>After reading this article, I felt myself wondering what exactly they
>discovered..
>Is it just me, or does the last line of the conclusions say:
>"There is no evidence that bed sharing is hazardous for infants of parents
>who do not smoke"

I think this article is a good one, because it looks at the circumstances
surrounding bed sharing in a way that other studies don't, or don't do
quite so thoroughly. I don't think the study discourages co-sleeping at all
- if anything, the reverse.

It is disappointing that the study did not look at mode of feeding.

I had to do a news report (for the day job) on this study and spoke to one
of the research team, whom I know very well - Martin Ward Platt, and good
paed and very bf-friendly. He has been a good ally in chaging hospital
policies to make them more bf-friendly.  He was very reluctant to translate
the study into saying 'don't bedshare if you smoke' and pointed out that
bed sharing has a lot going for it - though this was not the point of the
study which looked specifically at the risks of SIDS.

Much of the study confirms or reinforces what we know - though the emphasis
is on parental smoking and not just maternal. It is the first study I know
of which says that even this difference disappears after 14 weeks of age.
It is also the first good study that looks at sofa sleeping.  This emerged
as they did the study, and Martin says he wants more work done on type of
sofa, whether the parent had been drinking, and so on. But the heightened
risk of SIDS - which he thinks may mean,  in these circumstances,
asphyxiation - is so closely associated with sofa sleeping, he feels it is
safe to advise parents not to sleep on a sofa with their baby.

You can see my news report and the response of our cot death charity, The
Foundation for the Study of Infant Deaths, at http://www/feelgooduk.co.uk
- click on Update or News.

Heather Welford Neil
NCT bfc Newcastle upon Tyne UK

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