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Product Description In the world of pediatric care, sleep safety guidelines are controversial and often misguided. Health professionals broadly discourage all forms of cosleeping, which, along with the potentially devastating consequences, makes deciding how and where your baby should sleep both confusing and frightening. Parents who cherish the closeness, security, and warmth of cosleeping are finding themselves conflicted, concerned, and exhausted. Cosleeping, a term which encompasses sleeping in the same room or on the same bed as your infant, is a common parental instinct driven by physiology and seen throughout human history. Despite mainstream opposition, thousands of parents continue the practice, whether intentionally, accidentally, or out of necessity. So, why do current medical guidelines insist that cosleeping is unsafe? What is the difference between SIDS and SUID, and are they related to cosleeping? What should parents do to make a safe sleep space for their infant? If a family chooses to cosleep, how should they respond to reproach from friends, family, or medical professionals? In Safe Infant Sleep, the world's authority on cosleeping breaks down the complicated political and social aspects of sleep safety, exposes common misconceptions, and compares current recommendations to hard science. With the latest information on the abundant scientific benefits of cosleeping, Dr. James J. Mckenna informs readers about the dangers of following over-simplified recommendations against the age-old practice, and encourages parents to trust their knowledge and instincts about what is and is not safe for their baby. This book offers a range of options and safety tips for your family's ideal cosleeping arrangement. These include variations of roomsharing and bedsharing, and introduce the concept of “breastsleeping.” This term, coined by Dr. McKenna himself, is based on the inherent biological connection between breastfeeding and infant sleep, and provides readers with everything they need to know about safely sharing a bed with their baby. Complete with resource listings for both parents and professionals, this book teaches you how to confidently choose a safe sleeping arrangement as unique as your family. Review Dr. McKenna's research proves what mothers the world over have known for centuries―that something beautiful happens to mothers and babies when they share sleep. He helps parents feel empowered to choose the right sleeping arrangement for their family. Safe Infant Sleep is must-read for every expectant and new parent, and belongs in the required reading library of every babycare advisor. -- William Sears, M.D., pediatrician, health consultant seen on television programs including 20/20, Good Morning America, Oprah, Today, The View, and Dr. Phil, co-author of The Baby Book, The Breastfeeding Book, and The Attachment Parenting Book. This is the most important book you will ever buy or give as a gift to new parents. -- Jay Gordon M.D., Fellow, American Academy of Pediatrics Dr. McKenna has earned a kind of credibility that is rare, even unheard of, in the world of parenting advice. He lays out all the evidence and then lets families decide what is best for them. Read this book and become informed, and then pick up your baby, crawl in bed with them, or not, and sleep safely. -- Meredith F. Small Ph.D, Professor Emerita at Cornell University An amazing book by the world's leading expert on mother-infant sleep. It beautifully describes how infant sleep practices can contribute to your baby's safety and development. This book is a must-read for every new parent! -- Kathleen Kendall-Tackett Ph.D, co-author of Breastfeeding Made Simple and The Science of Mother-Infant Sleep This is a very detailed and comprehensive narrative about everything to do with cosleeping, through the unique lens of a dedicated academic who has devoted most of his professional career to this topic. Parents who are keen to understan