buggies. i wish it was an area i could get into properly, the whole design and build of them, but think i need soemthing called qualifications.

omg. I've stepped into the buggy rumble.

The Huns must be all excited wherever they hang out now.

Slings are great... but boy is it hard when baby gets to 11 months old. Sling to the hip seems to work ok at 11 months, but I do feel a bit lop sided and I can't walk for long like that without needing a rest.

Buggy Sickness - yes I do wonder what positions are more prone to Buggy Sickness than others.

When on a train, I prefer to sit in the direction the train is travelling. When in a car I prefer to sit in the direction the car is travelling (in fact I suspect by law I have to do so when I am the driver!). I don't like travelling backwards... so why does a baby/toddler want to go backwards?
Maybe all that is needed is a big mirror on the front of the buggy, so baby/toddler can still see the person pushing the buggy.

Good points on the 2hrs - I'd just thought of 2hrs in a block rather than a total of 2hrs - duh!!!

oooh sideways! I want one

I can see the point the researchers are making, and if I had my time again may think a bit more carefully about keeping my DDs rearfacing for longer(though not sure of the practicalities with a double). However, I do wonder if the difference for most kids is quite marginal. I'm sure I'm not the only one who's children have made thier views clear from an early age, and am sure that if they had fournd being front facing as stressful and unstimulating as the researchers suggested, they would have howled when put in the buggy. They always seemed (and still are) extremely relaxed and both sleep well in there.

what a load of shit,i can't tell you how much shit this is. if onethinks about the life of a child, all those years a child has with a parent - the amount of things a parent can do to unermine the childs development

i hardly think facing the wrong way in the pram has geoff all effect quite franklyin the great scheme of things

schools
housing
healthcare

now there are things that have a fucking effect.

i HOPE NONE OF YOU ARE TAKING THIS SERIOUSLY

The only double I think I have seen where you could have the babies facing rearwards is the First Wheels one??, I'd love a P&T that reafaced.

Kids know what they know, if they start off frontways surely that's all they know and wouldn't be stressed by it? I could understand a baby who was rearfacing then turned round might feel that way. Also completely agree with the opportunities for conversation in a forward facing buggy being limited.

I have no axe to grind but it's an interesting piece of research and if people bothered to look at the actual research instead of the media manipulation of it they would see it's point.

All it is saying is that it is better for babies to face their parents in terms of developing interaction. Of course it is only ONE aspect of how a child is raised but it's an interesting point. It's not about making new buggies, or making parents feel guilty or about 'hating parent's'.

I don't see why everyone is so hot under the collar about it! It makes perfect sense. A small baby wants to see the parent to feel reassured and a slightly older baby needs to develop it's interactive skills as part of the journey to develop speech. That's all.

I think Custardo is spot on. Also I think in all this too it's being forgotten what a pushchair is for- a device to transport babies/toddlers not a device whose prime purpose is to promote interaction between mother and child.

We spend a lot of time on the moor and beach so my main priority was something that could a) cart 3 little ones b)cope with rough terrain c)one that could get through most doors d) one I could afford-ta da The Nipper Double 360!!!!!!! Fantastic pushchair,the only pushchair I ever had, that has seen me through thick and thin.

Rear facing came some way down on my wish list

"I thought it worth pointing out that, as a schools therapist, I still see children arriving at school in buggies ? children in
Reception and Year 1, who really should be walking to school!"

Personally have never seen this. How on Earth can an academic report be based on lies anecdotal evidence? I know the the University of Dundee was crap but this is taking the piss.

As a rec teacher and also now as a mum of 2 rec dc I've never seen this either. I taught in a variety of settings too.

The comments made by "the observers" who volunteered, show that they are heavily biased. Maybe that they took part in this particular study on a voluntary basis because they had an axe to grind? Like the MNers who lack sufficient empathy to understand why other parents would choose to use FF pushchairs. This inherent bias does not seem to be addressed.

Rear-facing pushchairs are generally much more expensive so there is a possibility of snobbery here. Also the extra size and weight makes them more suitable for people who have big cars or jeeps and who don't have to carry the thing up several flights of stairs. In general, those with more disposable income are more likely to have RF buggies.