However tired or angry you are, never shake a baby
- High value
- Evidence B
- Buys life
- For: Child under 3, Pregnant or trying
- Free
- Takes minutes
- Long-term effort
In plain words
A baby's head is large and the neck has little strength. Shaking hard can cause bleeding in the brain and eyes, and it can kill the baby or leave a lifelong disability. Gently rocking a baby to sleep does not count; the danger is violent shaking you can't control. When you are about to lose your temper, put the baby back in the crib and walk away for a few minutes. Letting the baby cry for a while is safer than holding and shaking.
- Cost
-
Free. The hard part is stopping yourself when you are too tired or too angry.
- What you get
-
A baby's head is proportionally large and the neck muscles are weak. Violent shaking can cause bleeding inside the skull and in the retina (bleeding in the brain and eyes), and it can be fatal or leave a lifelong disability. Gentle rocking to get a baby to sleep does not count; the danger is violent shaking out of control. In medicine, this kind of injury caused by shaking or impact is called abusive head trauma. It is the leading cause of death from head injury in children under 2. In the U.S. from 1999 to 2014, it caused the deaths of nearly 2,250 children under 5.
- Notes
-
At the moment you are really about to lose control, put the baby back in the crib first and walk away for a few minutes. Letting the baby cry for a while is much safer than holding and shaking. This is what to remember above all if you look after a baby alone and are chronically short of sleep. For handling your own emotions, see §3.
- Evidence grade
- B : Supported by research but without a precise number, or based on small or single studies.
- Sources
-
- Spies EL, Klevens J (2016). Fatal Abusive Head Trauma Among Children Aged <5 Years — United States, 1999–2014. MMWR 65(20):505-509. https://doi.org/10.15585/mmwr.mm6520a1
- Choudhary AK 等 (2018). Consensus statement on abusive head trauma in infants and young children. Pediatric Radiology 48(8):1048-1065. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00247-018-4149-1
Translated from the Chinese original. Original book, section 20, tip 9. This section is about health and medicines. It is general information, not a substitute for a doctor’s diagnosis or prescription. Content may be out of date and rules differ by place. When you actually deal with an agency, a doctor or a court, follow what local officials, doctors and lawyers tell you. Disclaimer