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Co-sleeping: 5 times more risk of sudden death
Co-sleeping, or co-sleeping, is more and more in vogue but also more and more controversial. Unicef has therefore just responded to a recent study published in the British Medical Journal (BMJ), which once again underlined the link between co-sleeping and sudden death. Elisabeth Briand-Huchet, Pediatrician in charge of the Regional Reference Center for Unexpected Death of Infants at Antoine Béclère Hospital (Paris), sheds light on the issue.
On May 21, 2013, the British Medical Journal (BMJ) published a study, based on 5 other surveys, according to which co-sleeping would lead to a risk of sudden death 5 times higher. Professor Bob Carpenter, author of the study, says that “88% of deaths that occur during co-sleeping could be avoided if the baby was lying on his back in a suitable bed near that of his parents.” The study also denounces messages that do not sufficiently educate all parents, contenting itself with advising against co-sleeping only if adults smoke, drink, take drugs, are very tired or if the child is premature. Professor Carpenter concludes as follows: “The safest place for a baby to sleep is a cot in his parents’ room for the first 6 months”. However, Unicef has just contradicted this conclusion without appeal …
A study based on insufficient data
Monday, May 27, a statement from Unicef disputes the study published in the BMJ, highlighting the lack of data that led to Professor Carpenter’s conclusion. None of the 5 studies on which it is based makes mention of the relationship between sudden death and drug use by the parents in the event of co-sleeping, and only 2 address the question of parental alcoholism, completely obscuring that of parents. fathers. In addition, mothers’ alcohol consumption was only collected for 2 / 5ths of them. According to Unicef, Professor Carpenter’s study does not mention the fact that the risk of sudden death is higher when the parent falls asleep with the child on a sofa, chair or seat. The data are therefore insufficient to ban co-sleeping and the organization for the protection of children even claims that the risk of co-sleeping would be “too low to be significant”. To conclude, Unicef maintains that the parents’ bed is a safe place and that co-sleeping is only a matter of a personal and cultural point of view.
Co-sleeping: a real risk for the child
According to Doctor Elisabeth Briand-Huchet, UNICEF’s response is more than questionable. Of course, falling asleep on a sofa or an armchair with your child is dangerous. “But we cannot prioritize the risks and say that the parents’ bed is a safe place for the child”. She adds that parents may take the safety precautions around co-sleeping in the first few weeks after birth, but as time goes on, they relax their attention. The contradictory conclusions of the studies do not make it possible to see more clearly and make vague the precautions to be taken. According to Dr. Briand-Huchet, the risk of sudden death in the event of co-sleeping is increased, regardless of the parents’ condition or the precautions taken. With adults who drink, take drugs or smoke, the risks are obviously higher. Indeed, passive smoking in children causes saturation of receptors in the brain that are supposed to trigger the wakefulness reflex when the child has a respiratory disorder. This wakefulness reflex is then less efficient and the baby more fragile. A “healthy” child can normally recover automatically, by turning his head for example, if his breathing is restricted for some reason. “In the accidents that we observe, the child could not react, and this leads to death from massive pulmonary hemorrhage.” In the case of parental alcoholism, the risk of sudden death during co-sleeping increases since adults sleep heavier. For Elisabeth Briand-Huchet, Unicef’s messages have a global reach, address different cultures and oblige the institution to make nuanced statements concerning certain practices that are more cultural than others, such as co-sleeping. It recalls the essential precautions for maximum safety: make the child sleep in a rigid crib, without cot bumper, pillow or quilt, or any other “clutter”, in a room at moderate temperature and well ventilated. Co-sleeping is not recommended according to her and particular vigilance must be brought to carrying systems (baby carriers and slings) which have led to an increased number of cases of sudden death in recent times.