Top 6 Trends in Natural Baby Care and Parenting

We’ve just about finished the year that no one expected. A new year lies just ahead, full of possibility and memories to make with the smallest new member of your family. If you’re at the beginning of the great journey that is parenthood, here are some top natural baby care and parenting trends to watch in 2021.

Swaddling

Swaddling is a traditional and time-honored practice and remains one of the best soothing strategies parents can use with a new baby. The trend is that a growing number of parents, pediatricians and other child professionals view the first three months after a child’s birth as a “fourth trimester” continuing the development that began in utero. Some of your newborn’s fussiness can be related to the instinctive desire to find comfort in environments that closely resemble that of her mother’s body: being held tightly, rocked by simple motion, and hearing white noise like the sound of your heartbeat. In addition, swaddling can help to calm the baby’s instinctive startle reflex, which starts to fade by four months of age.

It is important to know how to swaddle safely and correctly to protect baby and promote healthy development.

Choose a light blanket so that your baby won’t overheat. Use a hip-healthy swaddling technique that allows your baby to move her hips and knees freely to lower the risk of developing hip dysplasia. When your baby is swaddled properly, her legs should be able to fall naturally into a frog-style position. When swaddling your baby, be sure to place her on her back to sleep and discontinue the use of a swaddle once she can roll from front to back.

Our Blloomigo baby swaddles help you to swaddle with safe, proper swaddling technique to promote your baby’s comfort and help you feel confident in your swaddling skills.

Nature and re-wilding

2020 proved to be the year many of us rediscovered Nature. Parents and children are hiking more, as well as seeking safe places to explore and enjoy Nature. The concept of “re-wilding” or returning to our more natural roots is a trend that has taken hold through gardening, recreation, conservation and more.

You can safely enjoy Nature even with a very young baby. In fact, ensuring regular exposure to sunlight (safely, of course) can help very young infants whose nights and days are mixed up reset their circadian clocks—and let you get some more sleep at night, when you’re tired.

Be sure to bundle your baby properly for the weather and consider keeping your outings in Nature short and sweet at first.

Self-care

Self-care may have been more a necessity of 2020 than a trend, but self-care for new parents has certainly caught on. From napping when the baby sleeps to making time to (safely and sometimes digitally) connect with friends, self-care is an important part of adjusting in this new and special time. Be sure to pay attention to the five tenets of self-care: healthy food, adequate rest (since sleep is at a premium), physical movement, socialization, and making time for things you enjoy, even if you have to be creative during your child’s first months.

Digital detox

As we live more and more of our lives in front of screens, we can get caught up in a never-ending loop of check social media, check email, watch a video, read that text, open that notification…and so on. Add to this the curated perfection of many social media profiles, and new mothers especially can feel inadequate and frazzled. This is why some young parents are embracing a digital detox. This can mean snoozing notifications on your smartphone or tablet, taking frequent screen breaks, or embracing a conscious parenting approach to limiting the amount of time you’re using your phone around your baby or young child. In addition, defining your digital consumption around baby can open the door to more time together, perhaps even in Nature.

The mom struggle is real

Many parents have grappled with the realities of working parenting while at home during this public health crisis. Perhaps more than ever before, working mothers are being honest about their stress in balancing their children’s needs with their work priorities—a concept called role conflict. With more working-parent professionals now in this situation, it may be that 2020 opens the door to a broader discussion of what working families will need to balance their responsibilities once more normalcy emerges. This could be a natural way for families to rebalance their approach to sharing the realities of working and childcare.  

More gender inclusivity

As our cultures move forward with an increasing emphasis on diversity, equity, and inclusion, so too do the products new parents can find on the market for their babies and children. Members of the millennial and Gen Z generations expect more gender-neutral options, from the fields on forms to baby names to unisex clothing and party themes, according to research.

Which of these trends are most relevant to you? Did you choose a gender-neutral name? Are you enjoying spending more time outdoors? And what do you see as important for 2021? Share with us on Facebook or Instagram!