Some time ago Eva told us about a baby spa in Texas where they put babies to swim with a float around their neck. Like Eva, the fact that there is a spa for babies seems excessive and unnecessary to me, and the float on the babies' neck is ... it causes me some worries.
Will it be safe? How do babies feel using them? What do pediatricians think about it? To answer these questions, I set out to do a little research on this topic.
A shared publication of Baby Spa Perth, AUSTRALIA (@babyspaperth) on Feb 9, 2017 at 5:53 AM PST
While the issue of floats in the neck for babies is not new, they have become popular again in social networks following the photos on the Instagram account of a spa in Australia. In the images we see the babies with a seemingly plastic or rubber float on the neck with the legend "Bubby".
What are the floats made of?
According to information on its website, this float is a patented device that supports a baby of any safe and comfortable weight in the water, and It was designed and developed by a swimming teacher.
Although they do not say specifically what material it is made of, they comment that it is a non-toxic and food grade one, which weighs only 90 grams and is capable of supporting 25 kilos. They emphasize that the float is made of a material strong enough so that it cannot be punctured.
Is it safe to place babies on the neck?
A shared publication of Baby Spa Perth, AUSTRALIA (@babyspaperth) on Feb 27, 2017 at 10:21 PST
They have constantly told us that nothing should go around a baby's neck because of the risk of hanging or suffocation, but there seems to be nothing to indicate that these types of floats are unsafe.
On the spa site they comment that the float is not fitted on the baby's neck and that it holds the baby's head by the chin and the occipital bones that are located at the back of the skull.
Also, comment that this float It is not for sale as it is not recommended to use it in house tubs or swimming pools, and they fear they may be misused to put babies at risk. In theory, this particular type of float is considered safe because it is only used by trained people who remain watching babies.
However, there are brands that do offer similar floats for sale to the public, but whose material is inflatable plastic like any standard float.
A shared post by Otteroo (@otteroobaby) on Dec 23, 2016 at 12:19 PST
Regarding this point, it is important to remember that the Spanish Academy of Pediatrics advises avoiding the use of floats that can deflate. In addition, the American Academy of Pediatrics issued an alert in August 2015 in which it warned of the use of this type of floats to the public, since the air could escape, causing a risk of drowning in babies.
The supposed benefits of the float around the neck
One of the things that this type of float promises is that babies will learn to swim faster. But wouldn't they be doing it wrong? We all know that the natural and safest position for swimming is horizontal. If someone does not know how to swim, they should be placed horizontally to stay afloat until they reach a safe place. This type of float prevents that from happening.
Further, both the Spanish and American Academy of Pediatrics recommend that children take swimming lessons until 4 years of age and not before, because children do not have the ability to voluntarily hold the air until that age. This means that the claim that babies learn to swim faster would not be entirely true. However, it could have a couple of benefits similar to those of matronation, in which the baby learns to become familiar with water.
Its use in therapy and special needs
According to several opinions of users who have tried them, the floats help babies with special needs or developmental delays.
On the site Water Way Babies show in photos a float similar to inflatable plastic. The difference is that they they use it as a tool for physical therapies of children with disabilities or delays in their psychomotor development.
What do pediatricians think about this?
While I didn't find any that made a specific comment about the floats despite the fact that the sites claim they are "approved by pediatricians" (names are not mentioned in any of them), pediatrician Shahrouz Ganjian of California said in an interview for Women's Health magazine that start, a day in a spa is a good opportunity to strengthen the bond between mom and baby.
But nevertheless, aquatic therapy has only shown benefits in children with developmental delay, and does not say whether or not it has benefits for children with normal development, so he does not recommend this type of therapy for anyone.
And although there is no statement from any pediatrician stating that the floats are dangerous or not recommended, I personally would not use it.
Perhaps as a tool for babies or children with a disability if it is a good option, but for a baby whose development is normal it seems absurd.
Although babies look happy in the photos and videos where they appear using them, they still cause me some discomfort because a baby's neck is fragile. In addition, there will always be another way to keep babies safe in the water: mom and dad's arms.
What do you think of these floats? Would you buy them?
