Co-sleeping or sleeping with the children: for or against?

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Although it seems impossible depending on the houses, there are families that put beds for everyone in a room and there, they sleep together and scrambled.

This practice is called co-sleeping and, if you are thinking about it, assume that the style will rarely be out of the question, because of the furniture tetris;

Don't rely on sleeping like the Vitruvian Man either...

(have an elbow in your ear or a knee in your kidneys) wish with an edge in your teeth.

Adjusting expectations is a must when you have small children and know that, with some exceptions typical of Guinness, they fall asleep when they can, not when they want to.

Collecting families are by conviction and/or survival.

The former brandish its many benefits and the latter, lacking in activism, just want to sleep.

, with whoever and wherever.

Minerva, a mother of four, has been through every combination imaginable.

She has juxtaposed others to her double bed (those that have fit) and

, one by one, or several at the same time.

Now, she and her partner only collect with the little one: "She is a year and a half old and does not know the crib. Not because we want to, it is that there is no way to get him out."

Rosa, her husband and the two girls slept together for six months: "They have always demanded accompaniment and we have not let them cry. Also, for breastfeeding it is much more comfortable. Now they are in their room and they usually call me to go with them, like this that

". In other cases, such as Sandra's, it was the father of the children who left the room if there were few centimeters of mattress: "We were responding to what the children needed in order to rest as much as possible."

To many, this collective bed will seem nonsense and others, on the other hand, follow the guidelines of the upbringing of attachment to the letter, without putting much expiration date on the matter: the American actress

, for example, recognized this summer that he still sleeps with his 11-year-old son Bear.

Promotes breastfeeding

Courtesy Maria Berrozpe

There is a scientific consensus regarding the benefits of co-sleeping: in addition to the emotional bonds that are generated between the child and the parents, it decisively promotes breastfeeding.

"No primate is separated from its mother to sleep, because we can only do it if we feel safe. The dreams of both are synchronized and it is good for everyone," says María Berrozpe, PhD in Biology, researcher and author of

(Oberon, 2022), in which he has drawn his conclusions after reviewing 1,500 scientific articles regarding the sleep of creatures.

If it has so many benefits, why so much review and so much 'paper'?

The sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS), that is, the sudden and inexplicable death of a child under one year of age while sleeping, breaks into this debate, because co-sleeping is considered a risk factor.

The risk of sudden infant death syndrome

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For this reason, the AEP (Spanish Association of Pediatrics), in line with the American Academy of Pediatrics, explains: "The safest way for infants under six months to sleep is in their crib, face up, near the bed from his parents.

There is scientific evidence that this practice reduces the risk of SIDS by more than 50%.

With respect to

, directly advises against co-sleeping, and extends it to premature and low-weight babies;

parents who

;

and when conditions of extreme fatigue occur.

«In general, circumstances that lower the parent's awakening threshold are dangerous and it is also contraindicated

», completes Teresa de la Calle, from the Sleep Working Group of SEPEAP (Spanish Society of Extrahospital Pediatrics and Primary Care).

Berrozpe considers a multidisciplinary approach appropriate in which, in addition to paediatricians, anthropologists, neurologists and ethologists have a lot to say.

She cites researchers such as

, who have developed some recommendations for the Academy of Breastfeeding Medicine that do not exclude co-sleeping depending on the child's age.

Thus, their guidelines for a

:

• Do not sleep with the baby on inappropriate surfaces, such as sofas or pillows or other non-firm ones.

• Put the baby on his back.

• That there is no person nearby affected by alcohol or drugs, nor smoke (neither in the environment nor with clothes that smell of smoke).

• He recommends that the adult assume the C (

  curling up

  ) position.

Therefore, insists María Berrozpe, if the risk factors are avoided, co-sleeping is also safe with babies under three months.

And she adds that from this stage on, it protects from SIDS.

"Traditional pediatrics has demonized co-sleeping, but in the last 20 years, research has been

attributed to it," she says.

Berrozpe speaks not only as a researcher but also from her personal experience.

She is the mother of three children: "After making a pilgrimage from one room to another without rest, for three years we all slept together in two double beds.

," she says.

Finally, we can't resist the "million dollar question" that you've been asked so many times: what about your

?

"I've had three children in four years, so it's possible. You just need a change of mentality and I propose, instead of preparing the baby's room, organize it to be a romantic room and use it when the baby sleeps in a safe place It's a matter of

, "he concludes.

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