News article

AAP urges nursing mothers to sleep near their babies

February 9, 2005

On February 7, The American Academy of Pediatrics issued new guidelines on breastfeeding, which include the recommendation that mothers sleep close enough to their babies to sense the earliest signs of hunger. Babies who feed at the first sign of hunger feed more easily and this is one of many factors that help establish adequate milk production. The AAP also reiterated its previous recommendation that babies should be exclusively breastfed for the first six months of life, with supplemental foods thereafter.

The new guidelines also describe hospital policies that help promote breastfeeding, such as placing the infant on the mother immediately after birth, drying and assessing the baby while it is on the mother, and delaying all unessential assessments and procedures until after the first feed.

The original AAP statement can be viewed on the AAP website. USA Today ran a story on this new policy, as did the Today Show.

The Massachusetts Breastfeeding Coalition has long supported the recommendation to “Sleep Near Your Baby.” Our Discharge Instructions handout includes guidelines for safe co-sleeping, available in English and Spanish, available from our homepage at http://www.massbfc.org.