Chennai, Jan 19: A 26-year-old mother fell asleep while breastfeeding her 3-month-old daughter in her home in Korrukupet on Friday, unknowing that her baby had choked to death.
The woman Meghala woke up in the morning when her husband Gopi, 28, an electrician, found that the baby was unconscious.
They tried to revive the child and then rushed her to Stanley Medical College and Hospital. Doctors there declared the child dead on arrival. An autopsy showed that the baby had choked on her mother's milk, says a Times of India report.
"The child began to cry at 4am, so I woke up my wife and asked her to breastfeed the child," Gopi said. "When my wife woke up, I went back to sleep."
Gopi said he normally stayed awake to make sure that his wife did not fall sleep. "Meghala was always very careful with the baby," he said.
"She would sit in a chair and feed the baby, but she fed the baby in bed because she was very tired and had not slept for a long time."
Meghala said Gopi used would wake up every hour to check on the child and make sure that her mosquito net was tucked in properly. Mohana was the couple's second daughter.
"I never thought that I could do anything to harm my child," said Meghala, her voice cracking with emotion. "I woke up when I realised that the baby had not cried for a long time."
Since the child did not sleep well at night, Meghala and her husband took turns to look after her. "My husband would wake me up if the baby cried for milk," Meghala said.
Doctors said it can be dangerous for a woman to breastfeed a child in bed.
"If the mother sits up in bed while holding her baby there is a chance that she may fall asleep," said paediatrician Saravana Kumar.
Though experts are still debating the possibility of a baby dying of suffocation due to 'overlying' - when the mother rolls over in bed while asleep and lies on the baby, obstructing the child's airways - Dr Kumar said he would advice against taking chances.
"Do not allow your baby to fall asleep while breastfeeding," he said. "Tickle the baby's feet to keep it from falling asleep."
