'Retro Baby' gives parents back-to-basics advice to help child development

Published October 7, 2013 in the Commercial Appeal

There’s a proliferation of bouncers, walkers, carriers, electronic toys and “educational” videos on the market promising to make parents’ lives easier and children smarter, but according to a new book, when used in excess they can be harmful to baby and impede proper development.

Local pediatric occupational therapist and child development specialist Dr. Anne Zachry, author of the new book “Retro Baby: Cut Back on All the Gear and Boost Your Baby’s Development With More Than 100 Time-Tested Activities” (American Academy of Pediatrics), wants to help parents and caregivers get back to basics and understand the importance of one-on-one play with children during the early stages of life.

“The average middle-class mom spends $9,000-$12,000 on baby gear,” says Zachry, an assistant professor at the University of Tennessee Health Science Center. This can be a costly mistake, she says.

Before working at UT, Zachry was an occupational Therapist for Shelby County Schools for 20 years. In the mid- to late-’90s, she began noticing that many of her referrals were for children (ages 5-6) with handwriting issues. She noted that they sat slumped in their seats and had weak hands. She sent home questionnaires to the parents and discovered that as babies, many of the children did

not like “tummy time” (dedicated time for babies to play on their stomachs) and skipped crawling — both important for developing upper-body strength.

“As a result of the ‘Back to Sleep’ campaign in 1992, many parents resisted tummy time, viewing it as possibly dangerous,” says Zachry. “Overall, the campaign was very successful in reducing the risk of SIDS (Sudden Infant Death Syndrome) by over 50 percent. By the same token, flat spots on babies’ heads increased by 50-60 percent.”

Zachry agrees that babies need to sleep on their backs, but emphasizes that they also need to play on their stomachs. One of her recommended activities is to spread a blanket on the floor, and interest the baby in various toys to make tummy time fun. Also in the book are how-to’s for making toys. “I like to sew and craft, and I wanted to add something to the book so it wouldn’t be boring,” she says.

One of Zachry’s favorites is something she calls a Roly Poly.

“You fill an empty two-liter bottle of Coke with glitter, soap and water, and glue the top on. Babies can push and roll the bottle, which in turn motivates the baby to crawl,” she says.

Dr. Rachel Y. Moon, pediatrician and SIDS researcher at Children’s National Medical Center in Washington, agrees that tummy time is crucial for proper development. “It’s important for babies to get tummy time on a daily basis when they are awake and supervised. You don’t need any special equipment to do this.

“This can also be a good time for parents and siblings to interact with the baby,” Moon says. “Siblings like to get down on the floor and play with the baby. For very young babies, you can place the baby on your chest and interact that way.”

Zachry also stresses the importance of carrying your baby in your arms, which helps the infant learn to use muscles.

“It’s OK to use carriers and bouncers and whatnot, but the time should be limited,” she says.

When she had her son in 1990, there were fewer parents hauling babies around in carriers. “If I was going to take my son to the grocery, I would pick him up, carry him to the car, then carry him to the cart once I was the store, giving him lots of opportunity to use his upper-body muscles.”

According to Zachry, many moms today opt to keep their babies in carriers from door to door.

“They (the babies) can only see what’s in front of them. They can’t use their trunk and head muscles, and they have no head control,” she says.

In the book, she asks, “Has your baby ever fallen asleep in the car seat while you were running errands and when you got home, you took the carrier into the house and left baby in it to nap because you didn’t want to wake him?”

If you answered “yes,” Zachry says to please never do it again, because it encourages babies to be light sleepers. Also, the incline and fixed position of the carrier doesn’t provide a flat sleeping surface, which is optimal for babies.

She also encourages parents to make sure their day care providers do not rely too heavily on baby equipment.

“Retro Baby” includes a detailed chart with guidelines for the amount of time babies should spend in each device, information on different ways to hold a baby, and suggested activities for each hold.

“All of the information in “Retro Baby” will help parents play a role in building a solid foundation for their child’s future skills in school and in life. It’s not meant for moms to beat themselves up,” says Zachry.

On the web

Dr. Anne Zachry’s website — drannezachry.com — features pediatric occupational therapy tips. She also has the website tummytimetips.com, which provides information the tummy time child development technique.