Avoiding 'flat head' in babies

[Bellyrub1980]

Posted a similar thread in 'Sleep' but no responses.

The truth is, I'm only really concerned about happy, healthy baby and have always viewed 'flat head' as just 'one of those things' no big deal.

However, at the NEC baby show a company called 'Life Nest' we're selling a mattress which claimed to minimise the risk of flat head and SIDS. I've done some research and there are a few similar company's selling similar products.

So, given that it might be preventable, has anyone had any experience with these products? Did they work?

No, I haven't, but my Dd slept on her side using a 'safe'n'sound' sleep positioner like this

She also had colic so this was the position she found most comfortable.

My sister swore by her Cleva Mamma version- so recently bought me one in TK Maxx.. will give it a go, at least some of the time anyway!

agree with you that the flat head thing looks a bit odd and if it can be avoided (safely) then why not?

Never bothered with anything like that, had a pair of perfectly round headed babies. They did tend to nap in a bouncy chair semi-upright rather than in a crib though.

Both of mine have had perfectly round heads, which I think comes from using a good sling a lot, sitting in bouncy chairs and feeding lying down at night so not as many periods of lying flat.

This feels to me like the perfect example of a product which solves a non-problem, but markets itself to be a must-have product for all new parents.

I wouldn't waste my money on it.

I don't think flat head is a "non-problem" tbh, I see a lot of children who are quite badly effected now.

Flat heads

another thing on the long list of things I didn't know I needed to worry about before joining MN.

My 9 month old has a very flat head, from birth he has slept on his side (thats just how he rolled), on his fron (supervised), or in a bouncy chair.

For some kids its just one of thse things try not to worry about it too much, esp as it may not be preventable.

The answer to a flat head I thought was plenty of interaction with your baby - so don't have them all the time in a pram, car seat, bouncer or other thing that means they are resting on their head all the time. It's nothing to do with the type of mattress they sleep on.

I'm not particularly worried about it, just interested. Infact it never even occurred to me until I went to the baby show and there was a stand dedicated to this problem, so I'm guessing it's something that is being marketed widely rather than just on MN.

I've since spoken to friends/family who said their baby's had it and if there was something out there that could've prevented it they would have leapt at the chance, just because it was possible, not because they hated their babies heads! I just thought it was something that happened, I didn't think it could be prevented until the product presented itself. I'm certainly not trying to scaremonger other people!!

Sounds like there are other ways of preventing it other than buying an expensive mattress so that's interesting. I shall look into slings, I've always really wanted a sling :)

No flat head here, and I used a sling often, and DS also preferred to be upright rather than lying down.

I wonder if it's a problem that some babies are just more predisposed to than others? My friend's baby has a flattish head, but it's certainly not through being left lying around all day.

Is there actually evidence that flat head is caused by babies lying on their backs. I ask because DH has a flat head and his mother mentioned that she always put her babies on their front - that being the advice in that era.
Both his brothers have flattish heads as well.

My children both have round heads and co-slept. I have a round head too and assumed it was hereditary.

Hi, my DS had a flat head. He was forceps delivery and it pulled a muscle in his neck. Meant he always slept with his head turned one way. After a bit of physio his neck was fine and his head got, well less flat! I don't know exactly when it returned to round but he's 2 now and I haven't noticed it for months.

The drs weren't worried at all and said it would return to normal. I think it's fairly common these days and rights itself once they sit up more.

What I want to know about this is, we always hear about flat headed babies but not flat headed kids- and the advice about babies sleeping on their backs has been around for years now. Surely once they grow a decent amount of hair all but the most severe cases are completely unnoticeable? I mean, I'm presuming most people don't buy those helmets and so most babies must just grow out of it or parents just find other things to worry about?
FWIW my cousin had one of those baby hammock beds for her firstborn and she has a terrible flat head, think it's just genetic for her. But now she's 6 you can't tell at all with her head of curly hair.

Yes, I think mostly if they have longer/longish hair it's not so noticeable.

Hi I hadn't given flat head much thought but my ds developed it. I was really worried about it and all the midwives and health visitors just shrugged it off. Anyway I bought a little pillow in the shape of a heart with a hole in the middle (amazon) when he was a couple of months old. I was worried about giving him a pillow but I do think it helped stop the flat head getting worse but I can't say if it would have prevented it. He always laid on his back to sleep but he's head turned slightly to the right so perhaps if I'd have noticed sooner I'd have moved his head. I also gave him lots of tummy time and would put a rolled blanket underneath his play mat to encourage him to move his head etc. anyway his head is hardly noticeable now and people only notice it when I point it out

Hi I hadn't given flat head much thought but my ds developed it. I was really worried about it and all the midwives and health visitors just shrugged it off. Anyway I bought a little pillow in the shape of a heart with a hole in the middle (amazon) when he was a couple of months old. I was worried about giving him a pillow but I do think it helped stop the flat head getting worse but I can't say if it would have prevented it. He always laid on his back to sleep but he's head turned slightly to the right so perhaps if I'd have noticed sooner I'd have moved his head. I also gave him lots of tummy time and would put a rolled blanket underneath his play mat to encourage him to move his head etc. anyway his head is hardly noticeable now and people only notice it when I point it out

Ooo should also add he didn't use the pillow for very long because once he learnt to roll over he slept on his front and still does now.

My son had a noticeably flat back of head when he was little (can't remember but let's say six months or so). He was breastfed, in slings, only really on his back for long periods at night inbetween feeds. I felt awful but I think it was due to a) what his head was naturally going to look like and b) he had a bump on his head post birth from a monitoring thingy in labour, and it meant he leant funny on the back of his head - couldn't really be avoided.

Now he is almost four you wouldn't even notice it.

My baby has a flat head, he was 10 weeks prem so his skull was particularly soft when he was born and he preferred to turn his head to one side in his incubator.

He has physio for it in case it makes his face wonky in the future but his consultant and the health visitor are not concerned at all.

He does have a cleva mamma pillow and insert in his car seat. Don't know if they work though.

Helmets have recent been proven to have no affect at all so dong even think about forking out for one.

All 3 of mine have slept on their sides and fronts, never on their backs and no flat heads. I always thought babies who had flat heads were babies left lying on their backs a lot but im prepared to be corrected. I think side-sleeping and carrying your baby a lot helps to prevent it?

We haven't done anything to avoid flat head with d's. We don't do tummy time either so he is either being held or on his back. At 5 months his head is not flat at all. I have heard that long periods in car seats and bouncers where they have head supports preventing them from turning their heads can contribute to flat head although I don't know to what extent.

ds has a flat head, but only on one side as he always slept with his head turned that way as soon as he was born. He's 11 months now, and taken to sleeping on his front (i roll him onto back and he rolls straight back onto front!, health visitor says it's fine). It's started to go back to normal shape now. Tummy time etc can all help I'm sure, but realistically, they are likely to spend about 12 hours a day asleep, and that's likely to be laying down, so it's hardly surprising they get a flat head. In a lot of cases I think there's probably not much that will prevent it.

In the majority of cases their head will get to be more rounded again once they are sitting up / standing / rolling over etc. Just try to do tummy time or carry baby to minimise it.

As an aside, it's recommended that you don't use pillows, sleep positioners etc as it can be a suffocation risk.

Just FWIW, my friend's Dd was born via EMCS.
She had a very lopsided head and was told by the physio it's because if where she was lodged in the birthing canal (??) so she always slept turned to one side "like a little owl" they would say hehe. She got a little bald patch there too. Anyway she's older now and it's disappearing.