Should you give your baby "tummy time"?

What is "tummy time" for babies? If you're pregnant or have a newborn, you may wonder what this is all about, and if you should do it.

The phrase "tummy time" refers to the recommend practice of placing a baby on its tummy for a while each day. Why? Apparently, because of the recommendation of the AAP (American Academy of Pediatrics) to always put a baby down on its back, American babies are suffering. The back-sleeping suggestions were introduced in order to reduce the prevalence of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome, but now there are reports of misshapen heads due to too much time spent on babies' backs.

The answer? Tummy time. The benefits, apparently, are huge. By spending some time on his tummy, a baby will develop his neck and arm muscles and prepare for crawling. The change in position means that you reduce the risk of "head molding" (which, by the way, some Asian cultures try to do intentially!) and the change will prevent baby from being bored.

If you're interested, I've seen several articles on the web and in parenting magazines telling new parents exactly how to pull this "tummy time" off. The basics, though, are clear: Don't stick your baby on its back all day long, and instead make sure that it gets to experience different physical positions. I think you could have worked this out for yourself. And by the way, sticking your baby in a (safe!) baby carrier is another great way to have him nap in different positions.

Finally, I've got to mention that my mother in law was told to always put her baby to sleep on his tummy, because side sleeping and back sleeping can cause cot death, something that had according to those advising her been proven by extensive studies. Funny. My conclusion, so far, has been to ignore the "latest medical advice" and use common sense instead. That includes "tummy time". And "upright time", "side-sleeping time" and "roll over as you like" time.