Hello everyone,
I was wondering at what age is it okay to let your baby sleep on their stomach? Both my mom and mil tell me that they were always told to put their children on their stomach but not anymore. My son will be 4 months on July 3rd and definitly prefers to sleep on his stomach. I only allow this when i am sitting with him on the couch. But at night he is very restless and wakes up almost every hour. I put him on his stomach to let him fall asleep then move him onto his side. But then he wakes up after 1/2 hour or so. He can roll onto his stomach now but can't roll onto his back. When he is on his stomach he lifts his head and moves it left to right and so on. When is it safe to allow him to sleep on his stomach? Any advice will truely help. Thanks.
S.,
Both of my boys were belly sleepers from day 1. They would not fall asleep on their backs. I was extremely worried because now a days you are told about SIDS from everyone. I spoke with my pediatrician (which you should consider doing). He put me at ease. Both boys are very healthy active little guys...and they still sleep on their tummy! Best of luck.
my son is almost four months old and hates sleeping on his back.When I put him to bed i make sure nothing is near him to prevent breathing and that his nose and mouth are clear.He moves his face and head around now so I don't worry as much.If you feel comfortable with it then thats what you should do. Only you know best for YOUR kids.
I have 8 month old twin boys..one who only slept on his stomach like yours...Around 4 months is when I gave in and let him do it, I would just put him in a sleep sack, with nothing in his crib. He is fine. And I got more sleep. I did find out that he was more comfortable on his belly because of his acid reflux.
Our generation all slept on our belly's and we all made it. The reason for "back to sleep" is SIDS has a greater chance of not happeing if they are on there backs.
My Doctor said that SIDS is all within the "wiring" of the child, and can not be detected. and once the roll..its okay.
If your son rolls over on his own, it's not that big of a deal. But please be aware that the number of SIDS related deaths has dropped considerably since the "back to sleep" movement started. And just because you and I and however many other people slept on the tummy from day one, doesn't mean that it's the safest postion. It's really not a good arguement....think of all the babies that aren't here because of SIDS. Dr. Sears website has some good things to say about back and tummy sleep. I'd give that a glance. Also, the reason we and babies sleep better on the tummies is because they are able to get into a deeper sleep for a longer period of time. But doctors say that that is the problem. If there is a problem with breathing or something the baby isn't capable of waking up when it needs to. Please make an informed decision. Look at the FACTS..not just our opinions.
S.,
All three of my kids slept on their tummy from the day they came home from the hospital. My mom told me when I was born (1976) moms were told to sleep the baby on their tummy. I have made it 32 years and I am still okay. Years ago when babies slept on their tummy there no problems. From what I understand about SIDS is that the baby is going to be affected by SIDS the sleep position really donesn't matter. Now that babies are sleeping on thier backs there are son many cases of infants with flat heads and they are required to wear a helmet. My kids loved being on their tummy. I think they felt more secure. To me when they lay on their backs they look open to the world, however they spent 9 months confined and protected in their mom and when they are on their tummy they feel that security of being confined. If I were you I would do whatever is better and more comfortable for your son. As long as he can pick up his head I would put him on his tummy.
I think you got some great advice from all here. If you are still nervous about letting him sleep on his tummy, check with his doctor about it.
I have 2 sons ages 17 and 15. Both were tummy sleepers. When I had my daughter who is now 9, I was scared to death to let her sleep on her tummy, but that's how she wanted to sleep.
After many nights of no sleep for either of us, my husband finally said "enough" and put her on her tummy. That was the first time she slept through the night...she was a couple of weeks old then.
She has slept on her tummy ever since, and still does.
When my son was about this age I would fight with him every night. I would roll him onto his back and he'd roll back to his tummy. Eventually I'd give up. Pretty much if he can roll onto his tummy I'd say let him stay there.
Hello S.!
To be honest, nobody will tell you it is safe until he can roll over onto his back. I let my son sleep on his stomach (he's 3mths) because he can move his face from side to side. I understand you're worried about nightime because you're not up to check on him. Go with your instincts--if you feel he can do it safely, then do it. My mom said my brother and I were on our stomachs and we're okay.
Once my daughter could roll onto her tummy (about 3 months) she preferred that position to sleep in. My doctor's advice was to ALWAYS put her down on her back and if she rolls over - well, what can you do? Either flip her back and risk waking her or let her sleep. Yes, I was concerned but she slept like an angel and is a VERY good sleeper to this day (she's 25 months now and still sleeps on her tummy). I agree with one of the posters, a crib monitor could ease your mind and I bet you can buy a cheap used one on Craigslist or something similar!
I think as long as they are rolling themselves over they are fine, but you may want to consider being extra careful the 2-3 weeks following vaccinations in case they have adverse reactions- lots of people say SIDS happens more often after a round of shots, and I believe it was Japan that they delayed a certain round of vaccinations til children reached an older age and had a big decrease in SIDS cases. My way around the tummy issue was cosleeping... my baby slept on his side as he would fall asleep nursing. The other thing is that SIDS percentages are 25 times lower in countries where people primarily cosleep. This could be due to multiple factors but its been studied that babies breathe in rhythm with mom and dad if they're in the same room. The other thing you could do if you don't want to cosleep is keep the baby in your room in his crib where he can still hear your breathing... then even if he's on his tummy he has that safe breathing pattern to keep his breathing normal.
Our boys slept better on the tummies as well,we used AngelCare motion monitor with our second and it was wonderful(with our first I would set an alarm so I can check on him every so often but it was not ideal).
My daughter has slept on her tummy since the night she came home from the hospital. And to this day (she is almost 2) she will not sleep any other way.
I think the main concern would be if he were to put his face down into the mattress, it could compromise his breathing.
A good way to check would be to put something on his face, with your supervision of course, while he is sleeping on his tummy. Like a blanket, or a toy. If he can move his head away, or pick up his head and rotate it, its a good indication that he is strong enough to sleep on his tummy.
Another thing to consider would be the risk of SIDS. Do you smoke? Did you smoke when you were pregnant? Is he nursing? Was he a preemie?
Follow his clues, and your instincts.
Best of Luck!!
S.,
It seems that this issue has been debated for the last 30 years by both parents and professionals. When mine were babies, parents were told babies should sleep only on their sides as there were risks for both tummy and back sleepers.
My opinion is that if he can lift his head, let him sleep on his tummy where he's the most comfortable. However, so you feel more comfortable, check with the pediatrician who knows your child's development.
My daughter and son both did this. My daughter is now 20 months old and still only sleeps on her tummy. My son is 5 months old and has only slept on his tummy for about two months. I used to flip my daughter constantly until my doctor told me that, as long as I put her on her back and she rolled on her tummy herself, she was okay. I also made sure that the sheets are very fitted (with no give to get caught in their mouths), I only used the Breathable Bumpers, and I didn't give my daughter a blanket until about a month ago; my son still has nothing in his crib. I still put my daughter on her back every night and she rolls on her tummy herself, and then asks me to "tuck her in" by putting her blanket on her (she's still in the crib). I put my son on his back, too, and a little to the side in the crib, so that when he rolls over - which is about two or three minutes after I put him to bed - he is in the center of the crib. I think the fact that your son can lift his head is an indication that he has the muscle strength required to move if he has something blocking his airway. If you are concerned, see if you can keep him just on his side. Does he use a pacifier? I've read that this reduces the risk of SIDS.
Hey S.,
My daughter slept on her stomach from the day she came home from the hospital and still to this day almost always sleeps on her tummy...If I put her on her back she would startle herslef into waking up and then forget it....I bought her one of those sleep positioners and was sometimes able to put her on her side and she would sleep a little better...I read an article that said if your child takes a pacifier the chances of SIDS decreases significantly...and my daughter is defanitely a binkie girl, but only at bedtime...so Im not sure if your little guy takes a binkie or not...My thoughts are as long as they have good head/neck control and can lift there head up they are much safer...but you have to do what you feel comfortable with!! Best of luck!!
Meg :)
