Safer sleep for the holidays

A flax wahakura is a safer option for parents who like to sleep with their babies. Photo / NZ Herald

It might be natural for new parents to want to keep their babies close, but Plunket's national adviser for Māori health, Zoe Tipa, has reiterated the potentially life-saving importance of safe sleep practices.

For parents who chose to take their babies into their own beds, sturdy plastic pepipods or flax wahakura were a safer option.

"But unless you have one of these, our advice is to follow the usual practice of keeping your baby in their own bed, make sure they are sleeping face up and face clear, and the house is smoke-free," Ms Tipa said.

And it was important to maintain safe sleep practices while travelling and on holiday.

"When you arrive at your destination, don't leave your sleeping baby in the car or car seat.

Bring them out and lie them flat, face up and face clear, in their bed," she said.

The good news was that the messages around safe sleep were being heard. Fewer babies were dying in their sleep, and fewer of those that did were Māori.

Sudden unexpected deaths in infancy (SUDI) had fallen from 60 in 2006 to around 40, with most of that reduction within the Māori population, although Māori babies still accounted for well over half of all deaths.

"We can do much better. SUDI are preventable," Ms Tipa added.

"Babies spend a lot of time sleeping, so it's really important that parents and the whole whānau know how to make sure every baby has a safe sleep, every time they sleep."