Suffocation caused by Baby Pillows

Many parents have heard about the harm baby pillows may cause to their child. But many simply refuse to believe that baby pillows are harmful. Therefore something that is so innocent looking as a baby pillow is still victimizing many children today. What parents should know is that, the main cause of fatalities under that age is SIDS or sudden infant death syndrome. Suffocation, strangulation and rebreathing in children go hand in hand with SIDS. The baby pillow plays an important role in most of these cases.
Soft bedding, baby sleeping on his stomach and baby pillow causes strangulation and suffocation in children under the age of one. Aside from soft bedding and sleeping on their stomach, the baby pillow is as harmful. The baby pillow is one of the major causes of suffocation in younger children. This is because the baby pillow may be grasped by the baby and it may end up on his face. If the baby fails to remove the pillow from his face, he may get suffocated. In some cases, the baby may get too close to the baby, causing him to get suffocated.
Rebreathing is another leading cause of SIDS. Medically speaking it is when the baby breathes carbon dioxide or bad air, as what it is more commonly known. Rebreathing happens when the baby, instead of breathing oxygen, inhales the carbon dioxide he has exhaled. Rebreathing may be caused by loose sheets or beddings getting over his head. Many do not realize that rebreathing may also be caused by baby pillow. This may occur if the baby pillow gets too close to the face of the baby and the baby re breathes the carbon dioxide he has exhaled. If parents do not remove the baby pillow from the crib, the baby is still not safe from rebreathing even if the sheets and beddings are well secured.
To reduce the risk of SIDS doctors recommend to parents not to use baby pillows until the baby is out of his crib and is already on toddler bed. This is because unless the baby is on his toddler age, he is not ready for pillows. The baby do not need pillows to sleep comfortably so this is not really a problem. In fact, according to medical sleep experts, babies and even adults do not need pillows in order to get a good and comfortable sleep. Nevertheless, make sure that your child is already on his toddler bed and is old enough if you are really keen on introducing him to pillows. Otherwise, instead of introducing him to what you think is an additional comfort, you may just be introducing him to harm.