Beech Tree News Network

Room sharing, co-sleeping, and bed sharing are not the same thing. Room sharing is encouraged while both co-sleeping and bed sharing are unsafe.

Room Sharing is sleeping in the same area as your baby. Safe Sleep KY - Room SharingThis allows you to be able to see, hear, and/or touch your baby. It is important to understand that room sharing means sharing the same room as your infant, not the same sleeping surface.

Room sharing is highly encouraged because close proximity makes nighttime care easier on parents.

Co-Sleeping and Bed Sharing both refer to when you and your infant are sleeping on the same surface. This could be an adult bed, a couch, or any other shared surface.

Over half of the sleep-related deaths in Kentucky had bed sharing documented.

In 2013, 9 out of 10 sudden unexpected infant deaths had at least one sleep-related risk factor documented. What’s even more frightening? Bed sharing involves many of these sleep-related risk factors at once:

• Bed mattresses that are not made for babies
• Loose bedding or pillows that can cause a baby to choke, suffocate, or become trapped
• Babies becoming easily overheated
• Accidentally rolling over onto your baby in your sleep

Avoid these risks by room sharing instead of co-sleeping. Putting your baby in a crib, bassinet, or pack & play next to the bed are all safe options for staying close to your baby while they sleep.

“Study after study has shown that the safest place for a baby is in the parents’ room, on a different sleep surface. Bring the baby into the bed for cuddling and bonding and breastfeeding, but when the baby is asleep, put him back into the crib. I breastfed both babies, and it was really easy — the separation didn’t interfere at all… you can be in the same room, but you just don’t have to be on the same surface.”

– Dr. Rachel Moon, MD, is a pediatrician and SIDS researcher at Children’s National Medical Center in Washington, D.C.

Submitted by Butler County Child Fatality Team