3. Shaken Baby Syndrome

 

This is what happens when a baby is shaken.

  • Your infant will feel pain and will be afraid, which will make it cry even more.
  • When you shake your baby, its head will be tossed frontward and backward. The baby is not strong enough to stop the movement.
  • Because the baby's head is large compared to the rest if its body, you must support its head when lifting or laying the baby down.
  • Your baby's brain is delicate. When a baby is shaken, its brain strikes against the interior of its head which can result in bleeding. Shaking can cause brain damage leading to convulsions, learning disabilities, behavior problems, or even death.
  • Babies of less than eleven months are easily injured if shaken. Even older children may be injured. Throwing a baby up in the air or swinging them without supporting the head can also injure the baby.

Talk with everyone involved in the care of your baby such as older children, babysitters, friends, family, or any intervener responsible for taking care of the baby. Tell them to be careful and never to shake your baby. Never leave your baby with someone that has a violent temper or someone you don't know.

If a baby seems to have stopped breathing, call 911. Shaking a baby will not cause it to start breathing but could injure him or her.

 

ATTENTION !  Never shake your baby. It only takes a few seconds to cause permanent injury.