If you’re not new to the babywearing world, you know for sure the “hip-healthy” statement, all that it encompasses and the importance of it. But if you’re in the search of a baby carrier and new to this field, this is what you should know and definitely consider when choosing one. (read until the end for a surprise bonus voucher!)

see the difference between a non-ergonomic carrier (left) and an ergonomic one (right)

But first, here are a few information about Hip Dysplasia that you might find useful when learning about ergonomic baby carriers:

Hip Dysplasia is the medical term for the instability and free movement of the hip joint.  This is caused by the abnormal development of the femoral joint in which the iliac bone is fixed, allowing the femur to slip from the joint.

Thousands of children are affected annually by this anomaly, the severity varies from a slight instability to a complete dislocation of the hip. Approximately 1 out of 20 newborn babies suffer from one form of the instability of the hip, and 2 – 3 children in 1000 need treatment.

Hip Dysplasia is not a birth defect, because nothing is ”missing”. This instability appears as a result of the hormones that are produced while giving birth, which causes the relaxation of the ligaments. The child’s position during birth can also cause the dislocation. Happily, most hip dysplasia cases resolve naturally if specific steps are taken to alleviate the dysplasia.

In order to prevent hip dysplasia, but also in order to correct it, babywearing in an ergonomic carrier is recommended, as it provides proper structure to keep babies’ legs in an “M” position, in which knees are higher than the bottom and the pressure is not on the baby’s spine.  This positioning keeps a healthy physiological spine curve.

An ergonomic baby carrier should favor the normal growth of the physiological curves of the spine (cervical lordosis, dorsal kyphosis, and lumbar lordosis) and keep the baby’s legs bent and spread apart, following the position recommended for the prevention and treatment of hip dysplasia.

Babywearing in this ergonomic position stimulates the normal growth of the hip and prevents hip dysplasia, which can be caused by incorrect and unergonomic babywearing.

Moreover, children who are treated for congenitally dislocated hips, benefit greatly from corrective orthosis with thighs apart and are recommended to be worn in a wrap or other carriers, with a wide supportive base supporting the thighs.

Wearing baby in the right position combats congenital hip subluxation and sprains, especially of girls, by allowing the child to stay in “M” position, in which the top of the femur is covered more than 2/3 of the acetabulum of the hip bone.

Babywearing outward facing can be deemed unsafe and unhealthy because it does not allow for proper support of the hips and spine.  While forward facing, the center of gravity is exterior oriented and the pressure is placed on the hips and on the base of the spine.

The International Institute of Hip Dysplasia recognizes ISARA carriers and wraps to be ergonomic and stimulating the normal healthy growth of the hip and prevents hip dysplasia.

ISARA favors the normal growth of the physiological curves of the spine  ( cervical lordosis , dorsal kyphosis and lumbar lordosis ) and keeps baby’s legs bent and spread apart, following the position recommended for the prevention and treatment of hip dysplasia.

ISARA is listed as a Hip-Healthy product on The International Hip Dysplasia Institute Official Page.

If you’re in the search of an ergonomic baby carrier and you’ve put an eye on one ISARA, we’re happy to let you know that, until the 19th of January, you can take advantage of a 30% OFF discount by using code AWARENESS30 at checkout* on www.isara.ro

Happy Healthy ISARAwearing!

*this offer does not combine with other offers available.

Babies are the sweetest, fragile little beings who need our care and attention! Feeding and sleeping are of paramount importance for a child to develop harmoniously. It’s every parent’s wish to have the best help he can when dealing with these aspects!

Definitely, a carrier is your savior when it comes to putting your baby to sleep and it helps in developing a healthy sleeping habit that your child will benefit all his life from!

Before we dive into the benefits of sleeping in a carrier, let’s see what are the guidelines to a correct position for your baby in a carrier, so that he can enjoy a safe, comfortable nap!

TICKS is a set of rules created by the UK Sling Consortium to help parents babywear safely.  The rules are simple, clear and well explained:

Even if your baby is older, he still needs head support when he falls asleep.  Make sure that your baby’s head is stable and you can see his face at all times.

To rest your baby’s head, the top edge of the carrier’s panel needs to be high enough to reach up to the nape of your baby’s neck.

All ISARA carriers have a detachable hood included, that we recommend using when the baby is asleep, for extra neck support until the baby can support his/her own head. The hood is very useful for supporting the baby’s head when he/she is asleep. The hood has some elastic bands that click into a clip positioned on the shoulder straps of the carrier. The clips glide up and down for a more accurate fixation. The hood is attached to the carrier with snaps and it can be detached completely.

And now, the benefits of sleeping in a carrier!

When sleeping in a carrier, your baby’s breathing is regulated by yours, so this fact reduces SIDS (sudden infant death syndrome). Scientists recommend sleeping in the same room with your baby, so you can check on him at all times. Well, when babywearing, your child is under your supervision and you can also do your work while he is asleep, it’s the perfect solution!

Having close contact helps a baby to sleep more quietly and for longer. He can hear your heartbeat, hear your voice and smell your scent, thus having a familiar environment!

Having positive sleep associations, without the stress of being separated from his parents, will help your baby develop better long-term sleeping habits. This is vital for his health and a struggle less for you!

He falls asleep happy, in a calm environment and then, even if you want to put your baby down at night so you can rest you can easily unbuckle the carrier, he won’t even notice it!

And don’t think your baby will be too attached and dependent! Often if the child is comfortable enough in the carrier, he will naturally fall asleep on his own when he is ready. He won’t take it as a duty or a stressful moment, a common perception for some children.

What about the moment he wakes up? Seeing your face will make him calmer and more willing to absorb the environment and be active, after a restful sleep in your arms! It is such a beautiful thing to be the last face he sees when he falls asleep and the first face when he wakes up!

Also, the time spent close to your body, which his fragile little system needs so much, increases in a big way! All the time spent away from him, while he sleeps in his crib, is now a time spent together!

And the most important part, the bond between you and your baby is strengthened even more! Sharing his dreams with you as a baby will make you both share beautiful moments each time you will be together!

Is a Toy Carrier that important for a child? Oh YES, a toy carrier plays a very important role in your child’s understanding of life and what it means to take care of someone dear to you! So let’s have a closer look at the significance of this fun tool you can give to your baby!

So what does a carrier represent?

A toy carrier is a replica of a baby carrier designed for carrying a toy/doll and it is suitable for a child’s body. This is the first crucial aspect for a child: the authenticity of his toy.

A child cannot be tricked so easy, he wants to have what his grownups are having and do what grownups are doing, especially if they are his parents! Let’s say you wear your baby in an ISARA carrier, the fact that he would have an ISARA Toy carrier to wear his loved bunny would mean you’re taking him seriously and share the same passion!

You just need to think of your children’s favorite toys to understand what he is wishing for: toy set for serving and preparing food, a baby doll that can even cry or say”mama”, a jewelry-making set, a toy car, a set for construction, a lab replica and the list can go on if we just take every grown-up occupation one by one. Children adore making their own little house (from blankets, boxes, or whatever their hand on, or even a treehouse. All they really want is to be in charge of something, to prepare for life and to feel they are capable of the same activities as their parents are!

Let your child first experience every activity through play, using toys, and then involve them in whatever they see you doing! Cooking,washing dishes, cleaning the house, reading, dancing, going for a walk, playing games and babywearing while doing all the above:P

You may think that only girls will want to wear their toys. It is not so. It is all about being involved in the activity their parents are doing. A boy also wants to spend time with his mother who’s babywearing. Seeing his father babywearing creates an even bigger desire for this beautiful activity. Babywearing is for everyone, and they should see this from an early age!

And the most important question, what will your child learn from carrying his toy?

Carrying his toy will create the most wonderful experience for your child! By interacting with his toy, cuddling and feeling inseparable with something he really cherishes will give him a sense of fulfillment! He would have the chance to take care and be responsible for his fluffy companion no matter in what other activity he gets involved in.

And never forget, you are the most important role model for your baby! All he really wants is to be like you, he copies the being he loves the most! What a wonderful occasion he will have, to learn from you how to offer all his love and devotion unconditionally, every moment of the day!

Inspire your child and let him discover the wonderful world of babywearing, in turn, you will discover how much love is hiding in his little heart!

https://souls-of-my-shoes.tumblr.com/post/51911870858/quietbystander-lala-salama-kenyan-woman

For many, babywearing seems like a fashion of the 21st century, a new way of taking care of babies, followed by parents who are not stroller fans. But the practice of carrying children has a very long history, dating from ancient times.

🤗 Just like today, parents’ lives weren’t easy even in ancient times. Moving from place to place in the case of nomadic people or having to work all day for producing food and other necessities in human settlements, people couldn’t ignore their children. It came naturally to find ways to stay connected to their children and attend to their needs despite their necessity for work, so they used barks, animal skins, or later simple woven pieces of clothes tied around in various ways around their bodies. All these methods evolved in time in a beautiful way, influenced by different cultures around the globe:

🌍 Egypt– Art from Pharaonic Egypt depicts women with baby carriers: Egyptian women who picked cotton in the fields would use colored slings wide in the middle and narrower at the ends, made from their dresses.

🌍 Mexico and Guatemala– a short, wraparound sling called Rebozo is used for carrying babies.

🌍 Kayan and Kenyah tribes from Borneo carry their babies in a rattan plaited carrier, decorated with multicolored beaded patterns and amulets for protection.

🌍 Mozambique– They developed Capulana- a printed piece of cloth tied over a shoulder and knotted between the breasts (like a sling)

🌍 Ipili people from Papua New Guinea use a net bag called a bilum to carry their babies. They are carried with the strap around the forehead of the mother and the baby in the bag carried on the front or back.

🌍 Kenya– A rectangular piece of material with a border around called a kanga is used to carry children.

🌍 In South West China, Thailand, Laos, and Vietnam, children were worn in Hmong style carriers which are usually beautifully hand- embroidered. Mei Tais, originating from China are the most commonly used carriers even today.

🌍 Indonesia– Called selendang slings, pieces of fabric that are also worn as a skirt or a dress are also tied over one shoulder and are used as baby carriers.

🌍 India– In these parts of the world, women use a part of their long length saris to tie and carry their babies in it. There is also a famous statue of Rani Lakshmibai, the Queen of Jhansi in the 19th century, riding a horse in the battle with her child on her back.

🌍 Europe– a 14th-century fresco in a church in Padua, Italy, portrays Mary carrying the baby Jesus in a sling while astride a donkey. In Germany, a traditional cloak or coat was worn, in which there was a piece of cloth to wrap the baby on the hip. In Sweden, women carried their children in a “bog” or “boeg”, made of leather and shaped into a rounded bag with edges and straps that were cut into traditional patterns. In Wales, the Welsh blanket was used to carry babies, which continued until around the 1950s.

ISARA’s Pinterest selection here: https://pin.it/7ceDVnR

🙂 With the invention of strollers and the idea of not spoiling the child, the practice of carrying babies has been lost in western countries in the last centuries. It returned with great force when concepts like “The Continuum Concept” by Jean Liedloff and  “attachment parenting’’ by Dr William Sears gained popularity and the term babywearing coined by Martha Sears. Nowadays, there are a lot of companies that produce a great variety of carriers, studies about the benefits of babywearing are being done constantly and babywearing consultants are always giving the best advice to parents new to this domain.

❤️ Thus, babywearing has come a long way to arrive at this beautiful stage, acknowledged by professionals and adored by parents and babies around the world. We, at ISARA, are contributing with our knowledge and dedication to the constant development of this beautiful practice and we are always inspired by parents around the world who choose to keep their baby close.

Dutch anthropologist Itie van Houtvan Hout writes in his book about babywearing around the world, “Beloved Burden” that carriers have always had “exceptional significance for their users”. We no longer adorn our carriers with amulets for protection, but we still believe that this object holding the most precious being in our lives should be created with love, dedication and responsibility. ❤️ Innovative, organic and creative are words that define our work at ISARA, offering our best to parents and babies around the world!

Sources:

The History of Babywearing

How Babywearing Went Mainstream

https://thebabyhistorian.com/

The cultural history of carrying babies

🤗 We are all facing difficult times, now with the outburst of the coronavirus crisis. Our jobs have moved at home, we and our children have to spend most of our time indoors. Let’s see how babywearing can help us not feeling overwhelmed when staying at home, juggling with a lot of things at once!

When you have a small baby, closeness is important whether you’re at home or outside. When we can’t offer the sky, the trees, the sound of the birds outside, offering our angels the warmth and safety of our bodies and the love in our hearts becomes even more important.

Putting babies to sleep is a challenging task even when we are able to take our babies outside. Breathing fresh, strong air and interacting with the environment outside gets them tired and they sleep more easily. Keeping our child close to our heart regulates their temperature and heartbeats, thus soothing them slowly till they fall asleep. A babycarrier is your friend in need!

Doing errands when your child needs your attention is not a small thing and here is where babywearing comes in handy!

We all need to wash the dishes and exactly at that moment our baby cries or gets bored and starts buzzing around. If front carrying seems difficult when dealing with water, back carrying is a great option.

Preparing the food is also something we need to do, so babywearing comes in handy, as long as we don’t use the stove or we don’t have something sharp in our hands.

We all know how hard it is to watch the mess in the house and not being able to attend to it because your baby needs to stay close to you. A carrier is a blessing when we need to clean around the house, we can front carry, back carry or even hip carry while gathering the things laying around, swiping a bit or whatever we need to clean, as long as we use natural products:)

Working from home is hard because we need to focus, talk on the phone or use the laptop and we can’t leave the baby alone while attending to our task. Even if we sit on our desk, the fact that we carry our baby lets him know we are always by his side and he feels secure and loved. For some of us, sitting down baywearing doesn’t work as good as sitting up, so we can try putting our laptop on the counter, swaying a bit while keeping your baby close. It works like a charm!

When having two or more children, they sometimes get hungry at the same time and you need to feed one with the spoon, while breastfeeding the other in the carrier. Eating together has become even more fun!

Babywearing at home is also about having fun with our baby, enjoying the closeness and creating great memories while staying indoors! We can try putting on some great music, dance and sing with our baby close to our heart! We can triple the fun if we have other children that dance while they babywear their toy in a funny toy carrier!

Sometimes circumstances are challenging, but it’s up to us what we make out of them. Stay home, stay safe, and most importantly, let’s find ways to make staying at home a pleasant experience for all of us!

BREASTFEEDING IN ISARA

“The newborn has only three demands. They are warmth in the arms of its mother, food from her breasts, and security in the knowledge of her presence. Breastfeeding satisfies all three.”
― Grantly Dick-Read

…I would add babywearing to the quote above.

Breastfeeding and babywearing were two of the most cherished and important aspects of my parenthood with both children. I have been breastfeeding for almost 6 years now (with a short pause of six months, while I was pregnant) and babywearing for the same period.

Though many would tend to separate them and consider them as one at a time action, they actually match very well. Breastfeeding while babywearing is not only possible, but quite indicated, especially when the baby needs to be nurtured and still has to be carried. It allows the mother to continue whatever she was doing and feeding the little one at the same time.

Each ISARA carrier enables breastfeeding by simply making the right adjustments.

The soft structured carriers need some buckle adjusting to find the optimal position. In the case of a small baby, the shoulder strap and the one in the middle of the panel can be released, thus the carrier gaining more room and the baby can get lower in the carrier and reach his mothers` breast. For a taller baby, the same straps need to be released, plus the seat belt can be extended and lowered enabling the child to latch on.  This video may be helpful. 🙂

Breastfeeding in an ISARA ring sling is made easy by pulling the fabric through the rings so that the pouch is larger and the baby finds a deeper seat, with the head at the same level as the breast.

When in a woven wrap, the same larger pouch needs to be obtained, but for this, the wrap needs to have its knot undone so that the fabric allows more space for the baby to reach to the source of his milk. 🙂

Remember to always re-adjust the carrier to the initial position after the breastfeeding is over.

Once again, motherhood has proved its superpowers, enabling mothers to deal with multiple activities simultaneously and successfully. It is times like these that make me realize just how grateful I am for having such simple tools to care for my children no matter the circumstances.

This year’s theme for European Babywearing Week is highlighting the so-called fourth trimester, which represents the first 3 months after the baby is born.

A carousel of feelings overwhelms not only the mother but the newborn as well, right after the birth. From the safe, warm place he’d lived until then, suddenly he`s exposed to thousands of new stimulus: light, heat, cold, noise, too much space. It’s just too much and too sudden, so no wonder they cry a lot during this period, it’s the only way they can express their emotions.

As a matter of fact, it lies within our power as parents, to make this road easier for the baby. It has been proved that the best way of soothing an unsettled baby is to hold him closer to the body that used to be his shelter for several months. The smell of his mother, her voice, her arms are enough to know that despite the new environment seems frightening, there’s always someone who could comfort him. However, if as a parent, you need to get your hands free for a while, take into consideration babywearing, it’s life-saving!

In the third trimester, mothers get the nesting fever all rolled upon them, trying their best to prepare the house and themselves for the new member of the family. Many parents find out in the immediate period after the birth of their baby, that various devices they have purchased or received before the arrival of the baby, are…well…useless. However, pretty soon they come to realize that the needs of a newborn are quite handy. Babies` primary needs are those of nurture, protection and care.

Personally, I always enjoyed all the themes for the Babywearing Week editions. I especially like this one, as it can be truly revealing for new parents about the meaning of their unconditional presence in their baby’s life. Many of them may consider it important having all sorts of  “newborn kits” , more or less expensive, when truly, all the little one really needs is to be fed and held. Your arms would serve him the best shelter.

We all love science, especially when it explains through logic and studies what we know in our hearts is true! Let’s explore together some thought-provoking facts about child development and how we, as parents, can impact and guide our baby’s growth, so he can become a wonderful human being!

💡 Have you heard a thousand times that carrying your baby too much will spoil him? You won’t hold back your instinct as a parent after reading this! J. Kevin Nugent, director of the Brazelton Institute at Children’s Hospital in Boston and a child psychologist, says that a newborn baby learns from their interactions with their parents that the world is reliable, and can trust that their needs will be met. Responding to baby’s cries “isn’t a matter of spoiling,” he said. “It’s a matter of meeting the child’s needs.”

Erikson’s theory of psychosocial development is one of the best-known theories of personality. Similar to Freud, Erikson believed that personality develops in a series of stages. The first stage of Erikson’s theory of psychosocial development occurs between birth and one year of age and is the most fundamental stage in life. Because an infant is utterly dependent, the development of trust is based on the dependability and quality of the child’s caregivers.

💡 Even though they tell you to let your child cry and not rush to calm him down, you feel the need to be there for him with all your heart! Studies published in the Current Biology journal, the first of which was by Esposito et al.  show that the infant calming response to carrying is a coordinated set of central, motor, and cardiac regulations that is an evolutionarily preserved aspect of caregiver-infant interactions. Also, Professor Narvaez encourages parents to respond to their baby’s cries, whether it means holding them, touching them, or rocking them; it’s all optimal. “What parents do in those early months and years are really affecting the way the #brain is going to grow the rest of their lives,” explains Narvaez, “so lots of holding, touching and rocking, that is what babies expect. They grow better that way.”

💡 Next time you are holding your baby close to your heart in the carrier think of this amazing fact written in a psychology textbook by Ciccarelli: Personality and the formation of relationships begins with psychological and social development during infancy and childhood (p.328). Personality is shown through temperament, a child’s temperament in relation to their primary caregiver’s temperament will determine what style of attachment the child forms with the caregiver (p.330).

💡 Have you wondered what your baby feels when he is being carried with his face towards you? Here is an interesting fact: Your baby is bombarded by external stimuli (shapes, sounds, colors) and can easily feel overwhelmed. Even shy and sleepy babies take an interest in your voice and face. A big section of the brain is devoted to understanding and remembering faces, and a large part of our social behavior is based on how we read other people’s faces. Looking into someone’s eyes is a necessity for “falling in love”. Isn’t it wonderful that while being carried, your baby can see your face, hear your voice and smell your scent, this way feeling completely secure and loved?

💡 Did you ever imagine the remarkable impact you are having on your child’s system just by carrying him? Scientists have known for years that the cerebellum is directly linked to a feedback loop with the vagus nerve which keeps heart rate slow and gives you resilience under pressure. The cerebellum only accounts for about 10% of the size of a baby’s brain but it contains over 50% of its neurons. As adults, we can calm ourselves by practicing meditation, which puts the cerebellum at peace and creates a parasympathetic response of well being. This appears to be the same response that occurs in infants when they are being carried.

❤️ Thus, take this sack of scientific goodies wherever you go and remember, you are an amazing parent who is offering the best of his being to his little angel!

Resources

https://theheartysoul.com/holding-your-crying-baby-isnt-sp…/

https://www.psychologytoday.com/…/the-neuroscience-calming-…

https://www.researchgate.net/…/236251169_Infant_Calming_Res…

https://www.betterhealth.vic.gov.au/ www.childrenfirstfs.org

bonds.www.bartleby.com/essay/The-Psychosocial-Development-Of-Infants-And-Children-P36CLXY9CXW

Babywearing during pregnancy brings joy not only to a healthy pregnant woman but also to her children. They need their mother’s closeness, especially in the months when their world is about to change. The arrival of a new baby is stressful for the whole family. Babywearing is sometimes simply a way to survive a rough day and other times it gives you a safer option than holding your toddler’s hand next to a busy road.

During the first trimester, there are no restrictions when it comes to the type of carrier or carrying position. You can do anything you like as long as your stomach isn’t overly sensitive, in which case you should avoid carrying in the front.

If your doctor forbids you to lift heavy loads, you should minimise babywearing as soon as possible! There are other ways to bond with your older child and soon enough you will be carrying a newborn next to your heart.

As the pregnancy progresses, we are becoming increasingly aware of the limitations of our bodies and that pregnancy isn’t the overly romanticised state of bliss for most women.

Listen to both your doctor and your body. For your own safety and the safety of your older child, avoid babywearing on the days when your blood pressure is lower than usual or you feel weak or dizzy. Those days will tend to be more commonplace as the pregnancy nears its end.

If you’ve given birth more than once and haven’t been engaged in a regular physical activity, be aware of a possibly shortened cervix or a weakened pelvic floor. If your doctor hasn’t forbidden you to lift heavy loads, you can still babywear over very short periods of time and increase the duration steadily in order to condition your body.

Remember, an active pregnancy makes the delivery and recovery much easier!

At the end of the second and during the third trimester, it is recommended to babywear on your back or in the hip position if it feels comfortable. Most women will miss wearing in the front but they will make up for it quickly once their new bundle of joy arrives. The most comfortable options are multi-pass carries in a woven wrap that simultaneously support your stomach or spread the weight evenly over your torso, thus creating a counterweight for your large bump.
You can also use an SSC with the waistbelt above or below your belly. I prefer wearing very high on the back, with the waistbelt placed firmly on my ribcage.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zm5D2rXGE6A

If you are careful and follow some useful tips, babywearing during a healthy pregnancy can be an activity that benefits you and your whole family. ?

Iris Bozic is an experienced babywearing instructor that cherishes others and puts their needs before hers. She’s organizing free workshops to spread the good news about babywearing.

Thank you, Iris, for all your involvement!

Follow Iris here:
www.nosenjebeba.com
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