Keeping babies safe over the holiday season

Keeping babies safe over the holiday season

Safe sleep for babies

During the holiday season, families are more likely to be on the move. It is important that those with babies always have a safe place for baby to sleep. Make every sleep for baby a safe sleep this holiday season.

Relying on a makeshift bed while on holiday poses risk of suffocation for babies in the first year of life, so planning ahead to always have a safe sleep environment will help protect babies from suffocation.

To keep babies safe during sleep, always follow these simple rules:

• PLACE baby in his or her own bed, face clear of loose bedding and NO pillows, hats, bibs and soft toys.
• ELIMINATE exposure to smoking, alcohol and drug use, and have a smokefree family, home and car.
• POSITION baby flat and on the back as their drive to breathe is best this way.
• ENCOURAGE and support Mum to breastfeed so baby will be strong.

Safe hands

Holiday season is ‘party season’ as friends and families celebrate and have fun together. It is important those with babies always have a safe, sober caregiver or babysitter with ‘Safe Hands.’

Safe hands will:

• Handle babies gently.
• Always place babies flat and on the back for sleep.
• Never expose babies to smoking, alcohol or drugs.
• Do safety checks of babies beds and remove pillows, loose wraps and soft toys.
• Stay close and respond to babies needs for food, comfort and safety.

Cool to move

Holidays are spent outdoors and travelling to our favourite places. Always check that babies travel in a safety approved carseat that is correctly fitted in the vehicle.

Covered carseats, and prams and strollers where babies lie to sleep can heat up quickly when outdoors. For babies, this can cause overheating, reduced airflow and make it difficult for them to breathe.

To protect babies from the sun, cover them, not the carseat, pram or stroller. Use light, cotton clothing and a light wrap, and keep them in a cool and shaded area on hot days. Water, sand and concrete can reflect UV light that causes sunburn, so it is best to avoid placing prams and strollers near these areas.

Never leave babies and young children sleeping in a parked car. Light from the sun passes through the windows and heats up materials in the car that radiate heat which can quickly overheat a sleeping child.

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