Swaddling website

Miracle Blanket set up the following website and it is really a good site.

www.SwaddlingTruth.com is in response to some bad information and rumors that have been swirling about the country regarding swaddling. These messages are being created by people who have an unjustified dislike of swaddling or a hidden agenda and it’s obvious that they clearly have NOT read the research on the subject. The bad information is being disseminated via “education” and through mislabeled products. It’s confusing and disingenuous at best, and it’s potentially harmful at worst.

Sleep Positioner Dangers FDA Warning

CPSC and FDA News Release
For Immediate Release: Sept. 29, 2010
Media Inquiries: CPSC: (301) 504-7908; FDA: Erica Jefferson, 301-796-4988, erica.jefferson@fda.hhs.gov
Consumer Inquiries: CPSC: (800) 638-2772; FDA: (888) INFO-FDA

Deaths prompt CPSC, FDA warning on infant sleep positioners

WASHINGTON, D.C. – The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) today warned consumers to stop using infant sleep positioners. Over the past 13 years, CPSC and the FDA have received 12 reports of infants between the ages of 1 month and 4 four months who died when they suffocated in sleep positioners or became trapped and suffocated between a sleep positioner and the side of a crib or bassinet.

Most of the infants suffocated after rolling from a side to stomach position. In addition to the reported deaths, CPSC has received dozens of reports of infants who were placed on their backs or sides in sleep positioners, only to be found later in potentially hazardous positions within or next to the sleep positioners.

“The deaths and dangerous situations resulting from the use of infant sleep positioners are a serious concern to CPSC,” said CPSC Chairman Inez Tenenbaum. “We urge parents and caregivers to take our warning seriously and stop using these sleep positioners, so that children can have a safer sleep.”

The two main types of infant sleep positioners are flat mats with side bolsters or inclined (wedge) mats with side bolsters.


FLAT MAT INCLINED/WEDGE

Both types of sleep positioners typically claim to help keep infants on their backs and reduce the risk of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS). The FDA has never cleared an infant sleep positioner to prevent or reduce the risk of SIDS. In addition, CPSC and the FDA are unaware of any scientific studies demonstrating that infant positioners prevent SIDS or are proven to prevent suffocation or other life-threatening harm.

“To date, there is no scientifically sound evidence that infant sleep positioners prevent SIDS,” said Dr. Joshua Sharfstein, FDA Principal Deputy Commissioner and a pediatrician. “We want to make sure parents, health care professionals, and childcare providers understand the potential risk of suffocation and stop using infant sleep positioners.”

Sleep positioners also typically claim to do one or all of the following: aid in food digestion to ease colic or the symptoms of gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD); and prevent flat head syndrome (plagiocephaly). In light of the new safety data, FDA believes any benefit from using these devices to ease GERD or prevent plagiocephaly is outweighed by the risk of suffocation.

CPSC and the FDA are warning parents and child care providers to:

STOP using sleep positioners. Using a positioner to hold an infant on his or her back or side for sleep is dangerous and unnecessary.
NEVER put pillows, infant sleep positioners, comforters, or quilts under a baby or in a crib.
ALWAYS place an infant on his or her back at night and during nap time. To reduce the risk of SIDS, the American Academy of Pediatrics recommends placing infants to sleep on their backs and not their sides.

The American Academy of Pediatrics does not support the use of any sleep positioner to prevent SIDS.

Manufacturers of infant sleep positioners with medical claims that have not been reviewed by the FDA should stop marketing those products until they submit, and the FDA clears, appropriate premarket review submissions, including necessary safety and effectiveness data.

FDA has informed manufacturers of cleared devices of the agency's serious concern and has requested that they submit clinical data showing the benefits of their products outweigh the risk of suffocation or other serious harm.

Prompt reporting of adverse events can help the FDA and CPSC identify and better understand the risks associated with infant sleep positioners. If you have had a problem with an infant sleep positioner, the agencies encourage you to file a report through FDA’s MedWatch program, at http://www.fda.gov/Safety/MedWatch/HowToReport/default.htm.

CPSC is interested in receiving incident or injury reports related to these products. Please visit https://www.cpsc.gov/cgibin/incident.aspx to file a report.

For more information:

CPSC: Consumer BlogFDA: Infant Sleep Positioners Pose Suffocation Risk (Consumer article)FDA: Infant Positioner Initial CommunicationFDA: Letter to Manufacturers Concerning Medical Claims About Infant Sleep PositionersFDA: Letter to Manufacturers of 510(k)-cleared Infant PositionersNIH: Back to Sleep CampaignNIH: Preventing Sudden Infant Death Syndrome and Suffocation
AAP: Policy Statement on SIDS


HAZARD



About CPSC
The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission is charged with protecting the public from unreasonable risks of injury or death associated with the use of the thousands of types of consumer products under the agency’s jurisdiction. Deaths, injuries, and property damage from consumer product incidents cost the nation more than $800 billion annually. The CPSC is committed to protecting consumers and families from products that pose a fire, electrical, chemical, or mechanical hazard. CPSC’s work to ensure the safety of consumer products—such as toys, cribs, power tools, cigarette lighters, and household chemicals—contributed to a significant decline in the rate of deaths and injuries associated with consumer products over the past 30 years.

To report a dangerous product or a product-related injury, call CPSC’s Hotline at (800) 638-2772, teletypewriter at 800-638-8270, or visit www.cpsc.gov/talk.html. Consumers can obtain this press release and recall information at www.cpsc.gov. To join a free email subscription list, go to www.cpsc.gov/cpsclist.aspx.

Miscarriages for the HINI Vaccine

Warning All Pregnant Women: Miscarriages From H1N1 Vaccine As High As 3,587 Cases
September 21, 2010 by Alex
Filed under Eugenics & Depopulation, Featured, Health & Environment, U.S. News
2 Comments
Prevent Disease.com

A shocking report from the National Coalition of Organized Women (NCOW) presented data from two different sources demonstrating that the 2009/10 H1N1 vaccines contributed to an estimated 1,588 miscarriages and stillbirths. A corrected estimate may be as high as 3,587 cases. NCOW also highlights the fact that the CDC failed to inform their vaccine providers of the incoming data of the reports of suspected H1N1 vaccine related fetal demise. NCOW collected the data from pregnant women (aged 17 to 45) that occurred after they were administered a 2009 A-H1N1 flu vaccine.The raw data is available on the ProgressiveConvergence.com website

Using the Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System (VAERS), including updates through July 11, 2010 as a second ascertainment source, capture-recapture statistical methods were used to estimate the true number of miscarriages and stillbirths following A-H1N1 flu vaccination in the U.S.

Typically , even so-called “complete” studies conducted by the CDC have been shown to miss from 10% to 90% of the actual cases because of under-reporting.

The statistical method employed is an expeditious and cost effective method of attempting to ascertain a complete count of all cases when two or more ascertainment sources (VAERS and NCOW survey) have failed to collect all the existing cases.

Overall, this approach show that approximately 15% of the occurences of a miscarriage or stillbirth were actually reported.

Read Entire Article

Different approach to sleep training

The Bliss of Baby Sleeping--All Night Long

by Tera of "Thriving Momma

"The first year with my babies was a litany of sleep-deprived nights, up every two hours to feed. Though I had a co-sleeper next to my bed, baby ended up by my side, my nursing breast accessible whenever baby whimpered. In the morning I’d wake up, pajama draped around my neck but baby snuggled close. I barely remember that first year. Sleep deprivation stymied my sentences and short-term memory. With my third child I vowed not to repeat this saga again.

The other night I lay my 2-month-old baby down on her mattress. She was awake and protested slightly. But she looked at herself in the mirror–a montessori-style sleeping arrangement set-up for the infant. After several minutes she drifted off to sleep. She stayed asleep for 5 hours. My heart danced with joy.

How did I manage this shift? Whether it’s sleeping habits, colic, bedwetting, or sibling rivalry, using the Law of Attraction can help shift the challenging behavior.

1. Set the intention. Journal what you would like to create. I like to write a letter to my angels. Write it in present tense as if it has already happened. Express gratitude. For example, “I am so happy and grateful my baby goes to sleep peacefully on her own and sleeps through the night. etc.”

2. Use energy work such as Emotional Freedom Technique EFT or Calyco Healing to find the emotional block and clear it. EFT is a free technique that uses tapping on acupressure points while repeating a release statement, followed by repeating the affirmation of what you want to create. For example, when I first attempted to put my baby on her crib mattress, she cried. While she cried, I comforted her and tapped lightly between the eyebrows, on her sternum, underneath her armpit, and on the crown of her head. I could see her distress lessen.

3. Use muscle-testing to pinpoint the root cause of the challenge. One method is to make an “O” with your thumb and finger on one hand. Use your other finger to try to break the O. Practice by testing the difference when you say Yes versus No. For example, the second night when my baby cried, I thought she was still resistant to sleeping on her mattress. Muscle-testing revealed that she was fine with her mattress, but was not comfortable with sleeping apart from me. We were able to clear that through Calyco Healing.

If you are not comfortable with EFT or Calyco Healing, you can always seek help from an energy work practitioner. Calyco Healing has been an amazing tool I use with my own clients because it can release emotional blocks about multiple issues in one session.

Know that when we face a challenge, this is simply the in-between space before overcoming the struggle. Keep on moving forward and the storm will pass. Remembering this will help shift the vibration faster in your favor.

Now, my breastmilk-fed baby sleeps until the morning.

Happy Parenting!

Kangaroo Care Saves Baby

Categories: News

This week, an Australian couple, Kate and David Ogg, said that a "kangaroo cuddle" saved the life of one of their twins. Doctors told the couple that baby boy Jamie, who was delivered prematurely at 27 weeks and weighed 2.2 pounds, would not live.

Hospital staff tried to resuscitate the child for 20 minutes before giving the parents the heartbreaking news that Jamie had died, meaning only one of their babies would make it, French news agency AFP reported.

But Kate placed the baby on her chest and used the kangaroo method, which involves skin-to-skin contact between mother and child. She remained in that position for two hours and soon the infant's gasps became more regular and, after a while, he opened his eyes. When the Oggs sent their doctor a message that Jamie was showing signs of life, he dismissed the movements as reflexes.

Kangaroo care is a method that's often used on premature babies where the infant has skin-to-skin contact with his or her mother, just like a marsupial. It's thought that this type of closeness can help regulate the preemie's heartbeat and body temperature, giving the baby a better chance of survival.

In typical kangaroo care, the baby wears only a diaper and is secured to the mother's chest in a head-up position with a piece of cloth (example top left). The cloth wraps around under the baby's bottom to create a tight bundle -- like a kangaroo pouch.

Dr. Mitchell Goldstein, who practices neonatal-perinatal medicine and pediatrics in West Covina, Calif., tells AOL Health that it is possible that this baby was saved by kangaroo care. "This story is intriguing. I'm not saying that in all cases kangaroo care will resuscitate every preterm baby, but there are certain cues moms provide for babies -- it's something that's a testimony to the maternal instinct bond," he says.

"In the NICU, we're applying chest compression and respiration that are much more vigorous. Medications and fluids were probably given, and then when these things did not make a difference, they gave up. Would I advocate using kangaroo care before vigorous resuscitation? No. But after trying it, yes," says Goldstein.

But kangaroo care isn't for all preemies. If a baby is so small that his skin hasn't had a chance to fully developed, the skin could stick to the mother's body, causing more harm than good, Goldstein says.

Kangaroo care widely is used in developing countries where hospital crowding is common and there is a shortage of caregivers. If there aren't enough incubators available, skin-to-skin contact can regulate the baby's temperature. The method also allows for easy access for breast feeding and bonding opportunities between parent and baby (dads can do it, too).

Other benefits of kangaroo care include less stress for the parent and baby and lower hospital costs. But for the Oggs, the proof that kangaroo care works comes from the fact that their son Jamie is now very much alive and thriving. Now 5 months old, he and his twin sister have been taken to the United States on a media tour with their parents.

"Studies have shown that in third world countries kangaroo care improves survival rates by 90 percent," says Goldstein. "Moms are nature's incubators -- and not only to warm a baby. If a baby's temperature gets too high the mom will cool down. Kangaroo care also improves breast feeding. It can have a tremendous benefit for all babies, whether or not they are in distress or preterm."

Breast Milk Storage discussed

This is a quote from a mother who was not identified:

I have to say that for the better part of the 8+ years I have been pumping and breast feeding my four kids, I have never left it out this long, but the most definitive research performed says you can leave fresh breast milk at room temperature for 10 HOURS!
Breast milk has anti-bacterial qualities which inhibit bacterial growth in the milk, even at room temperature. In fact, the bigger issue is not from the milk itself, but rather from other contaminants that affect the milk collection process, such as germs on mom’s hands and skin, the bottle, cap, etc.

Here are a couple of really interesting references for the 10 hour figure. There was a landmark study done in 1987 by researchers named Barger and Bull that compared milk in clean but not sterile containers left for 10 hours at room temperature and 10 hours in the refrigerator. The study found no statistically different bacteria levels! Just amazing! Here are some articles in order of preference.....

http://www.llli.org/FAQ/milkstorage.html
http://members.tripod.com/~bmsg/storageconcerns.htm

http://www.llli.org/NB/NBJulAug98p109.html
http://parenting.ivillage.com/baby/bbreastfeed/0,,3x9q,00.html
I myself, never left milk out longer than probably four hours or so. There were a few times when at work I realized I forgot the ice packs and it stayed warm the whole day. There were no ill effects on junior! All of this may have had more to do with my germ paranoia than actual science.
When my youngest was in the NICU and I was hospitalized after his birth I was pumping. I couldn’t get out of bed to deliver his milk to the NICU, and the poor nurses were often too busy to cart it down there for me. So I often worried about it "spoiling". Once when the neonatologist visited me to discuss my son I asked him about the milk at room temperature. I didn’t believe him at the time, but he said expressed breast milk was fine for up to 12 hours, and in fact has been used over the course of history in medicine to treat the wounds of patients who were injured in emergency situations when no other form of treatment was available. Again, just AMAZING!
Enjoy your breastfeeding experience and good luck with the pumping. What a wonderful gift for your baby!!

Swaddle Updates

Parents and professionals in certain parts of the United States and Australia are being given erroneous information about swaddling. Not only is the message confusing and disingenuous at best, it's potentially harmful at worst. These messages are being delivered via education and through mislabeled products. These misguided messages are being propagated, in some instances, for reputational gain and in others for profit and they absolutely fly in the face of ALL the research done - over decades - on the subject.

Examples:

The term "swaddling" is being exploited and illegitimately applied to various non-swaddling items in order to validate the use of clinical studies to promote those products for profit.

Parents are being advised that swaddling a baby with their hands at their sides, or inside the blanket, prevents on-going development and soothing, even though all studies done on swaddling have been performed with the arms and hands in this position and have still shown improved development.

Parents are being told that the AAP advises swaddling could be hazardous to newborns in the crib due to the risk of loose bedding. This is patently false: The AAP has advocated swaddling on many occasions and has, on several occasions, written about the benefits of swaddling. Additionally, we have never been able to find a single incident of injury of this kind linked to swaddling even though there are so many millions of parents swaddling around the world, every night.

We have in our possession, several (nearly all), well-known, scientific studies that clearly define swaddling as wrapping an infant snugly with arms to the side to make a newborn feel more secure and to limit the startle reflex thus preventing unwanted arousal. As you know, proper swaddling also allows infants to safely stay asleep on their back even when they otherwise prefer the risky stomach-sleeping position. Because of this, swaddling has become perhaps the single most effective tool available to new parents when it comes to providing safe sleep for infants and has even been shown to significantly reduce the risk of SIDS by as much as 30% according to an exhaustive study done in Australia.

Because of our own experience of swaddling nearly one million newborns with the Miracle Blanket (with a still-perfect safety record, in spite of the statistical likelihood of SIDS deaths with that many users) we are extremely concerned about parents being incorrectly educated regarding sleep positions that have not been clinically studied.

Nowhere is this trend more directly evident than in North Carolina. As part of the implementation of the "Infant Safe Sleep Campaign" the NC Healthy Start Foundation says the long held tradition of swaddling could lead to suffocation due to loose bedding. While loose bedding is a serious problem, it is altogether separate from swaddling safety and this theory linking it to swaddling lacks evidence, data and/or clinical studies. It goes directly against decades of research and empirical data from around the world.

Equally disturbing, in the U.S. and Australia, emerging products are being marketed as "swaddlers" when they are in fact lacking the very discernible scientifically-proven attributes that make swaddling safe and effective. While these products do serve a purpose by eliminating loose bedding, they are misleading parents who are missing out on the very real benefits of a true swaddle which include SIDS reduction, soothing of stress/colic/crying, elimination/reduction of startle reflex/waking, and lateral belly pressure.

Our intention here is three-fold. Not only do we feel an urgent need to bring this to your attention, we would be grateful for your feedback and thoughts. We are also assembling a coalition of professionals that understand and support legitimate swaddling as defined in all studies done on the subject. This will be part of a campaign we plan to roll out that will properly educate parents on how to swaddle. Please feel free to send your comments to me at Mike@MiracleBlanket.com.

Thank you for your time. I look forward to hearing back from you!