WHY SWADDLING IT'S IMPORTANT
DISCOVER THE
MANY BENEFITS
OF SWADDLING
YOUR BABY
Swaddling is the ancient art of wrapping newborns into a thin piece of cloth to reduce their limbs movement. There are many advantages related to swaddling but as for every other infant-related task, it has to be done the proper way. Some people still argue wether it's necessary to swaddle their baby or not but it’s comforting to see that the majority of parents are better educated nowadays and well aware of the many benefits that swaddling imply. However if you are one of those apprehensive Moms that still see swaddling as a form of 'constriction' to your baby, let me explain you why you couldn't be farther from the true…
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1. YOUR BABY FIRST HABITAT WAS YOUR WOMB...a very tight space.
Swaddling recreate for your baby that nice feeling of been safe and cuddled up as if he is still inside your belly and it’s the most comforting feeling for all newborns. So if you think you are doing your baby a favour by not swaddling him, you are actually accomplishing the exact opposite result. Especially during those first weeks of life, babies feel much more unsettled when left with arms and legs dangling around, (try to watch your baby’s body language).
It is well recognised by pediatricians all over the world that swaddled babies are much calmer and can achieve a deeper state of sleep, which is key factor to promote good development.
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2. Swaddled babies sleep deeper and for longer
This is because swaddling significantly reduce the Startle reflex. If you don’t swaddle your baby he will startle himself constantly waking up more often than you wish for at random times and he will never be able to reach deep sleep, (crucial for his development). He will be constantly disrupted by the Startle reflex. As per consequence you will never be able to create a healthy sleeping pattern.
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3. Safety..This is another big reason to swaddle your baby. It is well known to never leave loose blankets inside your baby’s crib/basket. That is extremely dangerous since it may accidentally end up covering your baby’s face with risk of suffocation. This apply also for loose swaddles. I saw many times parents trying to swaddle their baby the wrong way. So be aware that even the type of swaddle you use and the level of tightness of your wrapping can have a huge impact in how successfully you are swaddling. Swaddling will keep your baby warm as if he has a blanket on top of him but without the risks that a loose piece of fabric would involve. After testing hundreds of baby products myself, there is only one type of swaddle I always recommend to parents: Halo swaddle. Halo is by far the easies swaddle for new parents to use even if you’ve never swaddled before. It’s a super simple sleeping sack structure with easy velcro closure fabrics wings. This will prevent the baby from unsaddling himself during night movements. With Halo there are no loose pieces of fabric dangling around your baby’s face and you can be reassured to properly swaddle your baby from the very first use. Babies have the tendency to unswaddle themselves during their sleep which is very disruptive and pretty unsafe when the swaddle end up covering their face. This is mostly common when using muslins as swaddle prop, (which is literally a squared piece of cloth). Unfortunately this way of swaddling it’s still very much used by many families, mostly because it’s what they’ve been taught by nurses and midwifes at the hospital. This is a bit of a problem to my opinion since it create confusion to new parents. So allow me to clarify this point for you…while swaddling with a muslin can be useful during your baby’s first week of life, (when he is still very weak and barely moving), you will quickly notice that it will not hold your baby’s movements as he will grow, (and they grow fast!) Swaddling with a muslin to me it’s very close to not swaddling at all, if not worse since it can become quite unsafe. On the contrary, with Halo you’ll be confident your baby won’t unwrap himself no matter how much he moves, and noting will end up covering his face. Another reason why I love Halo swaddles so much it’s because when the time’ll come and your baby will start rolling, (at about 3 months of age), you’ll be able to gradually transition him out of the swaddle with the ‘half swaddling’ system, (one harm in, one harm out), an excellent technique to gently get your baby used to sleeping sacks. This is impossible to achieve with a simple muslin cloth, since your baby will outgrow it very fast and you will not have the same hold you need to keep your baby’s arms tucked in, ending up with your baby unswaddling himself and disrupting his sleep all the times, (trust me on this one!)
To give you more options, another pretty good swaddle that I recently discovered and that I can recommend you it’s the Happiest baby swaddle, which is pretty similar to the Halo in terms of correct positioning of the baby’s arms, easy use and secure velcro wrapping with inner fabric wings, (which in the Halo are outside). Also, they both can offer the half swaddle method however I am not crazy about the sheer inserts in this one, I much prefer a whole cotton swaddle which is easier to wash at high temperatures. So I personally still love the Halo a bit more, but it’s up to you.
4. Sleep training. Yes, the swaddle is your best friend when it comes to sleep training. It’s probably one of the most important key element in establishing a healthy sleeping routine. No matter what you hear around I can guarantee you that not swaddling your baby will never make you succeed in sleep training. As simple as that!
So now that you have a better idea of all the benefits attached to swaddling and which type of swaddle I recommend to use, let’s see how can you make sure if you’ve properly wrapped your little one..
A WELL DONE SWADDLE SHOULD BE:
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Tighter on the arms and a bit looser on the hips and legs area, (easily achievable with Halo swaddle). Don’t be afraid to firmly wrap your baby’s arms, it has to be tight on the upper body, otherwise you defeat the whole purpose of swaddling. Having a ‘saggy’ swaddle were your baby’s arms can easily escape out of it, it’s absolutely pointless! Remember, your baby love to feel tight.
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Baby’s arms should be well wrapped inside the swaddle with his hands placed just at his hips level. If you leave your baby’s hands outside the swaddle, he will inevitably scratch his face, pick up the bad habit of sucking his fingers and wake himself up much earlier.
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The swaddle should never cover your baby above his shoulders. Always make sure his neck and head area are out.
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The swaddle should never be too thick, (unless you live in Siberia!). Although ‘Halo’ offer a range of micro-fleece swaddles I recommend you to use only the bamboo cotton breathable swaddles and if necessary layer your baby underneath it more or less according to the current season. Keep in mind that high body temperature is one of the main life threatening factor for babies (SIDS), so don’t over cover him with too many layers, (another common mistake). Read more about the danger of overheating your little one in here.
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Always swaddle your baby from birth until he start rolling on himself, (which happen at around 3 months of age), if you introduce the swaddle too late you will most likely struggle to get him used to it.
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If you decide to swaddle your baby you should do it at every daily nap and every night sleep, so that he’ll get easily familiar with it in a matter of days. If you do it at random times you will confuse your baby with mixed messages.
As you can see from the example above, the first baby is perfectly wrapped in is swaddle. His arms are well placed along side his body, his hands are tucked in at his hips level and the swaddle is firmly wrapped around his arms but doesn’t go above his shoulders. In the second picture instead you can notice a poorly wrapped baby with a loose muslin cloth that allow baby’s arms to escape out of it. Also the muslin is wrapped way above the baby’s shoulders and over is head, you can notice how close the fabric is to the baby’s mouth, (very unsafe!)
So be aware of all these key points mentioned in this article when choosing a good swaddlle for your baby, and remember…practice make perfect!
Doing things the right way since the very beginning it’s the key element for happy babies and joyful parenthood!