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Making Safe Sleep Choices

By Meri Levy

Regardless of where you stand on the issue of bed-sharing versus cribs, there are safe ways and unsafe ways to put your baby to sleep. Here are some tips to help your baby sleep safely – with or without you.

Crib Safety

The Problem: Over 9,000 children are brought to hospitals each year due to injuries suffered in cribs. An average of 54 children per year die from crib injuries.

How to Keep Safe: Avoid used cribs with corner post extensions, ill-fitting mattresses, wide slats, or other features that can cause injury. If you are not sure if a used crib is safe, don’t use it!

Features to Beware of:

• Corner posts should not be higher than the end panels on the crib. Children’s clothing can get caught on extended corner posts and pose a strangulation hazard.


• Space between slats must be less than 2 3/8” and no slats should be missing.


• All screws, bolts and hardware must be in place and tight to prevent the crib from collapsing.


• Mattress must fit snugly so that two adult fingers cannot fit between the mattress and the crib side.


• Do not use cribs with cutout designs in end panels. Child can strangle due to entrapment.

Crib Safety Tips:

• Never put infants to sleep on fluffy, plush surfaces such as sheepskins, quilts, comforters or pillows.


• Never fasten a pacifier around a baby’s neck


• Never hang any object from a string where a baby could become caught it in and strangle


• Never leave a child in the crib with the side rail lowered.


• Remove crib gyms and mobiles when baby is able to push up on hands and knees


• Keep drapes, ribbons, blind cords and wall hangings out of child’s reach


• Make sure crib sheets fit securely – if they come loose, they can pose a strangulation hazard


• Always put your infant to sleep on their back, unless your doctor directs otherwise

Safe Bed-Sharing

The problem:

The Consumer Product Safety Commission has warned parents against bed-sharing due to the risks presented by adult bedding and the concern that parents may roll over on their babies.

How to Keep Safe:

Make sure that your bed is a safe sleeping environment for a baby, and never allow a smoker or an adult who is impaired by drugs, alcohol or medications to sleep with your baby.

Bed-Sharing Safety Tips:

• Always place your infant on its back to sleep. Do not use anything to prop or hold your baby in place.


• Be careful when using certain medications, drugs or alcohol. If you or your partner are taking any substance that makes you drowsy, it is best to place baby in a crib next to your bed, to avoid the risk of mistakenly smothering your baby.


• Avoid using fluffy pillows, stuffed toys, plastics and loose bedding, which pose a suffocation hazard. Place the baby on a firm flat surface which is covered by a tight fitting sheet – even for naps.

Other tips for safe sleeping:

• Do not let anyone smoke around your baby. Second-hand smoke affects normal infant breathing and can cause respiratory and other medical problems. Do not bedshare if you are a smoker.


• Do not put baby to sleep on sofas, recliners, waterbeds, futons, or beanbags, even for naps.


• Avoid overheating your baby. Your baby should be lightly clothed for sleep, and the temperature of your home should be kept comfortable for a lightly clothed adult. Your baby should not feel hot or moist to the touch.

For more information on safe sleeping, contact the Contra Costa SIDS Program at 925-313-6254. For more information on crib safety, contact The Danny Foundation at 1-800-833-2669.

Information for this article was provided by the Contra Costa SIDS Program and The Danny Foundation.