SIDS (Sudden Infant Death Syndrome)

This term describes the sudden, unexpected death of an apparently healthy infant, whose death remains unexplained after an autopsy, investigation of the circumstances of the death, and exploration of the medical history of the infant and family. It is most common in infants between 2 and 4 months of age.

Some theoretical causes of SIDS are: impaired heartbeat or breathing (infants are neurologically immature, and do not always self-regulate these functions well), hyperthermia (overheating), rebreathing carbon dioxide trapped in bedding (suffocation), and arousal deficiency (baby is in deep sleep and is unable to arouse itself when a breathing problem begins to develop.)

Incidence is .64/1000 in 1998, so the chance of it affecting your baby is less than 1000.

However, it is the top cause of death in infants between the ages of 1 month, and 1 year, and there are things you can do to help prevent it:

• Have your baby sleep on his back rather than his tummy. Since pediatricians began this recommendation in 1992, SIDS deaths have decreased 42%!
• Babies who sleep on their tummies sleep longer, with less arousal. Although this seems like a great result for sleep-deprived new parents, it may not be the healthiest sleep pattern for newborns.
• Babies on their backs have twice as much motor activity while sleeping, and wake up more often. This seems to help protect them from SIDS.
• Some SIDS deaths seem to occur in babies who are in deep sleep and cannot arouse themselves quickly enough to recover from breathing difficulties.
• Avoid exposing the baby to tobacco smoke: parents are advised not to smoke during the baby’s first year, and not to allow anyone else to smoke around the baby. The greater the exposure to smoke, the greater the risk of SIDS.
• Breastfeed your baby. Breastfed babies have a lower incidence of SIDS.
• Avoid exposing your baby to colds and flus. Have people wash their hands before holding your baby.
• Place infants on firm mattresses with no covering, or only a sheet or light blanket. Do not cover baby’s face with any blanket. No stuffed animals or other items should be placed in crib.
• Do not over-dress the baby while s/he sleeps, or overheat the room. Overheating an infant may increase the risk of SIDS. Babies do not regulate their temperatures well: set the temperature where you are comfortable, and dress them similar to how you dress for your own comfort.
• Educate family members and daycare providers about SIDS, and about reducing the risk of SIDS.
• Co-Sleeping. Sharing a bed can have varying affects on babies:
• SIDS risk may be increased if the baby is sharing a bed with a mother that smokes, or with adults whose responsiveness is impaired by exhaustion, drug use, or alcohol use. SIDS risk may be increased if the baby and sleeping partner are on a couch, soft mattress, waterbed, or other soft surface.
• SIDS risk may be decreased fourfold if there is a responsive adult sleeping in the same room as the baby.
• SIDS risk may be reduced by co-sleeping, under the right circumstances. See discussion under “sleep” on this website, read James McKenna’s research, or read more info at: http://www.mothering.com/9-0-0/html/9-4-0/9-4-0.shtml

For more information:

American SIDS Institute, http://www.sids.org/ and SIDS Alliance, www.sidsalliance.org

Compiled by Janelle Durham, 2002

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