The strict requirements sound fit for hannibal lecter or a vampire. But no, it's actually for babies.
Safety requirements change over time but maternal instinct and proper supervision don't.
When I was expecting my first child I was super excited about the prospect of buying new stuff. In that 'decorate the nursery' kind of way.
When I walked into the baby store that excitement quickly turned into dread. so many products were shouting at me.
'BUY ME.'
'You'll need me to make your child SMART. You'll need me to keep your child SAFE.
There was so many products aimed at babies, newborns, 6 months, 12 months. I tried to rationalise it all. What did I really need? I then categorised them into 'nice to haves' and 'essentials'.
'I shouldn't buy this book (number 30)' I thought to myself. How much can a 6 week old baby really read or understand?
As the Mum guilt ensues.. the credit card comes out.
Take my money.
I then envisioned his future graduation ceremony. His high school teacher taking the stand..
'Well.. Sam has graduated with an ATAR of 99 BUT he didn't reach his 6 week milestone because his mother didn't buy him 'A very hungry caterpillar'.
I sniggered at the thought. Maybe there is too much pressure on mothers. For a job that is severely undervalued economically there sure is a lot of things that fit within the umbrella of it, including to be teachers, counsellors, nurses, cleaners, nutritionists, clowns, bakers and taxi drivers. And the standard is assessed at a very high level. The catch? no pay cheque. Reward? hopefully healthy balanced adults but no guarantee of that.
Since the 1980s, much is similar in the way of child rearing but SIDS awareness became the forefront of childrearing in the late 1980s. There are recommendations passed around regarding infant sleeping. Strict adherence is a must. No parent wants to take any chances. Baby must sleep on their back. No blankets. No cot bumpers. No stuffed toys. No pillows.
The strict requirements sound fit for hannibal lecter or a vampire. But no, it's actually for babies.
Jokes aside, the recommendations are not backed up without research, as the SIDS rate has reduced dramatically since the late 1980s.
The biggest fear for most parents is to lose their baby. This is our primal fear. As parents we don't want to lose our children. That fear has been used to market many products to new parents to keep their babies safe... or to give them the illusion of safety.
One of these products is the 'baby cocoon'. This is a mattress which is placed on top of the cot with a strap to hold the baby in. The idea behind this product is to stop your baby from rolling around during sleep, falling onto their face and suffocating. These mattresses range between 300-400 dollars. Don't get me wrong they can be useful in that newborn group. But it's really an illusion of safety. What's not an illusion? That it's a waste of money. Pretty soon your baby will know how to roll over both ways and just because they are strapped in a mattress doesn't mean that they can't roll over.
The second product is the baby monitor alarms that go off when your baby is deprived of oxygen. Do they give you a piece of mind? sure. Do they go off unexpectedly and by error? Yes.
These products give us the illusion of control as parents. We are shielding our kids from the outside world and the dangers inside our home.
But within every supposedly 'safe' product there is a faulty one. Choice recently came out with a safety report on commonly used baby walkers and portacots. With the portacots the results were unfavourable - 10 out of 12 were considered to be unsafe. Walkers were not recommended because of the chance of the baby crashing it into things. While it is certainly shocking that these products are on the market at all. There is no substitute for parental supervision. Or maternal instinct. Or even, common sense.
Don't get me wrong the manufacturers and suppliers should definitely display proper warnings on their products and consumer watchdogs should be pulling faulty products off the shelf, but the harsh truth is, our babies are never going to be 100% safe. They can be safer. But accidents can and do happen.
We should be mindful that certain products are aimed at our fears. Safety requirements change over time but maternal instinct and proper supervision don't. So put the credit card away and think about what you really need. Don't be a sucker and always read the labels. If your baby is alive and well at the end of the day you are doing a good job ( a baby's happiness is optional and tends to fluctuate). You're doing fine.
Safety requirements change over time but maternal instinct and proper supervision don't.
When I was expecting my first child I was super excited about the prospect of buying new stuff. In that 'decorate the nursery' kind of way.
When I walked into the baby store that excitement quickly turned into dread. so many products were shouting at me.
'BUY ME.'
'You'll need me to make your child SMART. You'll need me to keep your child SAFE.
There was so many products aimed at babies, newborns, 6 months, 12 months. I tried to rationalise it all. What did I really need? I then categorised them into 'nice to haves' and 'essentials'.
'I shouldn't buy this book (number 30)' I thought to myself. How much can a 6 week old baby really read or understand?
As the Mum guilt ensues.. the credit card comes out.
Take my money.
I then envisioned his future graduation ceremony. His high school teacher taking the stand..
'Well.. Sam has graduated with an ATAR of 99 BUT he didn't reach his 6 week milestone because his mother didn't buy him 'A very hungry caterpillar'.
I sniggered at the thought. Maybe there is too much pressure on mothers. For a job that is severely undervalued economically there sure is a lot of things that fit within the umbrella of it, including to be teachers, counsellors, nurses, cleaners, nutritionists, clowns, bakers and taxi drivers. And the standard is assessed at a very high level. The catch? no pay cheque. Reward? hopefully healthy balanced adults but no guarantee of that.
Since the 1980s, much is similar in the way of child rearing but SIDS awareness became the forefront of childrearing in the late 1980s. There are recommendations passed around regarding infant sleeping. Strict adherence is a must. No parent wants to take any chances. Baby must sleep on their back. No blankets. No cot bumpers. No stuffed toys. No pillows.
The strict requirements sound fit for hannibal lecter or a vampire. But no, it's actually for babies.
Jokes aside, the recommendations are not backed up without research, as the SIDS rate has reduced dramatically since the late 1980s.
The biggest fear for most parents is to lose their baby. This is our primal fear. As parents we don't want to lose our children. That fear has been used to market many products to new parents to keep their babies safe... or to give them the illusion of safety.
One of these products is the 'baby cocoon'. This is a mattress which is placed on top of the cot with a strap to hold the baby in. The idea behind this product is to stop your baby from rolling around during sleep, falling onto their face and suffocating. These mattresses range between 300-400 dollars. Don't get me wrong they can be useful in that newborn group. But it's really an illusion of safety. What's not an illusion? That it's a waste of money. Pretty soon your baby will know how to roll over both ways and just because they are strapped in a mattress doesn't mean that they can't roll over.
The second product is the baby monitor alarms that go off when your baby is deprived of oxygen. Do they give you a piece of mind? sure. Do they go off unexpectedly and by error? Yes.
These products give us the illusion of control as parents. We are shielding our kids from the outside world and the dangers inside our home.
But within every supposedly 'safe' product there is a faulty one. Choice recently came out with a safety report on commonly used baby walkers and portacots. With the portacots the results were unfavourable - 10 out of 12 were considered to be unsafe. Walkers were not recommended because of the chance of the baby crashing it into things. While it is certainly shocking that these products are on the market at all. There is no substitute for parental supervision. Or maternal instinct. Or even, common sense.
Don't get me wrong the manufacturers and suppliers should definitely display proper warnings on their products and consumer watchdogs should be pulling faulty products off the shelf, but the harsh truth is, our babies are never going to be 100% safe. They can be safer. But accidents can and do happen.
We should be mindful that certain products are aimed at our fears. Safety requirements change over time but maternal instinct and proper supervision don't. So put the credit card away and think about what you really need. Don't be a sucker and always read the labels. If your baby is alive and well at the end of the day you are doing a good job ( a baby's happiness is optional and tends to fluctuate). You're doing fine.
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