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Babies should always sleep on their backs.
Many babies can roll from their sides onto their tummies, so they should not be put to sleep on their sides.
Put babies into the cot with their feet at the end of the cot.
Put your baby’s feet at the bottom of the cot, then cover him so that he cannot wriggle under the bedding.
Make up the cot so that the bedclothes just come up to the baby’s shoulders and the baby’s head cannot go down under the bedclothes. See the topic Sudden unexpected deaths in infancy (including SIDS) which shows how this is done.
Wrapping babies
Some babies sleep better when they are wrapped. In our next article we will cover wrapping baby.
Bedding
Make sure that your baby’s face and head are not covered when she is asleep.
The best way to do this is to use a baby sleeping bag which is made so that the baby cannot slip inside the bag and become completely covered.
The sleeping bag should have fitted neck and arm holes and should not have a hood.
Make sure that your baby has enough clothes on under the sleeping bag so that you do not need to use any other bedding (no sheets or blankets).
If you need to use sheets or blankets
Use only light bedding that can be tucked in firmly.
Dress your baby in clothing that will keep him warm enough so he does not need much bedding. Then it does not matter if he wriggles out from under a blanket.
To avoid your baby being strangled, make sure that clothing does not have any long strings, ribbons or cords. If you use a cord or ribbon to attach a dummy to clothing, make sure that it is less than 10 cm long.
If your baby needs to be wrapped to go to sleep, use a sheet over light clothing and place the baby on his back. See the topic ‘Wrapping babies’.
Doonas, thick quilts or heavy blankets may cause your baby to over heat and are not recommended for this reason.
Make sure that baby’s face and head remains uncovered (avoid sheep’s skins, quilts, pillows, cot bumpers and soft toys). Cot bumpers are not needed to protect your baby. Babies have been found with their faces pressed against bumpers. This can cause breathing problems.
Do not use pillows in a cot. Babies do not need pillows to sleep.
It is not safe to use a hot water bottle or electric blanket for babies or young children because of the risk of burns.
Heat packs can also cause burns and should not be used with babies and very young children.