Here are the current guidelines from the AAP. I didn’t copy all of it -it’s 11 pages. If you want all of it, it’s on their website. They now say that side sleeping is not recommended as an alternative to back sleeping, but still better than prone (belly) sleeping. So I guess if the baby really is choking on the spit up -use the side position but make sure they can’t turn on their belly -use the rolled up blanket to position that he/she can’t move. Anyway here it is:
“1. Back to sleep: Infants should be placed for sleep
in a supine position (wholly on the back) for
every sleep. Side sleeping is not as safe as supine
sleeping and is not advised.
2. Use a firm sleep surface: Soft materials or objects
such as pillows, quilts, comforters, or sheepskins
should not be placed under a sleeping infant. A
firm crib mattress, covered by a sheet, is the
recommended sleeping surface.
3. Keep soft objects and loose bedding out of the
crib: Soft objects such as pillows, quilts, comforters,
sheepskins, stuffed toys, and other soft objects
environment. If bumper pads are used in cribs,
they should be thin, firm, well secured, and not
blankets and sheets may be hazardous. If blan-
kets are to be used, they should be tucked in
is less likely to become covered by bedding. One
strategy is to make up the bedding so that the
(feet to foot), with the blankets tucked in around
the crib mattress and reaching only to the level of
clothing with no other covering over the infant or
infant sleep sacks that are designed to keep the
infant warm without the possible hazard of head
covering.
4. Do not smoke during pregnancy: Maternal
smoking during pregnancy has emerged as a
major risk factor in almost every epidemiologic
after birth has emerged as a separate risk factor
in a few studies, although separating this variable
from maternal smoking before birth is problematic.
hand smoke is advisable for numerous
reasons in addition to SIDS risk.
5. A separate but proximate sleeping environment
is recommended: The risk of SIDS has been
shown to be reduced when the infant sleeps in
the same room as the mother. A crib, bassinet, or
cradle that conforms to the safety standards of
the Consumer Product Safety Commission and
ASTM (formerly the American Society for Testing
provide easy access for the mother to the infant,
especially for breastfeeding, but safety standards
for these devices have not yet been established
by the Consumer Product Safety Commission.
Although bed-sharing rates are increasing in
the United States for a number of reasons, including
facilitation of breastfeeding, the task
force concludes that the evidence is growing that
bed sharing, as practiced in the United States and
other Western countries, is more hazardous than
the infant sleeping on a separate sleep surface
and, therefore, recommends that infants not bed
share during sleep. Infants may be brought into
bed for nursing or comforting but should be
returned to their own crib or bassinet when the
parent is ready to return to sleep. The infant
should not be brought into bed when the parent
is excessively tired or using medications or substances
that could impair his or her alertness.
which, when placed close to their bed, will allow
for more convenient breastfeeding and contact.
Infants should not bed share with other children.
Because it is very dangerous to sleep with an
infant on a couch or armchair, no one should
sleep with an infant on these surfaces.”