WATCH: Video of newborn baby’s ‘frightening bath’ goes viral

This video of a blissful newborn’s ‘dangerous’ bath has gone viral - but experts insist there’s no reason to be alarmed

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by Kayleigh Dray |
Published on

As many will know from firsthand experience, bath time can be a very stressful time for young babies and their parents.

However this surprising video has captured a very different experience.

In the footage, Sonia Rochel - the Parisian nurse who developed the Thalasso Baby Bath Method - can be seen gently holding a newborn baby under warm running water.

However, while the baby appears blissful and content, many viewers expressed their concerns for the safety of the baby after the nurse partially-submerged his face.

Watch the footage for yourself below:

One wrote: “Idyllic and nice as this may look there are people who will try this because they’ve seen ‘it’ on the internet and assume they can just do the same. So sadly yes some babies may drown or suffer because of that.

“Noticing how careful the nurse was to avoid letting the water cover the baby’s nose and mouth made me think to myself ‘there should be a warning label ‘do not try this at home without proper training’… I just imagine a new mom meaning well, but making a horrible mistake.”

Others have also expressed concern the infant could become the victim of dry drowning.

However Sonia - whose bathing technique mimics the womb - has been praised by many for her gentle and tender bathing experience.

Speaking in a video interview, the Parisian explains: "What I try to do, with the parents that I meet, I observe if they are very worries, or if they are quite relaxed and comfortable with bathing. I will try and give them a few simple things they can do.

“I give them the basic rules; first of all, never to give a bath when baby is hungry, because then he needs a feed, and has no interest at all in a bath.

“Second, it's about not being afraid to immerse baby, to have some water in her ears and over her eyes. It is very good, and even more it will reassure them later on when they get water in their eyes. So pour water over their eyes.

“Also I advise [parents] to use a gentle baby shower head, so the water can softly stream over their head, which will give the softest cranial massage, that is really great too for the bath.”

She added: “I do give some guidelines for safety though. Mainly because a baby moves during the bath.

“It's their reflex for example when they touch the side of the bath, to ‘jump up’. I know that that happens so I always have my hands ready, because I know that at any moment, baby can do this and make a sudden movement.

“So that is the main safety guideline: be ready for sudden movements, just keep your hands close and ready.”

Sonia finished: “It's about changing the whole idea of a bath, so that it becomes less strict, more about fun than about hygiene.

“I really want to change the definition of the word bath for a baby: it's not about cleaning everywhere, under the arms, the feet, the ears, … a bath is first of all about taking the time, relaxing, feeling good… and to me that would be amazing if we could use that as the new definition for a bath."

What do you think of Sonia’s bathing technique?

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