Doctor Komarovsky about the need for swaddling

The baby was born. One of the first questions that parents will certainly have is whether to swaddle a baby.

Grandmothers, of course, will convince in chorus that swaddling is vitally important, and tighter, otherwise "he will wake himself up with pens," "he will not sleep well," etc. The older generation has a thousand and one reasons in their arsenal. ready to explain the benefits of swaddling at any time. However, parents should weigh the pros and cons. And in this they are ready to help the famous children's doctor and author of books and articles on children's health Yevgeny Komarovsky.

A bit of history

The diapers appeared when people realized that the baby needed to be protected from the cold, wind, sun. And it happened in primitive times. The first diaper was the skin of an animal.

Diapers have evolved along with humanity. Obviously, says Evgeny Komarovsky, they existed for a long time so that adults could save on clothing. For the first six months, a baby who is tightly wrapped in rectangular pieces of fabric of different densities really does not really need pants and shirts.

A little later, a medical justification was found for the diapers. So, even 20-30 years ago, in maternity hospitals, doctors explained to women in labor that from swaddling the baby's legs would be smoother, and he himself would be calmer. They taught to swaddle even before childbirth, for "training" they used rubber dolls, similar in size to newborns. We even got to the point of inventing several swaddling techniques - tight, free, partial.

Over time, pediatricians began to notice that the crooked legs from birth do not straighten, no matter how much the child is swaddled, and in general children who, due to the "negligence" of mummies, grow up without swaddling, develop faster physically and mentally. So what was dogma began to be questioned.

Later it turned out that swaddled children breathe harder, and babies, who were finally untied, immediately take a certain pose - they tighten their legs and arms. It is this position that is more physiologically correct for the baby, habitual, because in the womb for 9 months he lives and develops without diapers.

The first doctors and parents rushed to eradicate tight swaddling. Then they began to swaddle in a new way - widely. Looks like a child who, under the diaper, moves his arms and legs and presses his knees, not as nice and neat as the "column" that is obtained as a result of tight swaddling. But the benefits for him have become significantly greater, if only because the kids have become more comfortable.

A little later, child psychologists and other specialists appeared who took the responsibility to authoritatively declare that swaddling, even free, is dangerous for a child - a boldly thinking, freedom-loving and independent personality will never grow out of it.

Swaddle or not?

Evgeny Komarovsky advises parents not to take such "scientific works" to heart. First of all, because they were written and invented by people who were also swaddled in childhood.

In order for a child to grow up as a good, harmonious, developed person, he needs normal intra-family relationships in which he will be properly and reasonably raised. The role of genetics, heredity, the degree of religiosity of the family in which he grows up, social conditions and many other factors play a role. But no one in the history of our planet has ever managed to reasonably and scientifically prove that the personal qualities of a person are somehow influenced by what kind of diapers and with what force they were wrapped at a tender age.

It is for this reason that parents must answer the question whether to swaddle or not, on their own. How it will be more convenient for the adults themselves.

Pros of swaddling: profitability, convenience, no need to update the wardrobe every month as the child grows.

Pros of not diapering:

the opportunity to entrust the dressing to the dad, because he is unlikely to learn to swaddle, and he is quite able to dress the child in human pants and a shirt;
washing powder on shirts takes less than diapers;
sliders require less drying space and dry faster, and the diapers need to be ironed constantly.

Yevgeny Komarovsky notes that in the summer months, when it is hot, it is better to give up swaddling, both loose and tight, because it is very easy to overheat a child in diapers. In winter, there is another risk: the baby will still turn around and freeze at night.

Only parents, and only on their own, must make this decision.

There is no harm from swaddling a newborn, says Yevgeny Komarovsky, with the exception of some diagnoses in which it is undesirable to twist the child tightly, for example, with hip dysplasia. But doctors will definitely inform about medical problems, if they occur.

You shouldn't count on any special benefits from swaddling either. A restless child in diapers does not become calmer, especially if at midnight, instead of sleeping and letting his mother get enough sleep, he diligently wriggles out of the hated diaper only because he is hot or uncomfortable in it, or the handle is numb and there is a physiological need to give her a different position in space.

True, sometimes swaddling really helps to fall asleep, if the child is nervous, often throws up his hands in a dream and worries himself.

Up to what age to swaddle a baby?

Many parents, after weighing all the pros and cons, decide in favor of swaddling. True, not for the whole day, but only at night, so that the child gets used to sleeping in the dark, and not swinging his arms and legs.

Until what age to swaddle a child, it is also up to his parents to decide. When the baby grows up, he may himself cease to be favorable to the diaper and begin to protest against its use.

Most parents manage to cope with sudden "splashes" of the baby's arms by 2 months, some crumbs have the habit of waving their limbs chaotically in sleep for up to six months. In rare cases, a child is swaddled at night for up to 8-10 months. It depends on the individual characteristics of the baby and his temperament.

Parents always know best what their child wants and prefers. If he is uncomfortable in the sliders, mom will definitely feel it, and will put the diaper on time. There are no restrictions, strict time frames, rules and contraindications, says Evgeny Komarovsky.