: Baby always rolling over and ending up sleeping on his stomach, is it dangerous? Our 3 months old baby is very keen on rolling over and being on his stomach. Most of the time he automatically rolls over in a few minutes after

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According to the US. Department of Health & Human Services brochure on sleep positioning for infants:

Studies show that, during early infancy, it is unusual for a baby who is placed in the back sleep position to roll onto his or her stomach.20 However, once infants are more developmentally advanced, they often roll over on their own. In this situation, when infants roll over on their own, there is no evidence that they need to be repositioned.

The American Academy of Pediatricians's Task Force on SIDS published the following in Pediatrics in 2011 (emphasis mine):

Parents and caregivers are frequently concerned about the appropriate strategy for infants who have learned to roll over, which generally occurs at 4 to 6 months of age. As infants mature, it is more likely that they will roll. In 1 study, 6% and 12% of 16- to 23-week-old infants placed on their backs or sides, respectively, were found in the prone position; among infants aged 24 weeks or older, 14% of those placed on their backs and 18% of those placed on their sides were found in the prone position.112 Repositioning the sleeping infant to the supine position can be disruptive and might discourage the use of supine position altogether. Although data to make specific recommendations as to when it is safe for infants to sleep in the prone position are lacking, the AAP recommends that these infants continue to be placed supine until 1 year of age. If the infant can roll from supine to prone and from prone to supine, the infant can then be allowed to remain in the sleep position that he or she assumes. There is, however, no information regarding an infant who can roll over from supine to prone, BUT NOT from prone to supine. You should consult your pediatrician in this case.

So the take-away from these expert sources is that you should always place a baby on his or her back to sleep. Once your baby can move allow your baby to sleep in whatever position he or she assumes. Just keep the crib mattress firm, the fitted sheet tight, and keep items other than your baby out of the crib.

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We also tried a product called a Safe T Sleep which basically velcroes the baby into place in his/her crib. We used it because our 4 month old son ends up spinning himself around in the crib (not rolling over) and kicking the sides of the crib and waking himself up. It works great and I think the fact that it prevents him from moving around so much helps him sleep more soundly.

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This is not as dangerous as you think. Make sure your child is sleeping on a relatively firm surface, without squishy bumpers on the sides, and the baby will be fine. But still, when you put your child to sleep, start with the the back.

Yes SIDS is a real danger, and there are indeed studies that show the risk increases when the baby sleeps on his stomach. But it's not like putting him in front of a moving train!

You cannot reasonably restrain your child while he is sleeping, nor constantly wake him to change his position.

It may help you to sleep better at night to consider this semi-logic: if the baby can roll onto his stomach, he's clearly got some strength and mobility, which is often 'said' to reduce risk of SIDS.

Focus on bigger risk factors, like the caregiver being under the influence, smoking, or being extremely tired.

Also take all the junk out of the bed, I sometimes see babies sleeping with ten stuffed animals and a giant pillow - stick to a firm mattress and nothing else. Use warmer PJs and avoid all but the lightest, smallest blankets.