several options for carrying babies:
mei tais, pouches, ring slings, wraps, and structured carriers. My
personal favorite is the open-tailed ring sling, particularly for
nursing moms.
Here
are my top 12 reasons to carry your baby:
1.
CARRIED BABIES CRY LESS
In
1986, a team of
Montreal
pediatricians studied 99 mother-infant pairs. The first group carried
babies for at least 3 extra hours a day. The control group was given no
instruction about carrying. After 6 weeks, the carried infants cried and
fussed 43% less than the non-carried group.
2.
CARRIED BABIES LEARN MORE
Because
they spend less time crying and fussing, carried babies spend more time
in the state of quiet alertness. This is when your baby is doing the
most learning.
3.
CARRIED BABIES ARE MORE ORGANIZED
Because
carried babies spend more time close to you, they learn the rhythms of
the outside world quicker. This means their sleep patterns normalize
faster than non-carried babies making it easier for them to sleep.
4.
CARRIED BABIES GET “HUMANIZED” EARLIER
Baby’s
proximity to you increases their interaction and baby can constantly be
learning how to be human. They’re intimately involved in your world
because their faces are at the same height as yours versus laying in a
swing or bouncy seat.
5.
CARRIED BABIES ARE SMARTER
Environmental
experiences stimulate nerves to branch out and connect with other
nerves, which helps the brain grow and develop.
6.
CARRIERS PAY ATTENTION TO TINY BACKS AND HEADS
A
carrier will conform to a baby’s body, eliminating pressure on his
developing spine and head. This is particularly important with the
rising incidence of flat head syndrome and its associated ailments.
7.
INCREASES PUBLIC NURSING OPPORTUNITIES
This
is particularly true of an open-tailed ring sling because it has a long,
flowing tail. The tail allows the mother to cover-up the nursing baby.
8.
OPTIMAL WEIGHT GAIN AND BETTER DIGESTION
Because
a breastfed newborn is physically closer to his mother, he will smell
his mother’s milk and be stimulated to have smaller, more frequent
feedings. Frequent feedings help with both weight gain and good
digestion. Babies carried upright often spit up less. This position also
helps babies with GERD (gastroesophageal reflux disease) because the
force of gravity helps the acid stay down in the stomach.
9.
LOOK MOM – HANDS!
Older
siblings feel less resentful of a carried baby because Mom’s hands are
free to help them. Or get work done.
10.
REDUCES POST-PARTUM STRESS
Because
carried babies are happier and allow mom hands-free carrying, the stress
of the recent birth is eased. Carrying baby increases confidence for
first-time moms and makes taking care of siblings easier for experienced
moms.
11.
GIVES DAD (OR OTHER CARETAKERS) BONDING OPPORTUNITIES
Many
fathers (particularly first-timers) are sometimes uneasy holding a
crying baby. Because carried babies are happier, fathers are more likely
to increase care giving participation. Additionally, carrying baby
shifts their involvement from diaper changing to true bonding.
12.
KEEPS BABY SAFE AND OUT OF HARM’S WAY
Carrying
a baby in public provides a safe environment by keeping baby clear of
curious acquaintances and out of reach of interesting (but frequently
dangerous) objects.
As
mentioned earlier, the types of carriers available are as varied as the
people using them. Here is a quick overview the available types.
Pouches
come in fitted and adjustable styles. Fitted pouches are a tube of
continual fabric that slips over your head and rests on your hip and
shoulder. Adjustable pouches are very similar, but the size can be
varied through the use of snaps, zippers, drawstrings or Velcro. This
type of carrier is excellent for quick pick up situations, but can
become fatiguing in long-time use situations. I purchased my pouch when
I was doing a lot of airline travel with my daughter. It was ideal for
scooping her up and running to the connecting flight.
Rings
slings come in closed-tail and open-tail designs. In a closed-tail
design the fabric ends in a strap where as in an open-tailed design the
fabric is wide and not gathered. Both are infinitely adjustable making
them easier to use in a multi-user household. There are several
advantages to an open-tailed sling: it can be used as a nursing
cover-up, a sun shade, a blanket or a burp cloth. Additionally, there is
typically a pocket in the tail to stash small things like a wallet or
diapers. Ring slings usually have shoulder padding, but not always. They
also come in padded or non-padded rails.
Asian
style carries come in many different styles. Onbuhimo, podegi, hmong,
and bei bei carriers use two straps were as mei tai carriers use four
straps. Some have fairly narrow, padded straps while others have
unpadded, wider straps. I purchased a mei tai for carrying my son around
on short outings like going to the zoo. For more information on
Asian-style carriers, go to www.freehandbaby.com/instructions.php.
Soft-structured
carriers are based on Asian-style carriers. The difference is that
instead of straps that tie they have straps that buckle. Additionally,
the straps are padded making them an excellent choice for extended
carrying and athletic activities such as hiking. On a recent camping
trip, my husband carried our 4-year old in our Ergo (a soft-structured
carrier) and I carried our 2-year old in our Maya Tie (a mei tai) when
we were hiking some particularly steep terrain.
Lastly
there are the comfortable and versatile wraps. Because wraps are made of
one long, rectangular piece of cloth, they tend to be the most
challenging to learn. Don’t let this discourage you as they are by far
the most adjustable, and some say the most comfortable, of all the
carriers.
A
word should be mentioned about the most commercially available
soft-structured carriers (Snugli, Baby Bjorn and similar products).
While these carriers are better than none at all, they do have some
rather large drawbacks. They are designed as front carry only, with the
baby either facing in or out. The baby will hang from their crotch and
genitalia, which may contribute to hip displacement issues. With all of
the carriers I have described, baby sits on their bottoms, eliminating
this situation. Additionally, their crisscross strap design focuses all
of baby’s weight at the crossing point and, in general, the straps do
not tighten sufficiently to keep baby close to the caregiver. These two
downfalls allow an extreme pressure point in the center of the
caregiver’s back, which significantly contributes to severe back
fatigue.
Selecting
the right carrier for you is not as daunting as you may think. The first
step is to decide how you will be using the carrier most often. For
instance, if you are a nursing mom, look for a carrier that provides for
nursing while being carried. If your toddler is no longer nursing and
your activity level is high, look for a carrier that has well padded
straps. Here is a quick overview of what kind of carry can be
accomplished with which carrier:
|
|
Pouches
|
Ring
Slings
|
Asian
Style
|
Structured
Carriers
|
Wraps
|
|
Cradle
|
X
|
X
|
|
|
X
|
|
Cross
Cradle
|
X
|
X
|
|
|
X
|
|
Frog
(tummy-to-tummy)
|
X
|
X
|
X
|
X
|
X
|
|
Back
and High Back
|
X
|
X
|
X
|
X
|
X
|
|
Hip
|
X
|
X
|
X
|
X
|
X
|
|
Front
facing out
|
X
|
X
|
|
|
X
|
|
Nursing
|
X
|
X
|
X
|
|
X
|
As
always, safety should be first. Newborns should never be tightly curled
(chin to chest). This position could compromise their airway. Fabric
should never be directly draped over baby’s face. If you find it
difficult to breathe trough the fabric, so will they. Always position
the baby’s face up and to the side of the wearer’s body in a
tummy-to-tummy position when not actively nursing. And lastly,
immediately reposition an infant that is showing ANY signs of
respiratory difficulty.
There are many places to gain additional information about and guides to
baby wearing. Some of the material for this article was obtained from www.thebabywearer.com,
Mothering Magazine’s January-February 2007 article (commonly referred
to as Babywearing 101 and available in reprint from www.mothering.com/shop/index.php?target=categories&category_id=168)
and www.mayawrap.com.
Maya
Wrap carriers are available in the
Erie
area from this article’s author, Kimberley Womack. She can be
contacted by phone at 814-864-1518 or by email at klswomack@yahoo.com
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