Baby Sleep Training: Mistakes “Experts” and Parents Make

Really looking forward to this series! As I commented in the other post, my 7 and a half month old has a really difficult time sleeping. I have read just about everything on the subject, and my husband and I have tried a lot of strategies. We have not tried "Cry it Out" because I just cannot get behind it.

Some of the claims made in this article are misleading. For instance, the author claims that " ...formula makes babies sleep too deeply, contributing to sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS)." The link provided, however, provides evidence only that breastfeeding (even partial) is associated with a decreased incidence of SIDS. First, the finding that breastfeeding is associated with a lower incidence of SIDS, although well-supported in the literature, is essentially a correlation and CORRELATIONS DO NOT PROVE CAUSATION. Despite the attempt to measure and statistically control for possible third variables, it remains possible that parents who choose or are able to breastfeed share some common characteristic that also contributes to a lower incidence of SIDS. In other words, without a double-blind clinical trial there is no evidence that breastfeeding CAUSES a decrease in SIDS. More importantly, however, and the misleading part of the article is that even if we were to assume that breastfeeding does, in fact, cause a decease in the incidence of SIDS it does not logically follow - nor is there any evidence to suggest - that formula either (a) makes babies sleep too deeply, or (b) contributes to SIDS. To conclude this we need studies showing that (a) formula makes babies sleep too deeply (not just longer, since longer doesn't necessarily mean too deeply), and (b) formula causes SIDS. Indeed, the article cited by Dr. Narvaez provides evidence that babies who are fed formula have a decreased risk of SIDS if they are also breastfed.

BTW, I have a 14-month-old who was EBF until she weaned herself at 12 months. We struggled with sleep issues until about a month ago when we decided to finally try a controlled CIO method. This involved going into her room when she woke at night, telling her it wasn't time to get up and still sleepy time, laying her back down, telling her we loved her and would come get her in the morning, and leaving the room while she cried for first 10 minutes, then 15, then 20, etc. We never made it past 20 minutes, it took 3 nights, and now she falls asleep easily and sleeps through the night (for 12 hours). I would not have tried this when she was much younger because I wanted her to be able to understand what we were telling her, and am not an advocate of CIO methods in general, but I also believe that misinformation and fear-mongering (in the form of psuedo-science) have made some parents so confused and anxious that they suffer and allow their babies to suffer through unhealthy sleep patterns well into their toddler years. I know parents with 18-month-olds who bed-share and wake several times at night to breastfeed. If they do this because they WANT to do this, then that is their choice. But if they do this because they are afraid that night-weaning will somehow harm their baby or their attachment relationship, or they are afraid that a little controlled CIO will do more harm than good, then - Dr. Narvaez - we owe it to them and their infants to NOT MAKE CLAIMS UNSUPPORTED BY EVIDENCE, ESPECIALLY WHEN WE HAVE A PHD OR MD AFTER OUR NAME AND PRESENT THESE CLAIMS AS EVIDENCE-BASED. WE CAN AND MUST DO BETTER THAN THIS.

I am a Developmental scientist with a Ph.D. from the Institute of Child Development at the University of Minnesota.

With our first child I had unreasonable expectations about our sleep patterns. I read alot on the internet about how to get our baby to sleep through the night. Exhausted, I thought 8hrs was the healthy and natural state we should be aiming for. It would have been less stressful if I had understood more about the natural sleep habits of babies. So with our second child (9 m.o.)I have tried to follow her lead. Still exhausted but less stressed. I especially appreciate the information in this article about breastfeeding.

I agree that breast feeding is important for the babies. It is also important for the mother. I also agree the breast milk is more healthy and nutritious than formula. I think mothers should breast feed there child even if it means babies will cry more and waking more in the night.

Dear dr Narvaez,
I am very much looking forward to your post nr 7: Gentle strategies for encouraging toddlers to need less parental intervention at night. We have a 2 1/2 year old who is very insistent about her breastmilk in the night, and we are quite desperate for sleep. Could you give us an idea on when that post is due?
Thanks a lot!
Rachel Verweij

Basically babies are suffering from sleeping disorder; therefore parents are worried about their sleeping practices. Research says that babies growth are partly depend upon the density of sleeping, so we are give more importance to baby sleep first and used to take lessons from experts and experience mothers.

A new born baby need much time to sleep,it create a good health for the baby. Many child are crying at the time of sleeping so its a problem for the parents and the baby.For the sleep better advice from the doctors or any exports.

It would be really to good to clarify early on that 'sleep experts' that recommend CC and not experts by any stretch of the imagination. Their books are merely opinion pieces, I wish this was pointed out more clearly.

As a clinical psychologist certified in behavioral sleep medicine, this blog opinion piece greatly disappoints me. I have been through lectures by Dr. Ferber, and his caring about pediatric sleep is immense. It would be great to have sleep articles written by people who ARE familiar with the decades of research in pediatric sleep (as Dr. Narvaez indicated she is not), and pay attention to the studies that are published as part of their regular line of work. There is a lot of support for breastfeeding in the pediatric sleep community, and the efforts at helping infants sleep well are designed to work for the entire developmental spectrum. This is not an "us vs. them" approach or argument that is presented from the sleep community, but rather unprovoked attacks. This is why I no longer subscribe to Psychology Today.

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