According to newest research, children should share a bed with their mommies until they are four. Namely, it is believed that sleeping with your child is crucial in helping the child get better rest and lower stress.
As seen on Inquisitr, Dr. Nils Bergman from the University of Cape Town, South Africa points out that proper development of healthy newborns was noted in two-day old babies who slept on the chest of their mothers during their first two weeks in their life. The infants who did not sleep with their mothers were found not to be as rested as the babies who did. Also, they experienced higher level of stress.
The Benefits of Sharing a Bed with Your Little One
The research suggests that mothers should sleep with their babies due to the fact that sleeping separately will make it much more difficult for them to create a strong bond. Moreover, some experts also believe that sleeping separately can lead to poor brain development and higher risk of bad behavior in the child as he/she grows.
However, mothers are often being advised by pediatricians and doctors not to sleep with their babies due to numerous cases of mothers accidentally rolling over their babies and smothering them and leading to sudden death. But, Bergman emphasizes that bed death in babies is not necessarily associated with the mother’s presence; it has more to do with other contributing factors like smoking, using large pillows, dangerous toys, alcohol consumption, etc.
The study supporting co-sleeping of mommies and babies showed that the heart of the babies experienced three time less stress than the babies who slept alone. The brains of the babies who slept on their own were less likely to differentiate between the active and quiet types of sleep. These babies experienced poor quality of sleep and only some of them had quiet sleep. These transitions are pivotal for proper brain development and growth, the study emphasizes.
All in all, The National Childbirth Trusts is not against mothers sleeping with their infants as long as the parents are not obese, too tired, drinking, using drugs, and smoking.
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