Is there an age limit after which it is okay to put a baby in a waterbed?

I had (actually, still have) a waterbed. When my babies were very young, I
would sleep in a regular bed with them, but I really missed my waterbed. So
I waited until they were able to lift their heads up well (probably by age
three months, I would guess) and then brought them into the waterbed with
me. I even did some experimenting with lying them face down (mine all slept
on their backs) to see if they could move their faces clear. They did. I
also tried stuffing them down the side, between the water-filled mattress
and the wooden side of the bed, to see if they could get their heads clear,
and they could. So I slept with them in the waterbed (and only heard of the
research advising against it when my youngest was about eight months old).

I do think the bed needs to be kept quite full, so that it is not too soft.
And I never leave a baby alone in any kind of bed - if I get up, baby comes
with me.

I have now heard reports of babies suffocating in waterbeds, but haven't
seen the actual research or the cases. What age were the babies? Were they
alone in the bed? Were the waterbeds filled properly? Are there ways of
making this work, or was I just lucky with mine?

Teresa Pitman

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