When baby cries: Soothe them or let them be?

Research finds that allowing babies to ‘cry it out’ has no negative effects on their development. — AFP

While many parents have their own view on whether to leave their babies to cry or to soothe them straight away, a new British study has found that leaving babies to “cry it out” from birth up to 18 months doesn’t have negative effects.

Carried out by researchers at the University of Warwick, the new study followed 178 infants and their mothers over a period of 18 months to investigate the hotly-debated topic of whether parents should intervene immediately when their baby starts to cry.