>I can see this will be a problem - most parents put their babies down and
>don't really know when they fall asleep -  they put them down and expect
>some fussing, crying, then finally baby falls asleep.  on his back.

Maybe...

>I know this is not exactly breastfeeding (exclusively) related, but we are
>the ones seeing moms (at least I do) in their homes, can see what the home
>situation is like and can give them suggestions on safe places and times to
>play...

>Perhaps this is mostly a problem with low-income moms like the ones I see,

Jeanette, I do consider that this is something that I can help with,
especially as a private practice LC who works in the home.  I have had moms
and dads afraid to let their baby sleep on their chests--skin to
skin--because the baby would be sleeping on her stomach. And these parents
are highly educated professionals, who are just as uncertain about babies
as anyone else.

We can see that just having bill boards with "Back To Sleep" on them is not
adequate education. With babies learning to roll over long before the
danger of SIDS is past, the practice of putting babies in a crib awake, and
expecting them to follow the bill board advice is fraught with danger. And
if the baby has no muscles nor incentive to roll over, that is reason for
concern too.

And, if we want them to crawl (a topic that has been debated on Lactnet
before), it isn't likely that a baby who is always on her back will one day
make a big flip and land on all fours to practice crawling maneuvers.

Of course, _we_ know that if a baby is sleeping beside her mother, she will
be sleeping on her back.  But we still need to instruct parents of what the
dangers of sleeping on the stomach, isolated, in a crib, down the hall are
all about, so that they can understand that a baby playing on her stomach
on the floor is not in danger of dying suddenly.

With the over-dependence on "experts", parents have lost touch with common
sense. And quick lessons based on fear don't allow room for good judgement
or asking questions.

Pat Gima, IBCLC
Milwaukee, Wisconsin

             ***********************************************
The LACTNET mailing list is powered by L-Soft's renowned
LISTSERV(R) list management software together with L-Soft's LSMTP(TM)
mailer for lightning fast mail delivery. For more information, go to:
http://www.lsoft.com/LISTSERV-powered.html