At the recent LCGB Conference in Norwich England, Dr Helen Ball Senior
Lecturer in Anthropology and Director of the Parent-Infant Sleep Lab
University of Durham, spoke on social sleeping from a historical point of
view. She came up with some very sobering quotes. Until the 19th century
(and still in the vast majority of the world) it was viewed as natural and
normal, 'the bosom is the natural pillow for the baby'. Then in the 20th
century with 'scientific' baby care, instinct was subjugated to 'expert'
opinion.
The Glaxo Baby Book said 'The place where baby most likes to sleep is the
place where he must not be'. and John Watson in 1920 believed that no child
could have too little affection!!!! Truby King prefered solitary confinment
for babies and all the advice to put baby into own room was based on
personal opinion not research.
In the light of this and bearing in mind that in the vast majority of the
world where social sleeping is the norm and cot death almost unheard
of...someone's got it wrong!
Look at the UNICEF UK BFI site for a good response to the Lancet Carpenter
study www.babyfriendly.org.uk

Hilary
Somerset, England

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