Is it ok to let 6wk old sleep in car seat a lot during day?

[Monkeyandanimal]

Our nearly 6 week old settles much better in the car seat than in her moses basket; is it bad to let her sleep in the car seat in the kitchen during the day? I'm keeping an eye on her all the time. I think she likes the hubbub and noise, but doesn't settle in moses basket even if i bring that into kitchen (and it's too exposed to 2 preschool boys falling over and into it; car seat is more protective i think!). Otherwise i have to walk about with her in my arms to get her to settle. I've remember hearing about not letting them stay in car seats on long journeys for too long, but i can't remember why not. Is there an alternative to the car seat that would be ok for daytime sleeping? What are those swing things designed for? Are babies allowed to sleep for hours at a time in those?

Its bad for her spine and lungs to be in a car seat more than an hour or 2 at a time - if it was only one nap per day of no more than 2 hours then you should be ok but not constantly throughout the day. Here

I would limit the time your DD spends in the car seat as my nephew spent a lot of time in his and became really bow legged, straightened out but wasn't nice to see at the time. Maybe she likes being more upright than the Moses basket so possibly a bouncy chair, swing chair or nest

A baby swing might have a more reclined option? The car seat isn't OK for all daytime naps though. The main risk is it can cause oxygen levels to fall. Also babies should lie flat as it is better for their spine. Will she not settle in a bouncy chair? Its not as ideal as a Moses basket but better than car seat. What about her pram? That will lie flat. If you are busy with other children could the baby sleep on you in a sling?

rare but tragic - a baby suffocated in New Zealand, it was too small to hold its head up and was left in a stroller for hours.

that's why not.

oh gosh, ok. I'll restrict its use to the car and look into getting a swing. Thanks all.

Bad for their spine and lungs baby need to sleep flat the new guide lines are 1 1/2 -2 hours max.
So no not really please Google this and read the safety guidance

A vibrating baby chair (like a reclining bouncer) might be a better option.

Ds had awful reflux so the slightly upright posture of the chair helped him and he'd had his naps in there.. The specialist said this was fine as if you think about it they are all squashed up in the womb or a sling anyway. A car seat does tilt their head slightly forward though which isn't a great position for long naps.

The fisher price jungle bouncer was the one we used. It was fantastic. .

I can definitely recommend a swing. It changed my life. Newborn DS1 (now 14) never settled anywhere. Then we got the swing and it was a revelation. This was 1999 but it had 3 seat positions, one which was very reclined. I bet they are so much better now.

We did have a bit of success with the moses basket when we warmed it with a hot water bottle before putting him in.

Oh my word look they are so much better than on 1999!

I had ds2 in the car seat a lot. Reflux, screaming for hours and hours at night. Keeping him more upright was the only thing that worked.

And like others, consultant said it was fine.

You're not supposed to.

All DD1(15) and DD2's (12) generation did.

Not heard of any SIDS cases related to car seats or any spinal problems amongst their peers.

I suspect, like the new co-sleeping advice, it's scaremongering over an absolutely tiny risk.

You're not supposed to or to keep very young babies in car seats on a buggy frame for long periods.

It's because their heads often slump forwards and this narrows their main airway and in small babies they are very narrow anyway. Long periods with reduced air intake can slowly starve the brain of oxygen and cause serious problems making them sink into a coma and stop breathing altogether.

That is the WORSE, WORSE, WORSE case scenario and is very unlikely to occur in normal babies but tiny ones and prem babies are at higher risk. It is very very very unlikely to happen even in those circumstances but is why hVs don't advise it, so don't shoot me or panic!

There was a SIDS case where a baby slept in a car seat in my local paper when DS was little.

www.derbytelegraph.co.uk/Warning-baby-preferred-sleep-car-seat-dead/story-16781041-detail/story.html

They can't be sure the car seat was the cause but I wouldn't risk it.

Surely you can prop the foot of a stage one car seat (out the car) so it's slightly laid back.

The only real risk as far as I can see is overheating, you bring a sleeping DC I from the car in a coat or snow suit.

Not a problem here as DD1 would wake up and yell if she was faintly too warm.

Also padded jackets shouldn't be worn
In the car for thermal and strap tightening safety reasons.

My friends son ended up in hospital with severe stomach cramps at 8 weeks as the position of the car seat stops them being able to pass wind (bizarre I know!)

My daughter didn't like to be put down but we got a rainforest take along swing which she lived until about 6 months :)

Be careful about flathead when leaving baby in bouncer or car seats for nap. I noticed my second getting this at two months, do now I carry him in sling a lot and put him on his side for naps. I put bouncer away, even though he seemed to love it! After research read car seat and bouncers and cause this if they spend a lot of time napping in there.

Second the idea of a decent sling for an upright position which still let's you get things done.
Car seats aren't ideal for all the reasons above. I have seen one baby girl with an extremely flat head - not helped by the fact that the parents used the pram attachments to clip the car seat into the pram a lot (there are genetic causes of extreme flat head issues I think though).

My DS had mild flat head on one side as he used to lay flat in moses basket against that side of his head.

Its not exclusively upright seats that cause this.