What is Baby Wearing; Why Should I?

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A newborn baby feels secure when allowed the movement, closeness, sounds, and warmth of a proper fitting sling and instinctual parenting. Cribs, mechanical swings, strollers and other gadgets are often sterile, cold environmements filled with the wrong kinds of stimulation and not enough of the right kind. Close contact with a human, especially a parent, is best for babies during their quick early development.

As they grow into toddlers, the baby wearing, attached and instinctual parenting style carries through and your toddler is more secure and has developed well. Slings are a wonderful tool from newborns through toddlerhood.

Getting Back to Basics with Babywearing
Why don’t more parents wear their babies? Maybe it‘s because we just don‘t see other people do it. It’s not the norm. Babywearing is actually an extension of pregnancy, which in turn is part of the overall curve of parenting. Good parenting results in happy, secure and intelligent kids. Babies who are worn tend to cry less than others. They are more aware of their caregivers and the world around them because they spend their days observing interesting occurrences rather than sitting in a chair, staring into space.

Many times while I was out with my daughter, she would fall asleep in the sling. It always gave me a proud maternal feeling to slip the sling over my head and place her, undisturbed and still cradled in the sling, in the car seat. Considering that my first baby never slept for more than three consecutive hours until she was about one and a half years old, one can imagine how thankful I was for the nurturing power of a baby sling. This was one piece of baby paraphernalia that actually made my days a little easier.

Nursing: It’s More than Breastfeeding – And Every Mother Can Do It!
In your arms or snuggled alongside you, your baby is nurtured by the snuggly warmth of your body and comforted by your familiar scent (pheromones). He hears the beat of your heart and the sound of your voice. His neurons and hormones program him to desire and flourish in this environment — a means of ensuring his protection, survival and optimal development. And when allowed, your baby’s powerful imprint on your pheromonal messages is second only to his programmed need and yearning for sucking.

Science has demonstrated how a baby’s optimal development occurs through his neurological and hormonal responses to these planned inputs. Providing these stimuli for your baby means providing the advantages, as well.


The following baby wearing basics are provided by My Precious Kid™.

Health benefits of baby wearing

1) A baby's body is still soft and forming and therefore is subject to become hurt if kept in positions that are unnatural or uncomfortable for long periods of time. A baby sling holds the baby in a natural curled up "ball", just the way they were carried inside the womb.

2) Using a backpack or front pack carrier puts pressure on the base of a baby's spine and also forces the legs to be apart. Both of these can cause the baby to be extremely uncomfortable.

3) Babies who are carried often in a baby sling tend to develop the neck and back muscles which will help to achieve balance to sit and stand rapidly.

4) The baby sling distributes the weight of the baby over the shoulder, back and hip of the adult carrying the baby instead of putting all the weight on the shoulders or thrusting out a hip. A sling is very comfortable for the adult wearing it and can be switched to the other shoulder if one is getting tired.

5) Baby slings make breastfeeding discreetly an easy task. Babies held is slings nurse easier and longer. Breastfed babies have IQ points 5-10 higher than non-breastfed children. Breast milk is the perfect food that has 70 ingredients not found in formula. Breast milk provides antibodies, and immune builders for children.

Psychological Benefits of babywearing

1) Using a baby sling reduces the symptoms of colic. No one knows exactly what causes colic, but babies that are carried in slings have reduced rates of the crying and fussiness that is part of colic. A random, controlled test reported by Pediatrics stated that the colic symptoms were reduced by 43% during the day and 51% at night. Think about that...your baby will cry half as much as she does now!

2) Babies carried in a baby sling are less clingy as they grow older, they become secure and develop a good self-esteem. Instead of begging to be picked up they are begging to be put down to explore.

3) A mom can still tend to other children while using a baby sling. In fact, a mom can still tend to everything she did before she had the new baby. Laundry, dishes, cleaning, shopping can all be done with the baby right next to her.

4) Babies have a hard time coping with the world outside of the womb. It can seem very scary and over stimulating for them to be left alone watching the world go by. They have been inside mom for 9 months and then are now just supposed to make it on their own. A sling can be considered a "womb outside of the womb". It holds the baby just like they were in the womb and keeps him warm and cozy right next to mom. A baby sling helps ease the transition to the outside world.

5) As baby gets a little bit older, the baby sling can be used in different holds so that he can see and experience the world while mom goes on with her day. He learns more in the sling than he would in a swing or crib where he would get bored and cranky.