Babies need tummy time because they spend a lot of time on their backs. This is because:
• As recommended by the American Academy of Pediatrics, most parents put their babies on their backs while they sleep.
• A lot of parents use baby carriers that double as car seats and carriers.
• This combination of sleeping on the back at night and having pressure on your baby’s head during the day can cause a flattening of the skull.
• These flat areas develop on the back of the head and on the forehead. This is called plagiocephaly.
• This flattening may be made worse by a condition called torticollis. This is when there is a single muscle or group of muscles that are tight or weak on one side of the neck. This causes your baby’s head to tilt or turn to one side. The muscle fibers can shorten when your baby rests in one position for long periods of time.
It is important that your baby be put on his back to sleep. The American Academy of Pediatrics says this helps prevent sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS).
It is also important to your baby’s development that he get supervised tummy time and be put in different positions during the day.
While tummy time is undoubtedly important, the reality is some little ones just don’t like it. So why do babies hate tummy time? One possible reason is that they’re just not used to it. The recommended sleep position is on their back and they’re primarily on their backside in their first few months, so they often will protest being on their belly,
Baby may also hate tummy time because they can’t yet push themselves up high enough to turn their heads and look around. And who can blame them? Being stuck face-down, unable to move much, would likely bother you too. Don’t do tummy time soon after baby eats, as they might feel uncomfortable. If you do, Burping baby right before tummy time is a good idea, Baby might still spit up during your tummy time session, but it will be more enjoyable.
The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends(2) at least 15-30 minutes of tummy time per day (by7 weeks of age). If this recommendation feels overwhelming to you, we understand. Please know that you can break this into short sessions throughout the day, so don’t worry if your baby is still working up to longer tummy time sessions.
Think about it this way: Newborns typically have at least 5 wake windows ranging from 45-90 minutes each day. If you can get even 3 minutes of tummy time during each wake window, your baby will get 15minutes of tummy time that day.
A 5 month old typically has 4 wake windows during the day. If each 2-3hour wake window includes 8 minutes of tummy time, your baby will get in 32minutes of tummy time for the day.
