Argument for Co-Sleeping

The issue of co-sleeping is often a hot debate. There are those who are adamantly opposed to it, saying that it will "spoil" the child or "you'll never get that child to sleep alone!". Then there are those who believe it's a fad, "we didn't do this 25 years ago". Finally, there are those of us who practice it wholeheartedly.


IT'S JUST A FAD

A fad? Think again. Yes, we were doing it 25 years ago and it's been the natural way since Adam and Eve. In most of the world, sharing sleep is standard practice. As well, it wasn't until the 19th century that the practice of giving a child is own room or bed was practiced here in the western world.


NATURAL HEALTH BENEFITS

As with any practice, we can look at the benefits (or lack thereof) to prove whether it is natural or not. Natural practices which we were designed to do usually have a wealth of benefits, and the unnatural has repurcussions and pitfalls. What about co-sleeping?

Co-sleeping (or sleep-sharing as I prefer to call it):

-promotes physiological regulation-
the baby's heart and breathing patterns follow the mother's. If the baby's breathing increases then the mother's slows down and the baby follows suit. If baby's heart rate begins to slow, mother's increases and baby's heart follows suit. It's a sort of mother and baby "dance" all night. These facts teamed with the fact that breastfeeding places the child on his side, rather than on the stomach, decreases the risk of SIDS.

-increases the success rate of breastfeeding.
Even the very conservative American Academy of Pediatrics admits to the advantages of co-sleeping to the breastfeeding relationship. Mothers who co-sleep breastfeed an average of twice as long as mothers who do not sleep with their children.

-Better Response
Babies who sleep with mother receive responses to their cries more quickly due to the proximity of the mother and child. Mother is already there at the first whimper rather than the child having to work itself into full crying mode to get attention and have his needs met.

-Promotes Sensitivity
Sharing sleep creates a stronger bond not only between mother and child but father and child. This bond is seen in the day time with these fathers and their children more than with non-co-sleeping families.

-No bedtime struggles
Mother or father is always there parenting the child to sleep and therefore "bedtime" or "the dark" are not scary. By the time the child moves into his own room, bedtime has been instilled in the child as a positive time.


THE MYTH OF SUFFOCATION

The crib industry tells us that each year 60 children die from sleeping in adult beds.

What they don't tell you is that many of these deaths are children sleeping alone in adult beds. What they also do not say is that of the 1000 child-suffocations each year, 50 of those are in cribs and 16 in playpens. I say the numbers speak for themselves.

When considering co-sleeping, the immense benefits of health must surely be considered. A healthier child; easier parenting; a closer relationship. All of these facts really do point to shared sleeping as not only a healthier choice but better for mom and dad. There really is no debate.

by Michelle Cannon
Owner of Primal Mommies