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Experts
Agree Swaddling is Important
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Swaddled
Babies Sleep Better®
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A Washington University study proved infants sleep better
when swaddled
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Swaddled babies have fewer awakenings and twice as much
REM sleep
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REM
sleep is believed to be important for brain development
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Reduces Incidence of SIDS
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When
baby sleeps better on his back, parents are less likely
to use the unsafe tummy position for sleep
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There
is evidence that swaddled back sleeping infants have
lower incidence of SIDS than unswaddled back sleeping
infants as stated in the Journal of Pediatrics, December
2002
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Reduces Colic and Fussiness
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Snug
swaddling soothes babies by reminding them of being in
the womb
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Swaddling helps prevent over stimulation
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Baby
is able to self-soothe if swaddled with hands near face
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Infants are inefficient at regulating their own
temperature. Swaddling helps to keep infants warm.
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Can Help Make Breastfeeding Easier
“Infants
sleep with fewer awakenings when swaddled, and swaddling may
help sleeping infants remain on their backs, say researchers at
Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis.”
Washington University School of Medicine
St. Louis, December 2, 2002
“Now we have scientific evidence to support the age old belief
that swaddled infants sleep better than unswaddled infants,”
Gerard said. “It helps babies stay asleep and so may help
parents keep babies sleeping in the safer back position.”
Claudia M. Gerard, MD
Washington University School of Medicine
“Epidemiologic studies suggest that swaddled and supine (back)
sleeping infants have a significantly lower risk for SIDS
(Sudden Infant Death) than unswaddled supine sleeping infants.”
Pediatrics December 2002
“Efficient wrapping is magically soothing to most babies.
Wrapping too loose may have the opposite effect. Your aim is to
encase the baby completely so that her limbs are gently held in
their preferred position and so that, when she moves, she moves
as one complete bundle.”
Penelope Leach – Your Baby and Child
“If your baby startles easily, his chin quivers a lot, and his
arms and legs seem trembly, swaddle your newborn in a blanket,
which contains and helps to organize these jerky muscle
movements.”
William Sears, MD- The Baby Book
“The frequency of startles was decreased with swaddling during
QS (Quiet Sleep) and REM (Rapid Eye Movement) sleep, and the
frequency of behavioral arousals was decreased with swaddling
during QS sleep. The duration of REM sleep almost doubled with
swaddling.”
Washington University School of Medicine
St. Louis, December 2002
“The long term effect of longer REM sleep duration in swaddled
infants is unclear but may be beneficial. It has been suggested
that REM sleep directs early brain maturation through control of
neural activity.”
Pediatrics December 2002
“New babies need twice as much REM (Rapid Eye Movement) sleep as
adults. That kind of sleep is thought to play a crucial part in
brain development.”
Penelope Leach - Your Baby and Child
“Swaddling is the cornerstone of calming” and “It’s time for
swaddling to make a comeback.”
Harvey Karp, MD – The Happiest Baby On the Block
“Swaddling is soothing to baby because it simulates the feeling
of being in the womb. She feels warm, secure and comforted,”
explained Laura Alexander, a maternal-child health nurse and
parent educator at California Pacific Medical Center in San
Francisco.”
Baby
Talk December 1998
Medical
Experts agree it is important for babies to have access to their
hands
An important baby friendly issue – hand position for the baby
when swaddled. Leading researchers agree that it is in baby’s
best interest to have access to his or her hands when swaddled.
Medical Experts:
“Infants
need access to their hands for self-soothing.
Sucking is the most orientating behavior for a newborn, and the
normal newborn has been observed post delivery to get his hand
to his mouth within thirty minutes of birth. By vigorously
sucking on his hands, a baby can communicate with a caregiver
that he is hungry, and as such, sucking is one of the first baby
cues or early forms of communication.”
Dr. Kathryn Barnard, PhD, FAAN,
Winner of the Gustav O. Lienhard
award and leading infant researcher
“Thumb
sucking is a healthy self-comforting pattern. A fetus sucks his
thumb. A newborn is equipped with the hand-to-mouth, or Babkin
reflex. When he is upset or trying to settle down, he will
resort to this as a way of controlling himself. The pattern
seems built in. Babies who make use of it are easier to live
with.”
Dr. T. Berry Brazelton, MD, author
of “Touchpoints – The Essential Reference”
“A new baby’s
natural position is with her arms bent at the elbow and her legs
flexed. Wrap her like this, making no attempt to straighten her
out before you start. Above all, leave her hands where she can
suck them if she wants and is able to do so.”
Penelope Leach, PhD, author of
“Your Baby and Child”
“As founder of the Becoming Parents Program, I am a strong
advocate of educating both the practicing medical community and
new parents using the latest research. It is common for the
practicing medical community to be unaware of the recent
research with a lag of 10-15 years. I am a hearty supporter of
SwaddleDesigns because their blanket is helping nurses, doctors,
parents and caregivers learn how to swaddle using the hands up
by face technique. Parents have so much to learn as they make
the transition to parenthood. It can be overwhelming for both
the new mother and the father. Our Becoming Parents Program is
designed to help the hospital education and community service
professionals to deliver effective courses with up-to-date
information to help young men and women become parents – and I
strongly advocate that parents use the SwaddleDesigns blanket
because it is the optimum size and shape for swaddling and as an
educational aid – it truly makes swaddling easy to
learn.”
Pamela Jordan, RN, PhD,
Founder of Becoming Parents Program
www.BecomingParents.com
“ As an Orthopedic physician, I am happy to see your blanket’s
123 SwaddleTM Tip Tag shows the hands up by face
swaddling technique. Orthopedists have a strong bias that baby’s
hips, knees and elbow joints be in a flexed position when
swaddled for proper joint development. We become concerned with
overextension of the elbow joint when it is straight down by
baby’s side.”
Dr. Larry Holland,
Orthopedic Physician
“ I definitely recommend that a baby be swaddled in a natural
position with elbows bent, hips and knees flexed for proper
joint development.”
Dr. Bill Wagner, Orthopedic
Physician
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A
Developmentally Supportive Swaddle – Theresa Kledzik,
RN, Infant Developmental Nurse Specialist
From
Contemporary Pediatrics
What
is the purpose of swaddling?
To
assist the infant in achieving and maintaining motor
control, which in turn has a regulatory effect on
autonomic and state function. In other words, breathing,
heart rate, and color will normalize, as well as the
infant's ability to transition from a fussy or crying
state to a quiet awake or sleep state.
How
should I swaddle a baby?
The
baby should be swaddled with the arms bent, brought to
midline, and accessible to his (or her) face. With this
positioning, the infant is supported in his ability to
self-console by bringing hands to face and mouth. A
caregiver's dual purpose is immediate consoling as well
as long-term support of the infant to achieve his own
goals of self-regulation and self-calming. The palms of
the hands and the area around the mouth are very
sensitive and potent sources of stimulation. Rather than
deprive the infant of this access, support it.
How
tight should the developmental swaddle be?
The developmental swaddle is intended to support the
infant's efforts to achieve and maintain regulation. It
is not intended to be a restraint. The blanket wrap
should be snug, but not too snug to allow the infant to
move.
How
can I maximize the effects of a developmental swaddle?
Hold
the baby. Be attentive to cues of over stimulation and
stress while offering stimulation. These subtle infant
behaviors, such as looking away, sneezing, hiccoughing,
and color changes, are early indicators of an infant
reaching his threshold of sensory stimulation. Reducing
the stimulation at this point may help the infant
maintain regulation. If the threshold has been exceeded,
reduce the stimulation and console the baby (while
swaddled) to restore regulation.”
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Every baby is
unique. Ask your pediatrician about swaddling your baby.
Different techniques work for different babies. If your baby
happens to get his or her arm(s) out of the swaddle and is
unhappy that way (some babies are content with arms out), you
may want to try another technique. You may want to try swaddling
with one hand up by face and the other down across the tummy or
down by leg with elbow flexed, alternating arms each time you
swaddle. The third choice is to swaddle with both arms down,
keeping the elbow joint flexed and allowing more time out of the
swaddle.
Infant
researchers state it’s in baby’s best interest to have the
baby’s hands accessible to face, however it is your decision as
a parent to choose how and if to swaddle your baby.
The
information contained on this website is intended to complement,
not substitute for, the advice of your child’s pediatrician.
Consult with your own pediatrician who can discuss your
individual needs and counsel you.
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