More than a quarter of breastfeeding moms say they've fallen asleep during the act, putting infants at risk for SIDS Sofas and plush chairs may be a riskier spot in this regard than beds Anything moms can do to get good sleep and avoid daytime drowsiness will help FRIDAY, Nov. 8, 2024 (HealthDay News) -- A new study finds that a quarter of (no doubt exhausted) breastfeeding moms admit to falling asleep while their baby was feeding, a moment that can raise risks for infant suffocation. That's because whenever a baby falls asleep in an area that's got soft cushions and cramped surroundings -- as can happen in sofas, easy chairs and beds -- the risk of sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS) rises, explained a team from the University of Virginia (UVA) in Charlottesville.
In more than 80% of cases described by the mothers, the woman had no intention of dosing off, it just happened. “While falling asleep while feeding young infants is not in itself too surprising, what is very alarming is that the majority of mothers did not plan to fall asleep, so the sleep space was potentially unsafe for the baby while both slept,” said researcher Dr. Fern Hauck .
She's a safe-sleep expert at UVA Health and the UVA School of Medicine. “This highlights the need for parents to be educated about the potential risk of falling asleep while feeding and to plan for that possibility by making the space around the baby as safe as possible," Hauck said in a university news release. "That would include.