Patient's question:
How many months can a baby use a pillow?Doctor's answer:
When choosing a pillow for a baby, it cannot be taken lightly, as the needs for pillows vary at different stages. Newborn babies have a straight spine, and when lying flat, their back and back of the head are on the same plane. The neck and back muscles are naturally relaxed, and when sleeping on their side, the head and body are also on the same plane. If the pillow is too high, it can easily cause the neck to bend and sometimes even lead to breathing difficulties, affecting normal growth and development. Therefore, newborns do not need pillows. However, to prevent spitting up, the upper body of a newborn can be slightly elevated when necessary.When babies reach three months old, they begin to learn to lift their heads, and the cervical segment of their spine starts to develop a forward physiological curve. At six months, babies start to learn to sit, and the thoracic segment of their spine begins to develop a backward physiological curve, with shoulder development widening. If a pillow is not used at this stage, the head position may be too low, causing more blood flow to the brain compared to using a pillow, which may affect the baby's ability to fall asleep. Therefore, three-month-old babies should start using pillows. The height of a baby's pillow should be moderate, with a length slightly wider than the baby's shoulder width and a width equal to the length of the head. The ideal height is 3-4 cm, and it can be gradually adjusted according to the baby's continuous development.
The pillowcase should preferably be made of soft white or light-colored cotton fabric. The filling of the pillow should be soft, lightweight, breathable, and highly absorbent, with a slightly firm texture. Materials such as rush grass, buckwheat hulls, and eel grass can be used for filling. In folk tradition, materials like tea leaves, green bean shells, silkworm excrement, bamboo residue, chrysanthemums, and papaya are sometimes used as fillings, but foam plastic or polyester and silk cotton should not be used.
Babies have a metabolism and tend to sweat a lot on their heads, making it easy for pillows to become damp during sleep. Sweat and scalp flakes mix, making it easy for pathogens, dust mites, and other allergens to adhere to the pillow surface. This not only emits an odor but can also easily trigger bronchial asthma or lead to skin infections. Therefore, the pillowcase and filling of a baby's pillow should be washed and dried frequently.