A new study has found that more than half of the occurrences of Cot Death happen when the baby is sharing a bed with his or her parent

The research from Bristol and Warwick University claims the safest place for baby to sleep for the first six months is in a cot next to the parent’s bed. We completely agree with this statement and it is something we have been recommending to parents since the start of this blog over a year ago.

However, when the tabloids published this story they did not go into enough detail. On closer inspection of the study it is apparent that the extremely high correlation between cot death and co sleeping was observed in a high-risk group. This high-risk group consisted of young, socially-deprived mothers who smoked and many of whom had taken alcohol or drugs at the time of the tragic cot death. In the group studied, there were also many cases where the mother had fallen asleep on the sofa with her baby.
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We have covered Controlled Crying (also known as The Ferber Method) in some detail in previous posts.  However, following a recent comment on the site I thought an extra post was needed to discuss how nap times and co-sleeping fit in with the technique.

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My personal view is that for the first six months, the safest place for baby to sleep is in a cot in the parents’ room. However, the purpose of this blog is to give parents all the necessary information for both sides of the argument and allow them to make an informed decision about what’s best for their family. Therefore, I will try to objectively weigh up the advantages and disadvantages of sharing a bed with your baby.

Advantages

Not only is it far more convenient for breast-feeding mothers but research has shown that babies and mothers sleep much better when they share a bed, with solo baby sleepers being shown to spend four times longer crying each night (McKenna, J., et al 1994). It has also been shown that bed sharing babies have more stable temperatures (C. Richard et al 1996), regular heart rhythms, and fewer long pauses in breathing compared to babies who sleep alone (T. Field 1995). This means baby sleeps physiologically safer.

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