What to do about SIDS
Some of the basic advice for avoiding SIDS in babies is to position them on their back while sleeping, take out any toys from the crib, and don’t over-bundle or blanket them while sleeping, in addition to not smoking during pregnancy. A recent study, however, in the Journal of the American Medical Association shows that some babies may be predisposed to SIDS than others. This is based on the serotonin levels a child has and, according to the article under the link, babies with lower serotonin levels are more at risk for SIDS than those with normal levels.
Serotonin, associated with depression and other mental illnesses to the average person, regulates a baby’s sleep patterns, heart rate, and breathing. Babies who experienced SIDS were found to have levels of this chemical 26 percent lower than babies who died from ordinary causes, according to the linked article above. Additionally, the production of this chemical in babies is associated with enzyme tryptophan hydroxylase. This enzyme was also found to be lower – 22 percent – in babies with SIDS than those who died of other causes. In either case, serotonin acts as an alarm system for a baby who is experiencing a breathing obstruction. Without it, a baby can’t tell if he or she is being asphyxiated.
One potential remedy for babies with lower serotonin levels, according to an Australian study, is massage. Although you’ll need to find your child’s serotonin levels first, massage and human contact can boost serotonin levels in adults and children. At the moment, however, this Australian study is relatively new and results aren’t clear cut. While massage can reduce risks of depression when a baby becomes an adult, the findings in regards to serotonin are sure to bring about an approach to increasing the chemical’s levels in babies.
Toy R Us, Babies R Us do Baby Products Trade-In
If you’re looking to get rid of old baby products, giving them to Toys R Us or Babies R Us might be better than your local thrift store. Currently, and up to February 20, all Toys R Us and Babies R Us stores are taking back old baby products and giving those a 25-percent discount on new baby items. According to the linked article above, baby items shouldn’t be given as hand-me-downs, particularly car seats, strollers, baby toys, and cribs, as the wear on the product can make them less safe the second time around. While this can be a case not to buy baby products from a thrift store, it means that you can trade them in for new baby products.
Toys R Us and Babies R Us aren’t the only ones who’ve recently had a trade-in program. As we saw a few weeks ago, many baby products, particularly strollers and cribs, have been recalled since the fall, in large amounts by well-known brands. Target, as well saw, was taking back these recalled baby products. Toys R Us and Babies R Us will do the same thing if a product has been recalled. While you can’t exchange directly a recalled stroller for a new one, trading in a recalled one will give you a discount on a new model.
Some of the recalled brands have included Maclaren strollers, but other brands of strollers and drop-side cribs have also been recalled. If you’re considering doing a trade in, check to see if your product has been recalled and, if you purchased it from a Toys R Us location or a Target, you’ll be able to return the recalled product. Otherwise, if you have older baby item hanging around, trading them in for new ones will be beneficial to your children.
Giving Aid to Babies and Children in Haitian Earthquake Aftermath
Although the news has been a-buzz with stories of American missionaries taking Haitian children and celebrities ranging from Anderson Cooper to Tila Tequila planning, supposedly, to adopt babies from Haiti, the most significant and pending effort concerning children in Haiti isn’t adopting them to American parents but helping those in the country. Most children won’t be adopted or enter the United States by immigration, and those parents with children in Haiti need adequate supplies to help their children. As adults don’t have enough food and water or adequate shelter, how will they be able to protect any young children and babies they need to take care of until Haiti rebuilds itself?
One organization, the First Congregational United Church of Christ in Dickinson and New England has been preparing care packages or kits to send to Haiti for this purpose. This includes baby-specific kits, as well as those for schools and general cleanup. According to the linked article above, the kits for babies include six cloth diapers, two shirts, wash cloths, two sleepers, two diaper pins, a sweater or sweatshirt, and blankets. As 54 percent of the population in Haiti is children, such kits are needed for parents needing to take care of their children in the aftermath.
This group of churches has been donating such supplies to make these kits. If you don’t belong to the group of churches or live in the area, other relief efforts concerning children in Haiti can be found on national and international levels. UNICEF, for example, is trying to stop the proliferation of increase of selling and trafficking children in Haiti, while smaller organizations, even aid efforts through your local middle school may be raising funds specifically to aid children in Haiti.
Sign Language for Babies
If you’re a parent, do you struggle to understand your child’s wants and needs? What if someone told you they could get your child communicating before he or she turns one? Most parents, already busy with many tasks at hand, would probably dismiss this as a scam, much like the notion that Baby Einstein videos can increase a child’s IQ and verbal skills. But, communication isn’t always about what a child or adult says verbally, especially as children under two years of age don’t have developed muscles for speech yet.
One option, as one woman found out, is to teach your child sign language. Is there a certain method for teaching it? Shira Fogel thinks so and has been teaching it to other parents in her Baby Sign Language 101 course. Fogel claims that, by teaching her daughter sign language, her daughter was able to speak in full sentences by 18 months. If you decide to teach your child sign language, what are some of the benefits?
Fogel, according to the article, mentions that giving your child a way to communicate will lessen the tantrums. Often, tantrums result from miscommunication between the parent and the child. The child wants or needs something but doesn’t know how to express it beyond pointing in most cases, and the parent, observing this, has to decode the child’s language which, in many cases, leads to not understanding that the child is gesturing at or trying to say. The child then gets frustrated and throws a tantrum. With sign language for babies, it appears, children start signing for singular words to communicate with their parents.
Although this is relatively new, is sign language for babies open for use in the future? While all children develop differently, those who can grasp onto sign language will find a way to communicate their needs to their parents better.