Tummy Time
What is it?
- Tummy time is a form of physical activity recommended for infants under 6 months of age.
- It involves laying a baby on their tummy (hence, “tummy time”) while they are awake and supervised by an adult.
- Tummy time is laying babies on their stomachs for brief periods while they're awake. It's an important way to help babies strengthen their neck and shoulder muscles, and improve motor skills. Be sure to stay with your baby and watch closely during tummy time.
The Facts:
- The World Health Organization (WHO) recommends at least 30 minutes of tummy time (prone) spread throughout the day in order to optimize healthy growth and development.
- Evidence shows that only ~30% of parents adhere to these recommendations.
- The low adherence rate shows that information about tummy time provided to parents or caregivers by a pediatrician does not effectively carry over into the home.
- With this in mind, TummyTopia serves as a tool to improve the overall adherence rate to tummy time by making it easier for caregiver and baby, as this crucial milestone is required for proper development.
Benefits:
- To improve gross motor skills and overall development
- Strengthen the baby’s neck, shoulder, and arm muscles so the baby can begin to sit up, crawl, and eventually walk
- Improve ability to move and control their muscles to complete various activities
- Reduction in BMI-z (measures of relative weight adjusted for child age and sex)
- Prevention of brachycephaly (flat head syndrome)
- Ability to move supine (on back) or prone (on tummy), including crawling and rolling
When did "tummy time" start?
- In 1942, the American Academy of Pediatrics recommended that infants be placed on their backs (supine) to sleep due to the high incidence of sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS) caused from sleeping on the belly (prone). This is also known as the "Back to Sleep" campaign.
- The number of SIDS cases decreased, however, infants placed on their back to sleep had delayed achievement of motor milestones and an increase in head-shape abnormalities (flat head syndromes, such as plagiocephaly and brachycephaly).
- In order to reduce the prevalence of flat head syndromes, parents and caregivers were encouraged to play with their infants while engaging in tummy time.