Date:    Fri, 25 Oct 2002 04:44:20 EDT
From:    Gonneke van Veldhuizen <[log in to unmask]>
Subject: Re: swaddling

In einer eMail vom 24-10-02 23:05:39 West-Europa (zomertijd) schreibt
[log in to unmask]:


> The point of all this is that different things seem to work for
> different families. Swaddling can be helpful. There's no reason that
> swaddling has to keep the baby's hands away from his face. In fact, it
> can help keep them close so the baby can find them more easily, which
is
> especially helpful for premature infants.
>

I think that there have to be made some distinctions between ways
parents
swaddle. In The Netherlands it is becoing a hype to use a certain method
of
swaddling in which babies arms and legs are stretched, as are the
fingers and
toes. Arms are stretched in line with the body, fingers pointing to the
feet.
Then 2 pieces of cloth are used to fixate the baby is this position.
When
wrapped up, baby is not able to move than his facial muscles. There even
is a
special preformed swaddlingdevice for sale that can be closed with
velcro
strips. In different sizes for small babies up to toddlers.
I see this as child abuse.
It is an technique advised by workers inmany well baby clinics as a way
to
make babies sleep in the rythme parents and hcp's think babies ought to
sleep
(preferable repeated 3 hopur stretches a day.
And in The Netherlands children are suppose to be in bed for the night
at 7
or 8 in the evening with an evening feed at 11.00 or so for the small
ones up
till some months and preferably sleep through the night till 6 or 7 next
morning. Ofcourse most babies do not fit this schedule. Swaddling forces
them
to do so.

Warmly greeting,

Gonneke

Dear Gonneke,

That sounds a bit excessive, although I have to say that the arms need
to be straight at first (the always flex a little after the wrapping is
done) and it is impossibel to make a baby's fingers point to the feet
(they always flex them).  Finally, swaddling cannot "force" a baby to
sleep...I find that at most it adds 1-1 1/2 hours of sleep by having a
baby sleep through an extra sleep cycle.

Warm regards,

Harvey

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