Sleep Safety for Your Baby

Parenting Resources and Community Outreach

Too many babies die each year when asleep.

Sleep Safe

ALONE. BACK. CRIB. NO EXCEPTIONS.

Help Your Baby Stay Safe

Here are some important safety instructions to promote safe sleep and reduce the risk of sudden unexpected infant death syndrome (SUID), which includes accidental suffocation and strangulation in bed (ASSB) and sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS).

Premature and low-birthweight babies are more likely to die of SUID than healthy, full-term babies. Before your baby is born, make sure to get regular prenatal care and take good care of yourself while pregnant. After your baby has arrived, their pediatrician will serve as the primary source of advice for your child’s health, including medical visits and vaccinations.

Safe Sleep Reminders

Don’t share a bed with your infant. Instead, keep your baby nearby in a crib or bassinet close to your bed for monitoring to reduce the risk of SUID. Your baby should sleep in your room for six months to a year.

Do breastfeed your baby, if you’re able. Feeding babies human milk by direct breastfeeding, or by pumping from the breast reduces the risk of SIDS. Feeding only human milk, with no formula or other things added, for the first 6 months provides the greatest protection.

Avoid commercial products marketed to reduce the risk of SUID. No products, including heart rate monitors and breathable mattresses, have been tested sufficiently to prove they are safe or effective.

Remember “Back to Sleep – Tummy to Play!” When awake, babies should get plenty of supervised “tummy time” to build neck, back, and arm strength. Begin with short periods of tummy time, increase to 15-30 minutes daily by 7 weeks.

No one should smoke, vape, or be impaired around you before or after your baby is born. Smoking and secondhand smoke put your baby at greater risk of SUID. Exhaustion and substances like alcohol, drugs, and medications can cause impairment.