Bed Sharing and Not So NICE Guidelines

A couple of days ago I was leisurely leafing through the newspaper while having breakfast (for the first time since... well, I can't even remember!) when I came across this article in The Guardian. Basically, the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) here in the UK has drafted guidelines against co-sleeping in the first year of a baby's life (an increase from their 2006 guidelines), claiming that bed sharing increases the risk of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS).

I found this beautiful image online but couldn't find the artist's name -
please let me know if you have more information.

Before going any further, you should know that Ruben has maybe used his Arms Reach Co-sleeper twice since he was born. D and I actually bought a king size bed when we moved into our current place with the thought that we hoped to fill it with children. So yes, we co-sleep with our son. Early on, I  also learned to feed Ruben in the side lying position and I haven't looked back ever since. (Again, I am grateful to Kate Evans and her other wonderful book for showing me the way: "The Food of Love: Your Formula for Successful Breastfeeding.") Sleeping with Ruben and knowing how to breastfeed while side lying has meant a lot more resting, cuddling, and general well being for our whole family. It's also meant that D and I have gotten creative with our "sexy time," which has been fun (more on that in this article by the Analytical Armadillo, which I have quoted in the past.)

OK, with that in mind, you won't be surprised to hear that I was outraged by NICE's guideline to avoid co-sleeping in the first year - I just wanted to scream out the windows that they were wrong! Luckily there are more centered and better informed people around me who have taken the time to respond to the new guidelines with equal passion, minus the crazy screaming out of the windows. One of the most compelling arguments has been that mothers all around the world will end up bed sharing at some point, and the most important thing is that this is done intelligently, knowing what the potential risk factors are to the baby (surprisingly, falling off the bed is not the major one!)

For all those of you who are interested in the topic, or are worried by the suggested new guidelines, here is a selection of my favorite articles, posts, studies and leaflets on co-sleeping ...


Blog Posts and Articles:

The Hackney Doula: "Lessons in Co-Sleeping."
A personal account mixed with lots of good links and research on co-sleeping.

The Newubury Doula: "10 Things I Wish NICE Would Say."
10 core pieces of information on co-sleeping in an easy to read format.

Sarah Ockwell-Smith: "Bedsharing and SIDS - Why We Have It All Wrong."
In which she calls the Carpenter et al study a "scaremongering piece of 'science'." This is the study which has heavily influenced the NICE draft according to the Hackney Doula.

Milli Hill: "Co-sleeping: Are New Mums Being Given the Right Advice?"
A great piece on the problems with the underlying assumptions behind co-sleeping.


Online resources:

NCT: "NCT response to NICE draft recommendations to tackle Sudden Infant Death Syndrome."

ISISonline - for evidence based information on infant sleep.

UNICEF - "Caring for Your Baby Leaflet" and the study on breastfeeding and co-sleeping.

Dr. Sears - "Safe Co-sleeping Habits."

Bump!

I am a 31 years old Mamma living in Oxford, UK, and all around me it seems like women are getting pregnant, birthing babies, or, at the very least, thinking about it. If you have spoken to me in the last 8.5 months (or since Ruben has made his appearance into my world), you have a generally good idea of how invested I have become in the world of pregnancy, birth, breastfeeding and child development. And since I am a hungry reader and a passionate lady, during our latest conversation my interests probably translated into a flood of information. (I would like to take this opportunity to apologize to those new moms and moms to be to whom I have "offered" a long list of books, websites, blogs and organizations without necessarily being asked. Thank you for bearing with me.) I am starting this blog in order to get some of my thoughts and suggestions out there without having to overwhelm every other person I speak to. 

The title of this blog, "Learning With Ruben", is  in recognition of the fact that mothering is very much a work in progress,  a wild experiment that is the result of my interaction with the Unique Mr. Ruben. I cannot imagine I would do nearly as much reading and learning if this were my second, or eighth, child, so I am also paying tribute to the incredible work and learning curve that takes place for a first time mother. I hope some of the excitement and amazement that comes with my first parenting adventure will seep into my writing and inspire those reading (again, as opposed to flooding anyone within ear shot with the expanding galaxy of baby centered information within my brain.)

My first entry is dedicated to the lovely author Kate Evans, who has just come out with what I consider the BEST illustrated book on pregnancy: "Bump, how to make, grow, and birth a baby."  If you are thinking of having children, or have recently found out you are pregnant, this is my #1, top of the list, book suggestion for you. I enjoyed "Bump" so much that when I read it earlier this year I dreamt it could be used as a text book for Sex Education all around the world. It's only written in English so far (and some of its sections are specific to the UK and the National Healthcare Sytem), but for the most part it could work internationally. The beautiful comics and the honest humor with which Evans writes are definitely accessible to a young adult audience, and the information she shares is offered in a format that is easy to digest and multi-layered at the same time.

"Bump" covers everything from how to get to know your body for conception and contraception (Evans does a great job of illustrating the relatively simple Fertility Awareness Method), through the physiology behind getting pregnant, birth (both medicalized and not), miscarriage, abortion, and many other topics. The book is visually delightful, informative, and often hilarious. Yet while Evans brings lightness and humor to a very charged topic, her book is also based on up to date research. This means that while "Bump" is evidence based, it is very personal in tone and easy to read. Check out a chapter from the book here (although the preview chapter is of a healthy birth without intervention, in "Bump" Evans covers many different scenarios, including Emergency Cesareans and the use of pain killers during labour.) If this all sounds good, check it out!

Ruben calls, this must be it for now! I look forward to the next entry. In fact, if there's any particular topic that you would like me to focus on or if you have any questions, please get in touch!

With all good wishes,
B