Home monitors for babies?

An expert has spoken out about wearable baby monitors - designed to track a baby's vital signs.

These are now being sold in the US, but have not yet reached the UK. They come in different forms, such as a sock that the baby wears which measures heart rate, oxygen concentrations, and skin temperature, or a babygrow that measures breathing rate and temperature.

Many companies are "aiming to capitalise on this market", says Dr David King of Sheffield University, UK.

He writes in the British Medical Journal that similar products were on sale in the 1980s and 1990s aimed at preventing sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS). But "unfortunately epidemiological studies showed that such devices had no effect on the incidence of SIDS in healthy infants". He adds that home monitoring may be justified in some situations, such as for preterm infants or infants who need oxygen, in which case training should also be given.

Dr King points out that the companies that sell the new monitors have adapted their products to avoid the need for regulatory approval from the US Food and Drug Administration. "No published data support any of their claims," he warns, and until they are, "medical professionals and consumers need to be aware that such devices have no proved use in safeguarding infants or detecting health problems, and they certainly have no role in preventing SIDS".

Otherwise, "the substantial amounts of money that parents pay for such devices might lull them into a false sense of security".

I certainly hope that health care professionals would not start recommending these products to parents, with such an appalling lack of evidence.

 In terms of SIDS, information is routinely given out on proven methods to reduce the risk, such as putting the baby to sleep on its back, and avoiding
overheating.

King, D. Marketing wearable home baby monitors: real peace of mind? BMJ 18 November 2014 doi: 10.1136/bmj.g6639

Lifestyle support vital in pregnancy

Pregnant women must be some of the most heavily-leafleted people in the country! I've kept most of mine - well over a dozen each time - for interest and posterity. I actually did find them useful and think they're a central part of maternity care.

However, they made me nervous on occasion, such as the run-up to my 20 week anomaly scan. At least afterwards it was a relief to look at the list, and think "He probably hasn't got z, y, or z".

But if I'd been obese, or a smoker, or didn't want to breastfeed, it might have been a different story.

New patient information has just been released by the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists on the risk of having a small baby, that is, in the lightest 10% of babies.

Sometimes this size is perfectly healthy, but other babies may have experienced growth restriction in the womb and be at risk of stillbirth, death as a newborn, or serious illness.

Many of the causes are unavoidable, but as is usually the case, lifestyle factors are thought to play a role: smoking, drug use, eating badly, and in this case over-exercising rather than under-exercising.

"The guidance emphasises the importance of leading a healthy lifestyle during pregnancy in order to help reduce the risk of having a growth restricted baby," say the leaflet's authors.

In my experience midwives do their very best to support this sort of lifestyle change, but often the services they can provide are limited by lack of time and funding. The new information states that women who are at an increased risk of having a growth restricted baby will be offered extra monitoring throughout pregnancy.

I just hope the resources are available so midwives are able to follow these guidelines in practice.

by Kate Richards

Eating in pregnancy - experts release summary leaflet

I read with interest the new advice for pregnant women released by the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists. It covers healthy eating, supplements, and how to avoid contaminated food in pregnancy.

The leaflet repeats all the usual standard dietary advice - low fat, high grain - some of which is being questioned in recent studies, and also recommends limiting caffeine to 200 milligrams a day, about two mugs of instant coffee.

It also states that "most women do not need any extra calories during the first six months of pregnancy".

Well I'm sure that's true but when faced with an urgent craving for smoky bacon crisps (as in my case), the official advice can get slightly sidelined!

Eating fish is good, but too much oily fish can risk a high intake of mercury which may affect the baby's development. Shark, swordfish and marlin are out altogether, for this reason. No great loss there then.

Liver and liver pate are also ruled out, which I think is a little extreme. However, they are rich in vitamin A, which in high doses can harm the baby's nervous system.

Peanuts can be eaten freely, as the earlier advice to avoid them in order to prevent an allergy has been discredited.

On the unpleasant topic of food poisoning, the advice is to drink only pasteurised milk, avoid ripened soft cheese -
such as brie, raw eggs and raw shellfish, and cook food thoroughly. The normal food hygiene rules such as hand washing are obviously important.

Folic acid tablets (400 micrograms a day) are recommended to cut the risk of spina bifida, and vitamin D (10 micrograms) is now recommended for all pregnant and breastfeeding women.

The leaflet is a good summary of the current official advice, and may put some of the many myths in this area to rest.

by Kate Richards

RCOG advice leaflet

Additives and my child's behaviour

Could food additives be affecting my son's state of mind and behaviour? It's a frightening thought, but having read up a little, I'm concerned about the impact of junk food even beyond its hopeless nutritional value.

It began last weekend when Ben spent an hour or so acting very out of character. Unlike a temper tantrum, he didn't seem angry, but was pretty much out of control. Almost like being drunk, but with a three year old's energy! After a while it transpired that he'd been given (by my husband) a shop-bought cupcake with "very fake looking" icing.

Screen time

I've been thinking lately about the issue of screen time for the boys, as I've noticed Ben trying to process everything he sees by asking endless questions or acting out different characters.

Worryingly, studies of brain scans suggest that 'Too Much Screen Time Damages the Brain'. So-called 'screen addicted' brains show several changes in the regions involving emotions, attention and decision making.

I don't really think my boys qualify for 'addicted', but might the screen time they have - not just the tv, but games on my laptop and phone - be creating subtle damage?

A 2010 study claims that the average child clocks up more than seven hours of screen time a day (far more than my boys), and may experience sensory overload, lack of sleep, and a hyperaroused nervous system.

Family holidays 'not worth it'?

I'm not in the least bit surprised by recent survey results showing that most parents find holidays too stressful to bother with.

The survey, by bottle sterilising company Milton, shows that the majority (81%) of parents have not had a holiday on their own since their first baby. Of the remaining 19% who have been on a holiday as a couple, 62% have only done so once.

We actually had our first ever night away from the boys recently, nearly four years in. Even then we were away from them less than 24 hours, and no further than five miles away. Though now we know they're happy at Granny's we'll certainly take advantage!

Our one and only holiday with the boys since James arrived (19 months ago) was a challenge. It reminded me of the saying "You know you're a parent when holidays feel like work, and a trip to the supermarket alone feels like a holiday".

I'm actually a bit surprised that only 38% of parents try to keep to their baby or child's sleep and mealtime routine while on holiday, because all hell can break loose if they're overtired or hungry. We planned that trip specifically to stay close to family who could babysit. I'd be nervous to use holiday kids' clubs or childminders, especially as the boys are so young. In the survey, three-quarters of parents said they'd refuse to use a babysitting service in the evening. Only 10% use creche facilities, and even then, 30% say they feel guilty about doing so.

Some parents decided to come home early because of the stress of being with their baby and/or children. How devastating, after looking forward to it. For the next few years, I think we'll stay part of the 25% of parents who decided not to have a family holiday at all.

by Kate Richards

Measuring up to Preschool expectations

Ben has now been at preschool for 12 hours a week since September, and overall has made huge progress. I don't have any concerns about him (all his little "quirks" turn out just to be phases) but he's a different little boy when there are expectations placed on him and he doesn't have constant one-to-one attention from an adult.

Under the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) framework, it is hoped that children will become ready to start school. Luckily Ben's going to be old for his school year and has well over a year left before starting reception.

I say luckily because, um, Ben's not quite what you'd call a "joiner-inner" yet. He's not naughty at all, but just likes to do his own thing so is often very resistant to changing activities when the times comes for playing outside, storytime, or what have you.

So according to the EYFS, he's doing well on their "prime areas" of communication and language, physical development, and to some extent personal, social and emotional development. He's keen to play with the other children, happily joining in or initiating games. But less keen to do what he's told. Oh dear.

In terms of the remaining EYFS areas, he's great at "understanding the world", and knows his numbers and some letters, but is very reluctant to draw, paint or try writing. The problem is that he's too aware of how it ought to look, so won't just muck in and have a go because he knows he can't do it perfectly. I may start encouraging him to practise at home when no-one's looking, and see if that works.

Ben's preschool is great and the teachers have been so patient with him. I feel confident that together we'll manage to iron out these issues in time. How lucky that he was a September baby!

by Kate Richards

www.gov.uk/schools-colleges/early-learning-childcare

Baby blog - Toilet training success

Finally Ben has conquered the toilet! We attempted potty training a good six months ago, when he'd just turned three, but he wasn't keen (to say the least). We tried everything we could think of, including special Thomas the Tank Engine pants, various potty training books, bribery, etc.

On several occasions we decided "this is it now, no more nappies" then the sheer number of accidents drove us back. It also had a negative effect on Ben, as was aware he was doing something wrong, and it became the main focus.

But amazingly, he's just decided that using the toilet is what he wants to do, and hasn't had an accident for nearly a week! I'm over the moon, as all of his friends had been in pants for months and I was getting concerned there was something wrong.

An accidental emergency

We've had many a near-miss in our household over the last three years, but a fortnight ago, one year old James treated us to a real medical emergency.

He was playing in the garden when he tumbled forwards down a step onto concrete. I was just a metre away putting Ben's shoes on, but couldn't grab him in time.

Ben has his preschool shots

Being nearly three and a half, Ben was recently subjected to his second, and final, dose of the measles, mumps and rubella (MMR) vaccine, along with another injection combining diphtheria, tetanus, whooping cough and polio. It was not a fun morning!

The last time he had an injection of any kind was ages ago, when he was 12 months old. He's since had a flu vaccine, but that was a spray up the nose, which he was fine with.

Our fussy eater

Although Ben appears perfectly healthy and very full of beans, the truth is that he's living on a pretty restricted diet, especially when it comes to protein. Fortunately he's great at eating fruit, fairly good at vegetables, and excellent when it comes to anything "treaty" like biscuits, cake and ice-cream. But he's almost entirely a self-imposed vegetarian (not that he'd understand the concept yet!) and will only eat protein in the form of cheese, yoghurt or nuts.

Putting it like that, things don't seem too bad. Except it's a bit inconvenient and embarrassing when the other children are eating normal meals like sandwiches, pasta, sausages, fish fingers, baked beans, scrambled egg... you get the idea!

Call a midwife service for new mums

By Kate Richards
The midwives I encountered during both my pregnancies were almost without exception kind, professional and helpful. If a little abrupt. But this was due to an obvious shortage of staff both in hospital and in the port-natal team. It was quite impressive how they managed to cope when overwhelmed by the sheer number of us!

The midwives who visited me afterwards mentioned they were concerned that their "next day" home visits might be scrapped due to lack of cash, and mums would have to go to them instead. Well quite honestly if you factor in stitches, siblings, and exhaustion, I can't see many of us making it out of the house the very next day after giving birth. Yet this is the crucial time for needing help with breastfeeding, among other issues.

The impact of babies on my sleep

By Baby Blogger Kate Richards
Before having babies I was aware that my sleep would definitely be interrupted for the first few months, and then occasionally when the baby/child was ill or had a bad dream. It was a daunting thought but I assumed I'd get through it like other parents do.

Pondering about Time Out

By Baby Blogger Kate Richards

Time out for me that is, not the new-fangled punishment technique!

Time away from being with the children is a bit of a tricky subject, as I and many other parents struggle with admitting we need a bit of child-free time. Even when they've gone to bed in the evenings, there's a sense of still being "on call" if they need you.

App that aids young parents

By Baby Blogger Kate Richards
Recently I wrote about the low proportion of parents who have attended a first aid course, and how many parents feel they would struggle to cope in a medical crisis (me included).

Since then I've found out about a new app that has lifesaving advice for children and babies - the Baby and Child First Aid app - from the charity British Red Cross. It has a range of useful videos, clear advice, a 'test yourself' quiz section, and is compatible with the Apple iPhone, iPad, Apple iPod Touch and Android tablets.

Recovering from baby! - Kate to Kate

By Baby Blogger Kate Richards

Our baby blogger Kate Richards had her second baby six months ago. She was spared hours of labour but instead had to submit to a C-section. While the world focuses on Prince George, Kate shares her real experience of living with the after-effects of birth.

It's now six months since I had my caesarean section and for a good while I've felt completely normal. On balance I'd say it was more comfortable overall than my first birth, though it was quite frustrating having to take it easy for the first few weeks (I'm a natural fidgeter!)

The midwives told me not to lift anything heavier than the baby - about 8lbs - for six weeks. Well that would've been fine if I had a full-time maid! I did my best though, limiting the number of times I climbed the stairs, and being careful to turn over in bed slowly. Very fortunately I healed with no problems whatsoever.

Could I cope in a medical crisis?

By Baby Blogger Kate Richards
We've been very lucky with the boys' health - no major crises so far. The worst medical "emergency" we've had was an overreaction to what was a standard tummy bug (hindsight is a wonderful thing!)

When Ben was still very small I did attend a paediatric first aid course, however, that was a couple of years ago and I don't have much confidence that I could remember what to do in an emergency.

Talking about talking

 By Baby Blogger Kate Richards
Fortunately, and possibly because I natter on constantly to him, Ben's speech seems pretty advanced for his age, or at least nothing to worry about. There are a few words his mispronounces - such as "wadigal" for triangle - which I find endearing.

But a couple of my friends have had concerns about their little ones' language skills. As with any other area of development, there is a wide range of what's considered normal for each age group.

I become a Mum of two

By Baby Blogger Kate Richards 
Life has been pretty crazy this past 12 weeks! Having two small children certainly doesn't leave much chance for reflection. I could write pages and pages, if I only had the time (and energy). But for now, I'll just concentrate on the birth.

Women urged to seek birth rights

A new organisation launching today is set to campaign for "human rights" for women giving birth.

Campaigners say pregnant women are often left in misery because they do not know that they are entitled to demand treatments such as pain relief.