The benefits of Carrycots & Lie-Flat pushchairs for newborn’s

Carrycots or Lie-flat pushchairs for newborn’s, and why it’s important to have one for the first 6 months of their life.

The first instinct for an expectant mother is to ensure the safety and comfort of their baby, which is probably what has guided you to this page.

Multiple articles have been posted online, referring to scientific research from universities and healthcare professionals regarding easier breathing and encouraged spinal development if your newborn is in the lie flat position as opposed to being in a “bucket seat”.

Is my baby more comfortable in a Carrycot?

The first key factor to point out is a newborn cannot hold the weight of their head until 4 months (please see article) old. This means if your infant is in a bucket seat they would often be leaning forward which will cause respiratory issues and spinal development problems.

In 2016, research was carried out by the University of Bristol, discussing their findings around car seats and how long can you be travelling with a newborn? It states the effects it has on newborns when travelling for long periods if your baby is not in the correct position.

This is equally relevant in a lie-flat position, no similar, negative effects were noticeable.

In a quote from Peter Fleming from the university, he stated that

“Placing an infant at the more upright 40° position, along with the vibration experienced in a car, leads to significantly increased heart and respiratory rates, and decreased oxygen saturation.  Simulating motion reveals a striking increase in potentially clinically significant oxygen desaturations.  Surprisingly, we found these differences were similar in term and preterm infants”

Please see the full article: http://bristol.ac.uk/news/2016/october/child-car-seats.html

With all this information given, we do not want to put you off travelling with your newborn in a car seat as that would be highly impractical for all parents, however, just bearing in mind how long they will be in their seats is something to take into consideration.

If you have any further questions regarding this article, please contact [email protected]