Tag Archives: benefits

Swaddling can help reduce pain response in babies

Posted by on August 21, 2012 Comments Off

A recent study conducted by EM Demps and colleagues from the Department of Paediatrics and Newborn Medicine, Coombe Women and Infants University Hospital, Dublin, Ireland used swaddling as a technique to help reduce pain in newborns.

Swaddling pain response

Benefits of Swaddling

They analyzed the pain responses of newborns going through a screening for a retinopathy, which is abnormal blood vessel development in the eye. This is a painful examination and the doctors looked at different techniques to help reduce the pain.  Swaddling the baby is one technique that has shown to be helpful.

So why swaddle your newborn? – It will help reduce the potential pain your newborn might encounter from examinations, blood draws, or tests.

Doctors agree Swaddling helps your newborn sleep longer

Posted by on April 23, 2012 Comments Off

Swaddling has been around for ages and continues on today because parents find it beneficial in raising their newborn. Well, a group of doctors in Belgium wanted to critically study swaddling and see physiological impact on newborns. The study title, Influence of Swaddling on Sleep and Arousal Characteristics of Healthy Infants published in the journal Pediatrics, systematically examined the benefits of swaddling and tried to answer the questions; Does swaddling help induce babies to sleep longer? Does swaddling help reduce crying among irritable babies? The impact of environmental sound was used to test the response of sleeping babies that were swaddle and non-swaddle.

The study shows swaddling was beneficial -

Swaddling helped infants sleep longer

The impact of swaddling on reducing crying was less conclusive in this study, but if babies are able to sleep for a longer time, then I’m sure more parents would still be overjoy. So, if you are a parent who has a baby that doesn’t like to sleep, then give give swaddling a try.

Why swaddle your baby? – Another top reason to swaddle

Posted by on February 11, 2012 Comments Off

The first benefit of swaddling is its potential to lower SIDS (sudden infant death syndrome) because swaddling helps infants sleep in the supine position. But, the benefits don’t stop there. Moms already witness the 2nd benefit when they first held their swaddle baby.

As I rewind thru the video of my son’s birth, it’s easy to see he was shocked and uncomfortable coming into the world.  He was screaming his lungs out and did not stop at all as the doctors examined him. His crying subsided only after he was swaddle.

The newborn has lived in the mother’s womb for almost 9 months (my stayed in there for only 34 weeks, 6 days) and has developed a comfort level. It does not cry or shed any tears in the womb because it’s protected in its very own Garden of Eden.

The act of swaddling will help the infant re-create this awesome time in his life. Where he knows he has nothing to worry about. In the womb, he is feed, kept warm, and shielded by the mom. A swaddle blanket will hope to solve two of those fears.

Select your favorite Aden + Anais Swaddle BlanketsBuy now from AmazonFirst, newborns’ are not use to the cold environment when they enter the world. The body temperature averages 37 degrees Celsius and he comes into a world that averages 23 degrees Celcius. Additionally, newborns typically don’t have much body fat for insulation and this is especially true for premature babies. A tight swaddle around the baby will help insult the baby and keep him warm as he enters a cold world.

Second, the swaddle blanket will act like a shield to help reduce unfamiliar hands from roughing him up. He will not likely be pinch or feel too much pressure against his soft and vulnerable body. The protection continues as the swaddle blanket will help keep bacteria away from the body.  At this time, people might come and visit the newly delivered baby. Having him wrapped in a clean blanket will help keep bacteria off his skin.  The swaddle blanket then should be routinely swapped out and clean to reduce the likelihood of germs building up.

The most noticeable benefit for parents is seeing the baby cry less when he is swaddle. As the environment of the womb is re-created, the baby will remember the good times and will calm down from their agitated states.

Give swaddling a try if you haven’t already because the rewards and benefits are there for infants and parents who try.

 

 

Best Reason to Swaddle your newborn!

Posted by on February 10, 2012 Comments Off

The benefits of swaddling has been tested over time and recent studies by Dr. Rachel Moon at the Children’s National Medical Center in Washington DC, found “parents who routinely used swaddling were more likely to find it effective and to place their infant supine when swaddled.” (1)

Why is supine beneficial?

Supine position is placing the baby on his or her back for sleep. The benefits of supine sleeping position are not much of a debate and have been the recommend position since 1992 by US Health Agencies. All pediatricians agree, infants need to sleep in the supine position to reduce the outcome of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS). A study by Skadberg, Morild, & Markestad in 1998 (2) shows how supine position can greatly reduce occurrence of SIDS because the possibility of air passage ways (nose & mouth) from being blocked. Additionally, the supine position reduces pressure (from the babies own weight) applied to the lungs of the baby to prevent choking.

Supine position is the way parents need to put their baby to sleep. One method to train infants to sleep in this position is by swaddling. Parents always need to consider safety in raising a baby because they are yong and are at their most vulnerable stage. The best reason to swaddle is safety because it will train your newborn to sleep in the proper supine position. The supine position is the safest way to sleep and the chance your newborn would encounter SIDS will be dramatically decreased.

Definitions:

Supine position – baby’s back is against the mattress (sleeps on the back)

Prone position – baby’s back is facing up away from the mattress (sleeps on the belly)

Side position – baby’s back is perpendicular to the mattress (sleeps on the left or right side of body)

References:

(1) Swaddling: Will It Get Babies Onto Their Backs for Sleep?, R. Moon, etc, 2011

(2) Abandoning prone sleeping: Effect on the risk of sudden infant death syndrome, Skadberg, Morild, & Markestad, 1998