Parents in UK Lie About Co-sleeping With Their Newborns

Nearly half of the parents in UK who co-sleep with their newborns lie about it, according to a new poll. According to the American Academy of Pediatrics, the safest place for a baby to sleep is in the room with his or her parents, but not in their bed. Still, many parents co-sleep with their babies, either out of exhaustion or for bonding ... but as many as half don't want to admit it out of shame.

British parenting expert and author Sarah Ockwell-Smith, commissioned a small study to find out how many families are practicing this sleeping arrangement. What she found was that out of the 600 parents who participated, almost half—46 percent—co-sleep with their newborn, but they wouldn't confess it to their health care provider.

"It's not just being judged the parents fear, but they think: 'If I admit this am I going to be reported to social services?' Many people won't even tell their friends or family. It's a taboo," she said.

Parents make many choices for their babies on every aspect from how to feed them to where they should sleep. There's definitely shame involved in a lot of those choices, whether it's that you don't breastfeed or you do co-sleep, so it's understandable parents wouldn't admit to things that are, as Ockwell-Smith puts it, taboo.

As parents, we make the best choices for our babies based on current safety and health recommendations. So, no matter what choices you make, keeping things from your doctor is unwise, because he or she is there to help and support you, not judge you. Together, you can decide the best way to raise a healthy baby.

Source-Medindia