Many parents avoid cosleeping with their babies because they have heard it is dangerous. While there are some potential dangers to be aware of when sleeping with your baby, with the proper precautions, cosleeping is exceptionally safe and offers numerous benefits for both the parents and the children. Families around the globe have safely used a family bed since the beginning of time and you can too.

The real safety issues for a family bed are overlying, suffocation, entrapment and falls. While the number of infant deaths for these factors is very small, particularly when compared to crib deaths, you still do not want to be the one that it happens to. Here are some basic safety steps you can take to make your family bed as safe as it can be.

Avoid Drugs, Alcohol and Smoking

You should never sleep with your baby if you are under the influence of drugs, alcohol or prescription drugs that cause drowsiness. Sleeping with your baby while impaired increases the risk of rollover accidents and suffocation.

If you smoke, you must either quit smoking or use a nursery because you will exhale toxins while you sleep which increase the risk of your baby dying from SIDS.

Avoid Soft Bedding

Choose a firm mattress with tight fitting sheets for your family bed just as you would for a crib. Remove all soft, fluffy bedding such as comforters, pillows and stuffed animals. Many parents use quilts or other blankets that do not pose suffocation hazards.

It is important to also remove similar suffocation hazards from the floor and other areas surrounding the bed should your baby fall or crawl off the bed.

Prevent Falls and Entrapment

The easiest way to avoid falls and entrapment is to place your mattress on the floor. Some parents use multiple mattresses to cover the entire floor of their bedroom. You can also use one or two bed rails or you can shove your bed against a wall to prevent falls.

Many parents use alternate arrangements for naps such as bassinets, slings or even a blanket on the floor because they are not in the bed to ensure the baby's safety.

Entrapment occurs when the baby's head or limb becomes trapped between the bed and the wall or in cutouts in the headboard and footboard. Carefully examine all sides of your bed for entrapment hazards and either fill them in with a rolled towel or something similar, remove the hazard entirely or do not cosleep in that particular bed.

Create a Healthy Sleep Environment

Your baby will spend a tremendous amount of time sleeping so you want to provide a healthy sleep environment whether you use a family bed or a nursery. Use organic mattresses, bedding and laundry products. Seek out natural furnishings and room decor. Block all outside light and noise and remove electronics from the bedroom. Use air filters and white noise machines if necessary to reduce air and noise pollution.

Taking these extra steps to create a safe, non-toxic bedroom will ensure the best night sleep for everyone who is lucky enough to enjoy the family bed and will give you the peace of mind knowing you are giving your baby the very best start in life.