Why It Is Better For The Baby Not To Sleep In The Car Seat

It is normal for the baby to fall asleep as soon as they start a car ride. However, car seats were designed for your safety, not for sleeping. Therefore, you have to be vigilant while the baby sleeps in them.

After you have done everything necessary to put the baby to sleep, you are desperate and do not know what to do. You get in the car, take a ride and the miracle happens: he has fallen asleep. You can’t believe it. Even though you are happy that you made it, you wonder if it is advisable for him to sleep in the car seat.

Of course, you come home and after he’s finally asleep, you don’t even remotely think of getting him out of the car seat. You prefer that he continues to sleep there, before waking him up again. The question pops into your head again: is it good to let him sleep in the car seat?

If this situation is familiar to you, it is a good idea to read this information.

Why do babies fall asleep when they drive?

The crib and the extremely quiet environment that babies’ rooms usually have is nothing like what they lived through during the 9 months of gestation. In the womb, the baby was held tight, 24 hours a day.

The baby hears his mother’s heart, digestion and breathing. He also listens to his voice, and they even put music on him with headphones on his belly. The mother walks, moves, goes up and down stairs, exercises … She hardly stops when she goes to sleep, because she stays more still, but the sounds do not stop.

In the midst of that tenuous but continuous whirlwind of sounds and movements, the baby falls asleep. So it’s easy to imagine why, once you get to a huge crib in a quiet, lonely room, it’s so hard to fall asleep.

However, when they are mounted in the car, the vibration and the engine revolutions achieve what seems impossible: the baby falls asleep. It is also easy to imagine the reasons why this occurs; the lullaby of the car takes the baby back to its days in the womb.

What about car seats?

Baby seats or baby carriers are a basic safety tool to transport your baby in the car. In many countries, they are even required by current traffic laws.

It is a basic safety measure for your child in the event of a collision or crash. Even if you are not driving or going to the baby’s side. It is always preferable that he is in the car seat than in your arms.

In a collision with another vehicle or something that is on the road, the baby can be thrown out of the vehicle due to the energy of the impact if you carry it in your arms. The car seat can make the difference between life and death. The problem appears when a chair larger than that appropriate for the life span of the newborn baby is used.

Should you avoid sleeping in the car seat?

It is inevitable, the baby goes to sleep in the car. You can’t keep him from falling asleep either. What you should do r to protect his safety, his dream is to monitor and correct body postures. Your baby is very fragile, and since he is not yet in control of his body, positions change while he is in the car.

If you are accompanied, the ideal is for someone to go behind the baby and pay attention to their postures. Avoid leaving your baby alone in the back seat. If you go alone with your baby, avoid taking long trips.

The risk situations that must be addressed in the event of the possibility of sleeping in the car seat are:

• As the baby does not have control of his head, especially in the first weeks of life, the movement of the car causes the head to fall forward and block the airways, causing suffocation.
• When a baby is seated in a chair, watch the position and position the harnesses properly. Otherwise, your body can flex too much on itself and compress your chest and abdomen. If the baby also falls asleep and his head falls forward, the breathing difficulties are greater.

• The oxygen saturation level drops when the baby is sitting in the chair, especially when his body is not yet in control. For this reason, it is recommended that the baby does not sit for a long time, since he does not yet have the strength to support himself.
• In winter, avoid wearing a very thick coat when sitting the baby. The safety straps will not hold you well due to the thickness of your clothing, which may cause you to be thrown in a collision.

We get home and he’s still asleep: what do I do?

The fundamental recommendation when you get home is that you take the baby out of the car seat. It is not advisable for the baby to sleep in the car seat; These seats were not designed to sleep, but to travel safely in the car and protect against a possible accident.

We know that as soon as you see him asleep, you don’t want him to wake up. No mother wants to wake up her baby. However, it is necessary to remove it from the chair, as it is the same as in the car. In other words, in the carelessness of the parents or caregivers, the baby changes position and can suffocate.

If he wakes up, cradle him in your arms, sing the lullabies he has heard since he was a newborn, or lie down next to him. Mom’s love and warmth will help him fall asleep again.