When is a pillow safe for a baby

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Here's one dad's take on how to raise boys to be emotionally healthy. Parenting isn't easy, and parental burnout can make it even harder to take care of yourself and your kids. Since you, as an adult, sleep with a pillow and probably like to deck your bed out with throw pillows, too , you might feel the need to provide your infant with a pillow to lay their head on.

More than that, sleeping with a pillow in their crib can be dangerous for your baby. The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends that your baby sleep with nothing in their crib. That means no pillows, no crib bumpers, no top sheet, no blankets, no toys…. We could go on, but you get the idea. For the safest sleep, a baby needs a firm mattress. For example, the Newton Baby Crib Mattress is much more comfortable than traditional mattresses, which are rock-hard and wrapped in plastic.

In fact, our crib mattress is independently tested and certified for low chemical emissions to Greenguard's Gold Standard. The other advantage is that the mattress is entirely washable — from cover to core! Bye-bye mold, bacteria, and allergens! Pillows could pose new risks as your baby becomes a toddler.

Some enterprising tots may use pillows to boost themselves up and climb or fall out of the crib! So, I recommend only using a blanket in the crib after the first birthday and waiting to use a pillow until your child transitions from the crib to a bed When you do decide your toddler is ready for a pillow, keep in mind that the big fluffy pillows adorning your own bed are probably not be the right fit!

Instead, look for a small, flat, firm pillow that cradles and supports the head without causing your toddler to strain. And then you can rest easier, too, knowing that your lovebug is sleeping safely.

Like many new parents, my husband and I fretted about sleep struggles when our son, Zayn, was born. But our top concern was sleep safety and protecting him from sudden infant death syndrome SIDS , the unexplained death of a seemingly healthy baby less than a year old. But once he reached a year old and was no longer considered to be at risk for SIDS, we definitely eased off a bit.

Soon Zayn was cuddling with his old swaddle blankets instead of being wrapped up in them, and a rotating cast of favourite stuffies would join him in his crib each night. Would it be safe, we wondered, to introduce a real pillow?