safe co sleeping

Co-sleeping is not a new practice. For most of recorded history, parents have ensured the safety and healthy development of their little one by sharing a sleeping space with them. (And by knowing the ins and outs of how to safely co-sleep to soak all kinds of benefits up!)

For many parents, co-sleeping can make breastfeeding easier. While also making it easier for you and your family to get a more peaceful, more nurturing night of rest.  

But knowing how to safely co-sleep with a newborn is the secret behind feeling the full impact of all those benefits…while still getting the kind of nighttime peace of mind that leaves you waking up well-rested.

So whether you’re new to co-sleeping or just want a refresher on how to safely co-sleep with your little one, here are a few co-sleeping should-dos to keep in mind. 

What You Should Know About Safe Co-Sleeping Before We Dig In

To this day, many cultures around the world sing the praises of co-sleeping.

They consider the sleep practice a normal — and natural — way of easing your baby’s stress while helping them learn to breathe regularly. And also helping them develop healthily in body and mind. 

(Fun fact: mothers in countries like Guatemala and Japan have been known to express shock and disapproval when told that children in other countries are expected to participate in solitary sleeping.)

Studies have confirmed that co-sleeping is a safe practice that improves your sleep as a parent, supports your baby’s healthy development, and promotes bonding with your baby through proximity and touch. (A perfect trifecta that makes parents sing the sleep practice’s praises.)

Though co-sleeping is one of the oldest and most popular methods of sleeping with a newborn around the world, getting the safety dos and don’ts of co-sleeping with a newborn down is what leads to peace of mind. While also leading to long and restful nights of sleep for the whole family. 

So let’s dig into those dos and don’ts…

What a Safe Co-Sleeping Environment Looks Like (and How to Prepare Your Own)

Before you and your baby can tuck in for a more caring and nurturing night of rest, your co-sleeping environment should be prepped for peaceful nights of catching Z’s.

Though it might be tempting to settle in and just invite your baby to share your own mattress, this sleeping position (which is often called bed sharing) can put your co-sleeping newborn at risk.

That’s because sharing a mattress with your newborn often means surrounding them with super-soft pillows and blankets that aren’t built with their safety in mind. 

To create a safe co-sleeping environment (the kind that will deliver all the benefits you’re after while also delivering the peace of mind you deserve) there are four key “must-dos” to remember to safely co-sleep with a newborn:

• Co-sleep with your baby close
• Create the right room conditions 
• Ensure your baby’s safe sleep position 
• Choose the right bedside sleeper

Co-Sleep with Your Baby By Your Side

There’s nothing better than turning over in the middle of the night to see your little one sleeping sweet and sound — eyes closed and the kind of gentle smile on their face that lets you know that they’re resting easy.

Parents who choose co-sleeping cite the extra bonding time as one of the biggest benefits: and we can’t help but agree. (The extra bonding time is one of the big reasons we love co-sleeping so much!)

Because when you sleep no more than an arm’s reach away from your little one, you have plenty of extra time to take in their features, listen to every gentle coo, and care for every small crisis call that comes through the night.

That kind of nighttime bliss can’t be beat. But you can put the brakes on that bonding — and foster a potentially unsafe sleeping environment — if you choose to sleep too far away.

What the AAP has to say:

According to the American Academy of Pediatrics’ (AAP) safe sleep guidelines, you should be within easy reach of your sleeping baby for at least the first six months of their life. That’s to make sure that you’re always around when a crisis call hits, no matter how big or small.

But sleeping close to your baby gives more benefits than just quick response times.

According to scientific research, sleeping next to your baby has historically been a way for babies to learn how to regulate their breathing patterns in positive ways. That’s because when you’re breathing close enough to your baby for them to hear you easily, they’ll start naturally matching your breathing rhythm (cool, right?). 

Which is a pretty amazing way of saying that co-sleeping with a baby isn’t just a way to bond on an emotional level. Every part of your baby’s system and your baby’s healthy development processes will benefit from the act of sleeping close to you. Starting with the comfort they feel by having you there by their side every minute of the night. 

Create the Right Room Conditions for Safe Co-Sleeping

Dark. Light. With the window open. With the window closed. With the thermostat set to a toasty 82 degrees.

We all have an opinion on what kind of conditions create the best night’s rest.

But when co-sleeping, the room conditions need to be designed with your baby’s needs in mind. 

That means the room shouldn’t be too toasty (aim for between 68 and 72 degrees Fahrenheit).

There also shouldn’t be extra pillows, stuffed animals, or blankets crowding the mattress. (These kinds of fluffy materials can quickly grow unsafe if a baby rolls onto them or gets wrapped up during the night.)

And even if you love the feeling of being extra-hot through the night (we can’t blame you for wanting to beat that winter chill or make the most of the summer heat!), welcoming your newborn baby might mean putting those preferences away for a little while. Because as soon as your baby takes up residence in your room, it’s time to start thinking of it as their space as well as yours. 

But there’s good news: you don’t have to fully let go of your old sleep habits to guarantee that your baby is protected, well-rested, and unconditionally supported throughout the night. 

By choosing a bedside sleeper that is expertly engineered with your baby’s comfort in mind (and beautifully designed with 100% beechwood to be eco-friendly and fit your bedroom style!), you can create a cozy environment for both you and your newborn. While taking all of the guesswork out of how to safely co-sleep. 

Even better: you’ll soon be rewarded for your efforts. Because you’ll be enjoying more sleep (get ready for your new parent friends to be jealous!) and curbing separation anxiety while making nighttime nursing easier than ever.

Ensure Your Baby’s Safe Sleeping Position 

There’s no debate or discussion about this one: experts agree that babies should sleep on their backs (just ask the American Academy of Pediatrics—or any other trusted source!).

And though expert consensus on this is fairly new (there weren’t firm guidelines on safe sleeping positions for babies until around the late 20th century), trusted voices have been on board with the necessity of a firm sleep space for a while now.

In case this baby is your first (or you just need a refresh!), the surface underneath your baby should always be firm and clean. Any blankets should also be light and kept far away from covering your baby’s head. 

When you’re co-sleeping, these guidelines remain the same.

It’s important that your baby has space to lie comfortably — and safely — on a made-just-for-them mattress that isn’t too soft or pillowed. Babies can easily sink into too-soft bedding, which can quickly become dangerous if they’re not yet old enough to know how to safely roll away from too-plush materials.

But just because your baby is sleeping on a firm mattress doesn’t mean they’ll be left feeling uncomfy through the night.

With the right parent and baby-loved bedside co-sleeper to keep them cozy and secure, they’ll be able to fall asleep every night while feeling like they’re on cloud nine. Because the best bedside co-sleeper isn’t just designed to keep your little one safe by your side, it’s designed to nurture them in the loving half-moon shape of a hug, wrapping them in comfort whether day or night.

Which brings us to…

Taking all the Guesswork Out of How to Safely Co-Sleep

While you may prefer a weightless waterbed or a soft-as-a-cloud pillow topper that leaves you feeling like you’re sleeping on air, babies need baby-secure beds that have been rigorously tested for safety. 

And while many crib and bedside co-sleeper manufacturers promise safety, they also build your baby’s sleeper out of cheap fillers and plastics, while being finished in toxic chemicals and varnish that leach harmful gasses all night long.

By choosing a bedside co-sleeper that is made of eco-friendly, fully non-toxic, and ethically-sourced beechwood, you won’t just experience all the expected co-sleeping benefits. You’ll also feel the difference that going with an all-natural option makes.

Because while adult mattresses just weren’t designed to properly support your baby (that’s the hard but honest truth!), made-just-for-them mattresses like the kind you’ll find on the best bedside co-sleeper will sit tightly against the co-sleeper frame so there are no gaps, space, or crevices that your baby could accidentally slip into.

By choosing a product specially designed by experts to provide a safe co-sleeping environment, you can spend less time worrying about how to safely co-sleep — and spend more time catching Z’s while your little one calmly and restfully sleeps by your side. 

Because enjoying the feeling of spending more time sleeping beside your baby, knowing that they are spending their night comforted and protected by your nearby touch?

That’s just priceless.

Is co-sleeping bad? There’s a lot of conversation about co-sleeping out there. Whether you’re welcoming your first baby to the world or have a family of 5 or 6 already, you’ve probably heard about co-sleeping. And maybe even popped “about co-sleeping” into Google a time or two.

So why all the hype about co-sleeping? Co-sleeping has long been the preferred (and safe, as long as you choose the right method!) way for families around the world to assure that their babies are getting nurturing rest. Before there were beds or mattresses or even cribs, families would gather close together and nestle into a state of happy sleep while lying within arm’s reach. 

When the earliest cribs starting coming onto the scene around the 1600s, the hype for co-sleeping didn’t die down. But within the co-sleeping conversation, there’s one important thing to note. Co-sleeping with the help of a safe sleep tool like a bedside co-sleeper is not the same thing as bed-sharing (which is better understood as the practice of inviting your baby to share your own mattress).

That’s why asking “Is co-sleeping bad?” is too simple. But we’re about to set the co-sleeping record straight on all that…

We’re about to break down:

• The back-to-the-basics details about what co-sleeping is and how it became the most common method of sleep around the world
• The benefits that co-sleeping families enjoy, as well as the way families get more rest just by sleeping close to their little one
• How co-sleeping has looked throughout history, and why that matters for sleep deprived parents trying to get more rest now
• Where things really stand in this whole “Is c0-sleeping bad?” question, and what co-sleeping families wish more people talked about

The Best Place to Start Is at the Beginning: What is Co-Sleeping?

Co-sleeping is often the catch-all term used to describe the nurturing experience of sleeping with your baby within arm’s reach.

Though the word “co-sleeping” often brings up images of parent and baby sleeping together in the same bed and sharing the same sleep space, the truth is that there are many ways to co-sleep, and each nighttime routine will look a little different for every family. 

In recent years, tools like bedside co-sleepers have made it safe, easy, and stress-free to soak in all the benefits of co-sleeping by giving babies a made-just-for-them place to rest their head and get quality sleep through the night.

These methods aren’t only proven-safe through experience, they’re also backed by some of the strictest safety certification standards on the market, with organizations like ASTM International, TÜV Rheinland, and Confidence in Textiles giving bedside co-sleepers like babybay a full stamp of approval. 

And though sleeping in separate bedrooms has become the norm in the Western world (which is the leading thing that causes some parents to wonder whether alternatives like co-sleeping are really the best way to go), that doesn’t mean it’s not the preferred bonding-promoting and safety-assuring method of rest across much of the globe.

In fact, studies (like one famously conducted by anthropologist John Whiting) have found that almost 70% of children living around the world sleep in the company of others. (Take a moment to really let those numbers sink in— 70%!)

Benefits of Co-Sleeping: A Quick But Thorough Overview 

Through the act of co-sleeping, you and your baby are able to bond and become close-as-can-be during both your waking and sleeping hours. (Hard to believe, but our sleeping hours account for a third of our day — which is why it’s so important to make them count!) 

Your baby also benefits from a boosted immune system and better-supported development for their body and mind, which not only benefits their waking hours but leads to more restful time spent in dreamland as well. 

Co-sleeping also makes nighttime nursing a breeze by keeping your baby easily within arm’s reach, so that you don’t have to take walks back and forth across the room or repeatedly over crib bars to give your child what they need. 

At the end of the day, it shouldn’t really be surprising that there are numerous benefits of co-sleeping. Human biology naturally encourages child and parent to seek contact during the night.

And while you might think that it’s simply love for your child that has you craving a quick hug, kiss, or loving touch during all hours of the day and night (love is definitely part of it, we promise!), that mutual craving for contact is also just built into our physiology. 

While that need for nighttime contact through the night isn’t much-talked about in the United States, it’s something that many other  cultures around the world understand well. 

In Japan, for instance, the most common sleeping position is referred to as kawa no ji (represented by the character for river: 川). The two longer lines in that character represent the parents, while the shorter one represents the child sleeping between — showcasing the close proximity and sleep-together care that goes into nighttime sleep setups. 

But in America and other Western cultures, history has set a trend of separating parents and babies during the night. 

That’s not because separating parents and babies is better — we’ve just gotten so used to sleeping separately that it’s hard to imagine that another way of sleeping could be more beneficial.

Co-Sleeping Throughout History: Why the Question “What Is Co-Sleeping” Only Started Needing to Be Asked Recently 

The Western world’s interest in sleeping separately can partly be traced back to the 19th century, when it became fashionable to show your wealth by building houses with extra bedrooms and filling those extra bedrooms with plush mattresses and beautiful cribs.

Though collecting mattresses is no longer the in-trend fashion statement it used to be, most families in the Western world continue to encourage their children to sleep in separate rooms. 

And while there’s nothing wrong with preferring for your child to sleep in a space separate from yours, over time this became seen as the standard way to sleep in the Western world — which quickly made all other sleeping methods seem like unideal alternatives (even if they did, in fact, actually come with a whole host of rest-giving and mind-balancing benefits). 

So Let’s Sum It All Up: Is Co-Sleeping Bad?  

When co-sleeping is practiced safely, it delivers a bounty of benefits while helping you feel closer to your child (emotionally and physically!) all night long.

But just like you have to make decisions with safety in mind when preparing a nursery or separate room for your child to sleep in, you need to make safety a priority when deciding the co-sleeping method that works for your family. 

But if you aren’t sure where to start, start here: bedside infant co-sleepers make safe co-sleeping easy as can be by gifting baby with a safe, secure, and supported space to sleep by your side.

Your baby gets to drift off into sweet dreams with you within arm’s reach, while you get to enjoy the worry-free rest that comes from knowing you can quickly and easily respond to any nighttime feeding call that comes throughout the night. 

And while there may be other ways of co-sleeping out there, there’s only one safe co-sleeping method we can recommend. 

With the right bedside sleeper by your side, you’ll never have to wonder Is co-sleeping bad? again. You’ll be able to confidently drift toward dreamland, knowing your baby is safe, happy, and soaking in all the benefits that co-sleeping has to offer. 

There’s a reason why co sleeping has been one of the most-loved sleeping practices throughout history (and continues to be the bedtime norm for over 70% of children in the world!). Sleeping close to your baby gifts the whole family with better nights of rest, while promoting deep bonding during waking and sleeping hours. But is there a secret to how to break co sleeping when it’s time for your use of the sleep practice to come to an end?

For every co sleeping family, there inevitably comes a time when stopping co sleeping seems like the right next step. And when that time comes, it can be difficult to know how to break co sleeping and move your baby to a room of their own without it causing baby (or you!) extra stress. Rest assured: being unsure how to go about this transition is totally normal.

Luckily, all you need to ease the transition from co sleeping is a little planning—and a little patience! 

That’s why we’re breaking down some of our top tips for smoothing the transition from co sleeping to a room of baby’s own—so that you can help your baby feel comfortable in their new space, while taking all the stress out of stopping co sleeping. 

Know There Probably Will Be a Transition Period When Stopping Co-Sleeping 

Though you might know that it’s the perfect time to transition your baby to a room of their own, that doesn’t mean that your baby will be immediately on board. 

That’s because babies—just like adults!—are creatures of habit, and getting used to a new setup after so many months spent catching shuteye co sleeping safely by your bedside will take a little getting used to. 

Even if you just know that your baby is fully ready for this next milestone in their co sleeping journey, you should still be realistic that getting baby comfortable with the change might involve a few nights of frustration (for you both!). 

If you’ve been practicing safe co-sleeping positions for a while now (like catching your Z’s with a bedside co-sleeper!), then baby has gotten used to having you close and easily accessible if they want love, cuddles, or nursing during the night. 

Though we have every confidence they’ll get used to their room soon—and you should have that confidence too!—it doesn’t mean that you won’t have to put a little work in to showing them that you’re still there to care for their every need (even if you’re no longer sharing a room!). 

When Deciding When to Stop Co-Sleeping, Choose the Right Time

If it’s deep in the holiday season and you have a few dozen family members roaming your hallways and sleeping on your couch, it’s probably not the right time to decide to stop co sleeping. 

When deciding how to break co sleeping, choose a time when all is calm in your household and there aren’t any major life changes or stresses—like big work projects or family events—that could make it difficult for both you and baby to focus all your attention on the task at hand. 

During this time of transition, you should be focused on helping your baby get comfortable with their new sleeping arrangement. If life is feeling a little on the crazy side, consider waiting to transition from co sleeping until things have settled down.

Don’t Just Stop Co-Sleeping Cold Turkey! Have Some Sleepovers 

Just because it’s time to stop cosleeping doesn’t mean the transition from cosleeping to a room of baby’s own has to happen all at once. 

You can help your baby get used to their new room by planning to spend a few nights on a mattress or sleeping bag on their floor. 

If you’ve been practicing safe co-sleeping positions with the help of a bedside co sleeper bed, then your baby has gotten very used to having you within arm’s reach. 

You can get them used to sleeping alone—while also helping them feel comfortable, confident, and nurtured in their new room—by showing them that you’re still physically there to support them. 

Ease the Transition From Co-Sleeping by Finding Other Ways to Bond 

One of the biggest co sleeping benefits is how much time your baby gets to spend with you. 

When baby is sleeping by your side with the help of a tool like the babybay bedside co sleeper, your night hours are full of deep moments of bonding. 

As you make your plan and consider how to break co sleeping so that the transition is as stress-free as possible for the whole family, consider putting a new cuddles-filled nighttime routine in place before you make the transition. 

Finding ways to show baby your love before they go to sleep—and getting them used to that routine before they move into a room of their own—will help them feel physically and emotionally supported in their new setup. 

So that during the nights when they’re getting used to sleeping in a room all their own, they know that your love is still close by.

If you search for “co sleeping” in the dictionary, you’ll probably find a definition that looks like this one (courtesy of Merriam-Webster): co sleeping is “the practice of sleeping in the same bed or close by in the same room with one’s child.”

Seems simple enough to understand, doesn’t it? 

But in truth, this definition doesn’t even begin to answer the question What does co sleeping mean?

Because this definition groups three very different sleeping practices—bed sharing, room sharing, and co sleeping—under the same “co sleeping” umbrella. 

To get a more accurate answer to the question What does co sleeping mean?, it’s important to understand the differences between these three sleeping practices. (Because yep — they’re all different and all come with differing degrees of safety attached.)

Once you understand the pros and cons associated with each, it will become easier to decide whether enjoying the benefits of co sleeping is the right next step for your family.

Co Sleeping, Bed Sharing, and Room Sharing: How Are They Different? 

“Co sleeping” is often used as the catch-all term for describing the experience of sleeping close to your baby.

However, co sleeping with the help of a safe bedside co sleeper is a very different experience than practicing more general room sharing or bed sharing. When people use the term “co sleeping,” they’re likely referring to one of two fairly different sleep practices: room sharing or bed sharing. 

Because it can be easy for all this different terminology to get kind of (or very!) confusing, here’s a quick breakdown of the similarities and differences:

“Room sharing” refers to instances when baby is invited to sleep in the same room as their parents—but on a different sleeping surface. When parents choose to sleep in their own bed with their baby catching Z’s in a crib or baby bassinet nearby, they are participating in room sharing.

“Bed sharing” refers to the practice of not only inviting your baby or child into your room, but into your bed as well. When bed sharing, children and parents sleep together on the same mattress and share bedding.

So How Are They Different?

While a bed sharing setup helps parents take advantage of many co sleeping benefits (like feeling more bonded with baby by sleeping so close by), it can be difficult to guarantee safe co sleeping positions when you’re sharing a bed. 

That’s because the oh-so-soft mattresses and bedding that parents often prefer are not the safest choice for babies, especially when the baby is still so young that they are not easily able to untangle themselves if they’re accidentally covered by bedding. 

Parents who are unsure about whether bed sharing is the right practice for them often turn to bedside co sleepers (also called a bedside crib, along with a few other names) as a perfect solution.

Bedside co sleepers offer a blend of safety and closeness while giving both you and your baby a perfect made-just-for-you place to enjoy the night and sleep tight.

So What’s the Deal with Bedside Co Sleepers and Bedside Cribs?

When you practice co-sleeping with the right bedside crib, you’re able to enjoy all the benefits of bed-sharing, without the safety concerns that sharing a bed with your baby can bring. 

This type of safe co-sleeping is sometimes referred to as separate-surface co-sleeping, and involves sleeping on your own mattress with your baby safely cuddled in a bedside baby co sleeper, baby bassinet, or crib pushed against your bedside.

By using safe co sleeping solutions like the babybay bedside co sleeper, you get to enjoy the plush and comfy bedding and mattress you prefer, while your baby enjoys a made-just-for-them crib mattress and sleeping space all their own. 

Which means you’ll be able to co sleep soundly, knowing that your baby is feeling supported by a firm mattress that is perfect for their growing body, while being comforted by the feeling of having you no more than an arm’s reach away. 

Co Sleeping Benefits: What Positive Experiences Should You Expect? 

The connection between baby and mother doesn’t end the moment that baby is delivered. In fact, experts agree that babies and their caregivers remain physiologically connected to each other in complicated but powerful ways following birth. 

As anthropologist James J. McKenna found, babies who sleep close to their caregivers wake up more frequently, but those wakings are also less disruptive than when they are catching Z’s further away. 

Parents who are sleeping beside their baby are very aware of and receptive towards these moments of wakefulness, which and will often take a moment to offer touch, check for crisis, hug, or otherwise support their baby in quick but loving ways. 

These loving touches go a long way in helping baby settle their stress levels and breathe easy, which positively supports their psychological and physical growth. 

But beyond these moments of nurturing, co sleeping makes nighttime nursing easier, and helps the whole family get longer, more restful nights of sleep by making it simple to know when baby needs support and offer the proper care. (Which is good news, because if there’s one thing that all parents could use more of—it’s sleep!)

Separate-Surface Co-Sleeping: What’s the Best Sleeper to Use? 

There are many different co-sleepers out there that can be used for separate-surface co-sleeping, but not all of them are gold-star status when it comes to ease, safety, and comfort.

The babybay bedside co sleeper is specially engineered to fit snugly against your own bed, meaning you don’t even have to leave your mattress or reach over awkward crib bars to care for your baby during the night. 

And because babybay considers your baby’s safety and comfort as Priority #1, you can be confident that baby will feel secure and supported when cuddled into the half-moon shape designed to mimic the warm embrace of a hug. 

Meaning that your baby will feel more than happy to settle into dreamland with you by their side, while you catch some much-needed Z’s of your own—knowing that you’ve found the answers to What does co-sleeping mean? and have a sleeping solution that delivers big co sleeping benefits while delivering peace of mind.

There’s one important thing you should always remember when deciding how co sleeping fits into your family’s nighttime routine: only you know what works best for you and your baby. 

But as you research the many benefits of co sleeping and get excited for the nights of deeper bonding ahead, you might come across fellow parents claiming that co sleeping might not be the best option for children under a certain age. 

Which might have you wondering—why is co sleeping bad for newborns? 

Here’s the simple answer: when done safely, co sleeping isn’t bad at all!

In fact, when anthropologist John Whiting surveyed 186 cultures, he discovered that almost 70% of children sleeping and growing strong around the world slept in the company of others. 

While 70% of families around the globe and much research has shown that co sleeping offers many benefits (Easier nighttime nursing, better rest for the whole family, and quicker crisis response? Yes, please!) there’s a little trick of naming that’s causing some confusion about co sleeping. 

The truth is that “bed sharing” is not the same as other, safe co sleeping practices. 

While the babybay bedside co sleeper has been safety-certified by ASTM International, TÜV, and Confidence in Textiles, bed sharing (when a baby sleeps in the same bed as the parent/s) does not come backed by the same safety guarantee. 

Despite this big safety difference, these two terms (“bed sharing” and “co sleeping”) are often used interchangeably. 

As any parent who enjoys sleeping an arm’s reach away from their baby with the help of a bedside co-sleeper will tell you, there are ways to get stress-free, worry-less, and benefit-filled nights of rest while co sleeping. 

You just need to choose the right co sleeping method. 

What Age Is Co Sleeping Safe? Is My Newborn Baby Too Young? 

The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends sleeping in the same room as your baby (or “room sharing”) for at least the first six months of baby’s life. 

When you room share, you set up a separate space for baby to sleep beside your own bed. By giving them a firm mattress to sleep on that is all their own, you allow them to feel properly supported through the night, while still being close enough to respond quickly to anything they might need. 

There’s a reason why so many parents recommend this approach. Depending on your child’s development, it can be dangerous to have your baby share space on the soft, plush, comfy, and pillowy bedding and mattress you love. 

The truth is, your baby’s body is best supported by a firm space to rest.

And though your baby will one day be a pro at untangling themselves from any blanket or pillow that comes their way, newborns are still not quite used to the art of getting themselves unwrapped or untangled from any fabric that covers them. 

What’s why many experts suggest waiting to bed share until baby is old enough to easily get unstuck from any bedding they get tangled in. 

However, with the help of a bedside co sleeper, you’ll be able to co sleep from the first night your baby is born–without having a single safety concern. 

That’s because babybay bedside sleepers are specially engineered to give your baby the safe, firm, and far-from-your-blankets sleeping space they need to rest comfortably and securely all night long. 

Which is why parents who are wondering why is co sleeping bad for newborn babies? need to understand that the how of co sleeping is important, especially when determining what age is co sleeping safe for your baby. 

With the right safe co sleeping solution by your bedside, you can enjoy rest-filled nights and the other many benefits of co sleeping from the first day baby is brought home, while being fully confident that your baby is safe and comfortable in a bedside co sleeper made just for them. 

What’s the Best Age to Transition from Co Sleeping?

As we said: no one knows your baby’s needs better than you.

Though the best age to transition from co sleeping will eventually come, there’s no hard and fast rule of when this will be for you. 

The best thing you can do is keep track of your baby’s developmental patterns, and know that there might be a time when baby’s sleep habits or your own needs make you feel ready to move baby to a separate crib or room of their own. 

When that time eventually comes, just know that your baby will be well-prepared to take on the nighttime routine changes ahead. 

And the next time you hear a fellow parent ask Why is co sleeping bad for newborn babies? just like you did, you’ll be able to tell them straight out…

It’s not! You just need the right safe co sleeping solution by your bedside. 

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Safely co-sleeping with your newborn doesn’t start in the moment you down with them in your shared room set-up…it starts well before that moment.

Because setting up your room for safe and comfortable co-sleeping is the easiest way for you to get more hours of rest during the night. While feeling the satisfied peace of mind that comes from knowing your baby is lovingly and sweetly snoozing beside you.

Some parents begin their transition to co-sleeping by researching safe co sleeping positions and getting excited for the many co-sleeping benefits they can expect to enjoy in the days ahead. (Ones like an easier nighttime nursing routine and deeper bonding between you and baby, just to name a few!).

These can be helpful places to begin your co sleeping journey. But once you’re really ready to take the next steps in learning how to safely co-sleep with newborn, thinking through the specifics of your baby’s soon-to-be sleeping environment is the peace of mind-delivering best next step. 

There’s a good reason for that: While there are many ways to co-sleep, but not all of them will gift you with the sound nights of stress-free rest that you’re looking for. 

So before you go all-in on co-sleeping with your little one, ask yourself 2 big questions. Ones that guarantee that you’ll soak up all the beautiful co-sleeping benefits that are available to you. While still guaranteeing that your safety remains top-notch.

What safe co-sleeping positions will work best considering my home setup? 

Experts are in agreement: when your baby is first brought home, the safest place for them to sleep is close by your side. (That way you’ll be able to respond to every need with super-parent speed!)

But sleeping close by your side doesn’t necessarily mean sharing your bed. 

Truth is, your baby’s body will not be properly supported by the super-soft mattress, plush comforters, and soft-as-a-cloud pillows you love. 

Especially during the first months of their life, your baby needs a clean and firm sleep surface that will support them. Particularly as they spend long hours of the night laying on their back and catching some much-needed Zs. 

While pillows and cozy comforters might be the bedding-of-choice for adults, your baby is quite skilled enough to unroll themselves from any tangled situation they might get into. Which means that all that softness should be saved for when they grow a little bit bigger. 

Safe solutions like bedside co-sleepers offer your baby a way to be by your side while still getting the support they crave. They can rest on a made-just-for-them baby bed mattress that provides comfort and proper ventilation. While you rest easy while being surrounded by your comfiest blankets and silkiest sheets. 

And though it might seem like bedside co sleepers that securely attach directly to your bed aren’t an option for families living in small spaces, compact co-sleeper models can naturally fit into any room. While still making it easy to turn your bedroom into a baby-loved co-sleeping space. 

How do I create a healthy environment when sharing my bedroom with baby? 

There are several best practices when it comes to sharing bedroom with baby that get said on repeat. Like how important it is to keep the room smoke-free and keep the temperature not too cool, not too hot.

And sure, you might feel like you’ve been there, researched that when it comes to those much-repeated best practices. But there is still one big every-parent-should-know safety concern that still comes as a surprise to most parents. 

Here it is: your baby’s sleeping materials might not be as non-toxic as you think they are. 

Most bedside co-sleepers, baby cribs, and baby bassinets on the market are full of toxic finishes, harmful chemicals, and damaging hard plastics that can wreak havoc on your baby’s still-developing body and immune system. 

That’s why it’s so important to choose a bedside co-sleeper (and stash of baby products in general!) made of non-toxic, all-natural, eco-friendly wood and harm-free finishes. 

And when it’s time to buy sheets and a mattress pad for your baby to sleep on, look for ones that provide proper ventilation while being made of chemical-free materials and baby-friendly cotton and polyester fabrics. 

How to Safely Co Sleep With Newborn: The Benefits of a Bedside Co-Sleeper

For parents who are just starting to explore co-sleeping, it’s easy to feel like you’re desperately trying to fit all pieces of the co-sleeping puzzle into one, clearly-readable, easy-to-implement way for both you and baby to rest easy through the night. 

And while many parents toss and turn with worry, wondering…

Have I perfectly designed my co sleeping space for baby to sleep easy? 

Does baby have what they need to feel safe and supported as we sleep? 

Have I chosen a safe co sleeping position that will help baby—and me!—rest stress-free all night long? 

Having the right co-sleeping bed securely attached to your bedside can take all the guesswork out of how to safely co-sleep with newborn. 

It can feel like a challenge to adapt your made-for-adults bedroom into a perfect-for-baby safe sleeping space. 

But bedside co-sleepers make it possible for you to create the perfect safe co-sleeping space for your baby. Without needing to throw away your existing mattress or sheets. Redesign your own bedroom space. Or spend a single minute of much-needed sleep time wondering whether baby is feeling nurtured and supported in the way they need.

Sounds like a dream, doesn’t it? 

When was the last time you actually felt rested? 

Can’t remember?

We totally get it. Those late-night feedings are exhausting, especially during the initial weeks after giving birth.

Imagine how rested you’d feel if you didn’t have to get out of bed every 2-3 hours to feed or soothe your newborn.

No more tip-toeing your way back to the crib, praying not to wake your baby. 

No more frustration when, you finally find a comfortable position, only to be woken up moments later. 

…sounds too good to be true, right? Not anymore. 

Parents all over the world have started getting the sleep they desperately need by switching over to babybay’s Baby Bedside Sleeper.

Uniquely engineered to lock into beds of all sizes and heights, this co-sleeper is changing the game. 

Now, you can enjoy all the benefits of co-sleeping, and the closeness of bedsharing, without compromising safety. 

CO-SLEEPING ENCOURAGES DEVELOPMENT

James J. Mckenna, Director emeritus of the Mother-Baby Behavioral Sleep Laboratory at the University of Notre Dame, found that,

“Parents serve as a kind of biological “jumper cable,” or outsourced regulator, to a newborn baby when she is completing her gestation outside her mother’s body. When parents and babies sleep together, their heart rates, brain waves, sleep states, oxygen levels, temperature, and breathing influence one another.”

In basic lingo, this means, your baby’s development relies on being close to you. Even outside of the womb, our bodies sync together for prime developmental functioning. The separation that comes from a stand-alone crib can get in the way of this. 

Does this mean you have to stay joined at the hip? No. But, it shows that simply sleeping nearby makes it possible for them to grow big and strong. Amazing, right? 

THE CLOSER YOU ARE THE LESS ANXIETY FOR EVERYONE

Hearing the beating of your heart and the in and out of your breath can be incredibly soothing to your baby. Depriving them of this for 6-8 hours at night means babies cry more often, needing your closeness to soothe their anxiety. 

Babies who co-sleep generally cry less, wake less often, and allow you to sleep for longer periods of time.

Added Bonus: You get to wake up next to a smiley baby!

YOU CAN BETTER RESPOND TO A CRISIS WHILE CO-SLEEPING

Parenting guru Dr. Sears  found during his studies that:

“Babies who sleep close to their mothers enjoy ‘protective arousal,’ a state of sleep that enables them to more easily awaken if their health is in danger, such as breathing difficulties…Infants who sleep near their parents have more stable temperatures, regular heart rhythms, and fewer long pauses in breathing compared to babies who sleep alone. This means the baby sleeps physiologically safer.”

When it comes to defending against dangers to your baby, there is no substitute for your care. Co-sleeping makes it possible to familiarize with all the sounds your baby makes.

As part of your natural-momma-bear instinct, (part of the physiological syncing mentioned above,) your body stays alert even while sleeping. If something is off, you can count on your body to sense it — and, in the event of an emergency, this can make all the difference for the safety of your baby.   

The babybay Baby Bedside Sleeper is a leader in safety for co-sleeping with newborns. All of our sleepers undergo rigorous safety inspections, and must receive domestic and international safety certifications before ever going out to you.  

If you’re ready to start getting a better night’s sleep, with less stress, and more opportunity to connect with your baby then, it’s time you meet our bedside cribs. 90% of the world’s families are already co-sleeping their way to better nights. Isn’t it time you expected more for your family?

Meet the babybay co sleeper cribs

Babies sleep a lot. By “a lot” we mean that you can expect your baby to sleep 16-18 hours a day throughout the first year of their life, waking in 2-3 hour intervals to feed, get changed, and be coddled back into peaceful slumber. (No wonder it’s so hard for parents who are sleeping with a newborn to wake up in the morning feeling rested and recharged!)

Adapting to your baby’s schedule is hard enough. But add confusion or concerns about the correct newborn sleep position into the mix and you’ve got a recipe for wakeful nights.

That’s why we’re about to break down everything you need to know about sleeping with a newborn, starting with the “where” of safe baby sleep and ending with the “how” of getting the best new-parent nights of rest possible.

Where Should Baby Sleep During the First Few Months?

According to the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP), babies should sleep in the same room as their parents for at least the first six months of life, and ideally through the first year. This is a practice called room sharing, which refers to any sleep set-up where parents and baby sleep in the same room together, thought not on the same sleep surface.

There’s a reason why room sharing is so well-loved by the AAP: not only is it a more convenient choice (making nighttime nursing and responding to any cry easy-as-can-be), but it also puts you in the best location to respond to your baby’s needs in the event of an emergency.

To prevent incidents of SIDS (Sudden Infant Death Syndrome,) timing is everything. The faster you can respond in the event of an emergency, the better.

By sleeping so close with your little one, you’ll also familiarize yourself with the sound of their breathing over time. This will make you well-prepared to recognize any blockages or other concerns that might need to be taken care of for them to sleep peacefully and safely. 

I’ve Heard About Bed Sharing. Is That Safe?

It is completely natural to want to be as close to your baby as possible. It’s also completely natural to not love the feeling of reaching over crib bars multiple times per night (especially if you’re still healing from a c-section). And it’s totally natural to not want to risk waking up your hard-to-put-to-sleep baby by having to constantly take them out and put them back in their crib.

While it may feel like the best option is to let your newborn sleep on your chest or tuck them into your own cozy comforter for a night of sleeping on your own mattress, the AAP clearly states that parents should never share a mattress with a newborn. This also includes putting your baby to sleep on a breastfeeding pillow or placing them in-between you and your partner.

To understand the “why” behind this recommendation, you need to understand that modern means of comfort are not ideally suited for infant safety. To maximize infant safety, your baby needs a flat and firm surface without extra cushioning that could accidentally cover their nose or make it hard for them to move.

(Reminder: your baby just came into this world, they’re still learning how to roll out of unsafe situations or untangle themselves when their breathing is obstructed.)

The sad reality is, accidents from bed sharing account for 50% of SIDS cases. Most of these cases come about from babies becoming tangled into sheets, rolling off the bed, or accidentally getting covered by pillows. 

Luckily, there are now options on the market that allow you to get all the convenience of this close sleeping without having to worry about those risks.

Sleeping with a Newborn Without Risk: What to Know About Bedside Bassinets

When bedside bassinets and bedside co-sleepers first came on the market, they seemed like the answer to many parents’ prayers. Safe sleep tools like the babybay bedside sleeper keep newborns in close proximity to their parents all through the night (in fact, they get to sleep right by their parents’ side!), while still giving them a sleep space that’s perfectly designed to suit their safety needs.

Parents who choose to sleep with a bedside sleeper can still experience the nighttime ease of nursing and comforting without getting out of bed, while knowing that their little one is sleeping on a mattress that meets all crib safety standards. In this way, your baby can be nurtured through close-as-can-be room sharing, without you having to worry about any of the risks that come from bed sharing.

The Best Newborn Sleep Position: Sleeping on the Back

Back sleeping will always be the safest option for your newborn baby. This position keeps your baby’s airflow clear and open, which prevents chocking and leads to easy nights of catching Zs for both you and them. Unlike sleeping on one’s side or stomach, laying on the back allows for your baby’s natural gag reflexes to take over, which will prevent any obstruction of airflow from occurring. 

Though it’s not totally uncommon to see a baby sleeping on side, this isn’t the newborn sleep position most recommended by the AAP. That’s for one very simple reason: when you have a baby sleeping on side, it’s too easy for them to roll on to their stomach.

Experts have long warned against stomach sleeping, in part because it can lead to overheating or lowered oxygen levels. It will take a few months (normally 4-6) for your little one to learn how to roll to their stomach on their own. When this time comes, you should still continue to put your child to sleep on their back. If they naturally happen to roll onto their stomach during the night, don’t fret.

As long as you continue to put them to sleep back-down, you don’t have to worry about this kind of mid-night rolling.

How to Guarantee a Safe Sleep Surface

Though getting your baby a safe and made-just-for-them baby bed is a good start, you can help your baby stay safe and secure all night long by sticking with a few best practices for sleep accessories.

We completely understand the desire to make your baby’s crib as cozy as possible, but, the AAP recommends keeping cribs clutter-free. For the first year, your crib should only contain a firm mattress and a fitted sheet. Extra pillows, blankets, and toys can all quickly become dangerous if your baby rolls or if something gets pushed over their airways in the middle of the night. 

So keep it simple and remember: when it comes to sleeping with a newborn, less is more.