Babywear Me Right!

OK, that’s it. I was walking around the house last night, doing this and that …

Anyway, with a glimpse of an eye, passing the tv I catch this view:

WRONG, SO WRONG!!!

You’re probably asking yourselves WHY now. I was also asking myself the same question when I only started my adventure with babywearing and baby-carriers. I did a short internet research and I will share my new bits of knowledge with you and do feel free to pass it on further wherever required.

There are two main reasons you MUSN’T carry your baby face forwarding in any carrier.

1. THIS IS NOT A NATURAL POSITION

Babies are born with a ‘C’ shaped spine and they will bend their legs up in a fetal position, rather than stretch out straight for long periods. By the time your baby takes its first step, he or she will develop an „S” shaped spine like older children and adults have. The curves are there for a reason too – they absorb any impact on our back while walking. So just as we’re not meant to „push” our baby to start walking, we can’t make it stay in this upright position it is in while being carried around in a front facing carrier. It is wrong! It causes unnatural pressure on the baby’s spine as well as its incorrect development. Moreover, most forward facing carriers force the baby’s spine out of its natural ‘C’ shape by making the baby’s back lean against the carrier’s tummy. This forces the baby’s pelvis to tilt backwards which puts unnecessary stress on the pelvis by forcing it to carry the baby’s own weight in the carrier and also makes the immature spine responsible for absorbing the force of each step during motion. You can see this  very well in the picture below…

2. IT MAY CAUSE HIP DYSPLASIA

Hip dysplasia is a condition affecting the development of the ball and socket hip joint. As many as 3% of newborns are affected, however, as it can be difficult to diagnose in young babies, this condition may come out only later in your child’s life. To encourage healthy hip development, babies should have freedom to remain in the fetal position. Forward facing carriers and non ergo carriers prevent this position by forcing babies’ legs together:

Of course it is not said that this WILL happen but if it does, this is usually one of the reasons. To risk or not to risk – that’s a parents’ choice but before you decide to risk, check out this website for more information on hip dysplasia:

hipdysplasia.org

Other reasons why babies shouldn’t be carried forward-facing in carries are:

• Overstimulation  –  too many things around to take in which might frustrate a baby, make it cry, be anxious and unhappy
• Affects the carrying person’s spine – proper wraps, slings and carriers ensure that the weight of your tucked in baby is distributed accross the upper part of your body and the gravity remains the same while forward facing carriers usually make the baby lean out from you disturbing the centre of gravity which forces a parent to keep their back in an unnatural position leading to suffering from back- aches.
• Lack of interaction and response to cues  – you won’t even notice your baby being sick or falling asleep etc.

To sum up: to carry forward facing or not to carry forward facing – this is the question…

I say a BIG NO to front facing carriers and strongly encourage you to find an alternative.

Here you will find another post of mine about babywearing which might help you out with choosing a baby carrier safe and healthy for both you and your baby.

I hope I’ve answered all your hidden questions regarding this way of carrying a baby. However, if you have any other questions or doubts, please e-mail me or comment below and I’ll be happy to do further research for you.

Hmmm…

I just thought that the „I’m going to bed” picture should (at least in my case) have another point added to the end of the wife list – „write post” (;

Night night then, off to bed I go (: