Exploring the world together: Buggies, slings and carriers

Providing babies with the confidence to explore the wider world starts with providing them with a loving and secure base*.  The pushchair direction and the direction with which your child faces when being carried in a baby carrier is an element of that opportunity to explore through the reassurance of seeing the Mother/Father/Carer whilst out and about, as highlighted by a recent article in the press.

Recent comments regarding the negative consequences of forward-facing buggies, and outward-facing carriers, have been made by Professor Cathrine Fowler, from University of Technology, Sydney, and backed up by a 2008 study at Dundee University by Dr Suzanne Zeedyk (Daily Mail article - please ignore sensationalist title - and see also the Dundee 2008 press release):

‘Imagine if you were strapped to someone’s chest with your legs and arms flailing, heading with no control into a busy shopping centre – it would be terrifying...Outward-facing baby carriers and prams give babies a bombardment of stimulus, creating a very stressful situation... In not considering our baby’s perspective, we are inadvertently quite cruel to children’  - Cathrine Fowler

Talk to Your Baby 

Key findings of the 2008 study were:

• 62% of all children observed were travelling in forward-facing (or away-facing) buggies, with the rate even higher, at 86%, between the ages of 1 and 2 years
• Parents using rear-facing (or face-to-face) buggies were twice as likely to be talking to their baby (25 per cent compared to 11 per cent)
• Less than a quarter of parents observed were speaking to their child (22 per cent)
• Mothers and infants, who had a chance in the experimental study to travel in both types of buggies, also laughed more frequently with rear facing buggies. Only one baby in the group of 20 studied laughed during the forward-facing journey, while half laughed during the rear-facing  journey
• Babies’ average heart rates fell slightly when placed in a foward-facing buggy, and babies were also twice as likely to fall asleep in this orientation, both of which could taken as possible indicators of reduced stress levels.

Further evidence

Listening to the Jeremy Vine show today, I heard an update to the Dundee study carried out by Therese Shorthouse, the manager of the VIP Childcare nursery in Elgin who set up her own nursery study comparing the different pushchairs. She spent £2000 on different pushchairs and noted that rear facing buggies were harder to get hold of, compared to standard forward-facing.

After one week looking at babies' (sorry I don't know the age range or number studied) behaviour when in forward facing buggies, then another one week in rear facing buggies, she found:

•  Babies made 30 engagements in week one [forward facing]; 94 engagements in week two [rear facing].
• People standing as distractors along the route: In week one, children didn't engage with/ communicate with them; in week two, infants looked at carers then waved and smiled and spoke to the people along the route. Interpreted as children being ressurred more by seeing their carers first, seeing their reactions to the outside world and engaging accordingly.

Following this, there was of course the classic BBC choice of two people from opposing views of thought, just to whip everyone into a frenzy: from Dr Liz Frazer, Developmental Psychology lecturer, Dundee University and Author of Yummy Mummy's Survival Guide [for the idea "Be with them, spend time with them and connect with them... research shows that babies receiving more eye contact, physical contact, being talked to are more confident do better in life, healthier"] and business consultant Katie Hopkins, the one off the Apprentice [against the idea "there isn't just Mum in the world.... creates molly-coddled children... you are a good Mother if you have a child and go with how you feel"]. Feedback from listeners was also balanced between people who were for and against the idea.

Our buggy situation

I'm sure that the direction in which your buggy/ carrier faces is a factor in the way in which parents engage with and provide opportunities for engagement with their children. When choosing buggies whilst pregnant, we kept to our restricted budget and chose the cheapest newborn-safe buggy - a collapsable forward facing buggy from Mamas and Papas (about £70). The price was a factor as unfortunately, the rear facing buggies were all more expensive. Perhaps the availability of rear facing buggies to all is a factor here? In hindsight, I could have got a second hand rear-facing buggy for a better price.

I was also unaware for the Talk to Your Baby research and the benefits of rear facing. I only saw a buggy as a buggy, and didn't realise the impact the design would have on the type of time I had with my new baby. I also barely used the sling we got whilst she was a newborn (babasling - just couldn't work it, see my old blog on slings), so I didn't have any time facing her when we were out together, although we did use the mothercare baby carrier a little. Hopefully the other elements of my attachment-style parenting filled in the gaps here, that I made up for missed opportunities to engage with and explore together with Abigail when we weren't out for walks. I did stop regularly and talk to Abigail about what we were doing, where we were, etc though - sometimes I held the buggy with one and hand walked along side her so we could look at one another too.

This isn't the same as ours, but you get the idea

Luckily, we had a forward and rear facing buggy bought for us last Christmas (Britax B-Smart, Abigail was 17 months old), and I started using the fantastic babysense sling from 14 months old. Both ramped up the eye contact and chatting opportunities for us both when we were out and about. I did notice the difference. At first, I wasn't sure that if you had a rear-facing buggy that your child would look at you the whole time, rather than around them - so that you'd get in the way of their learning and absorption of the environment. But as we went on our walks I realised that all it was an opportunity to share experiences, as well as her to engage with what passes us by behind us for herself. Abigail could point out things she could see to me, I then could respond to her initiated communication, e.g., "yes it's a plane", and we both smiled at each other - her showing joy that I recognised the things she noticed. The great thing about the alternate positions was that if Abigail wanted to lead the way - point where she wanted to go for a walk, I could sit her in the forward facing position, so that she could see what was coming up and direct the journey too. You can try out the different positions to see what they respond to best in different situations - when she's tired I find she prefers to face me, with the hood up so she can drift off,  for example.

Explore and sharing life together, however

Being carried by Daddy, November 2010

Although there are alsorts of factors that contribute to bringing up a happy, confident, loved child, I expect that not all factors are essential - as long as on balance you're parenting approach is in the right direction. If you have a forward facing buggy and you rarely engage with your baby when you're out and about, letting your attention be directed elsewhere for most of the time, e.g., mobile, headphones, shopping, then this is not going to be good. Let's not just blame the tools! However, I would certainly recommend a rear-facing buggy, and the right sling for you that promotes easy eye-contact and interaction between you and your little one.

*= I believe that, the dated adage that you 'spoil your child' with too much love is a complete fallacy, if you want a happy, contented, confident child just love them, put yourself in their shoes, do your best to communicate with one another from the word go, and respect them for the clever and observant little beings that they are.