Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS) is one of the leading causes of death among infants one month through age one in the United States of America. The National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD) defines SIDS as the sudden death of an infant under one year of age which remains unexplained after a thorough case investigation, including performance of a complete autopsy, examination of the death scene and review of the clinical history.
This topic is meaningful to me because I had a co-worker who lost her baby at two months old and it was ruled as SIDS. I'll never forget her pain. I remember that she kept blaming herself and didn't understand what she did wrong. Her baby was strong and healthy, eating, developing normally, and all of a sudden one morning when she skipped a feeding, she realized that she was dead in her crib. No blanket, sleeping on her side, still. It's unimaginable and it's unexplainable because they still don't know what exactly causes SIDS. Research has concluded that some risks include sleeping with parents, tummy sleeping and blankets/pillows. But, my friend's baby had none of those things and still, she died of SIDS. Why? We may never know.
For unknown reasons, the rate of SIDS is much lower in Canada and Japan than in the United States, but higher in New Zealand (Berger, 2012). When researching SIDS in other parts of the world, I found that in India, a baby cannot sleep anywhere else but beside their mother and father. It is a tradition and it must be followed although that completely contradicts what the United States considers a huge risk factor for newborns.
The information I gathered on SIDS will greatly impact my future work because many of my student's parents are pregnant and I can pass along this information to them so they are aware of the many risk factors for their new babies and hopefully make a difference in someone's life.
REFERENCES
http://neuroanthropology.net/2008/12/21/cosleeping-and-biological-imperatives-why-human-babies-do-not-and-should-not-sleep-alone/
Berger, K. S. (2012). The developing person through childhood (6th ed.). New York, NY: Worth Publishers
SIDS is such an emotional topic. It seems impossible in this age of technology and knowledge that a cause can not be found. And yet it is there and unexplained. I can't imagine the pain and grief a parent would have in this situation. I will also use the information you have shared to help my new parents.
ReplyDeleteSIDS is such an important and sensitive topic.We were just talking about SIDS and Baby Shaken Syndrome at our last staff meeting and how important it is for people who work in childcare to be knowledgeable in these topics so we can pass on the information to parents.
ReplyDeleteI find your research on SIDS in different countries interesting. I especially found the comment about how in India babies are suppose to sleep next to mom and dad and here in the USA it's a big no no! :) Interesting!
It's always so interesting how different everything is around the world! So much we don't even know.....Thanks for commenting!
ReplyDeleteWhat a devastating situation your co-worker had to go through. SIDS is such a sensitive topic to discuss yet a very important subject that all parents should be informed about. It surprises me that in other cultures they allow co-sleeping between parent and infant. Even in the US parents allow their infants to sleep with them in bed. After my son was born, I let him sleep in his bassinet by my bed and it was so convenient for me to get up and check on him. He slept mostly through the night. I just don't think it is safe for any reason for an infant to sleep in the bed with the parent due to possible suffocation.
ReplyDeleteJanet,
ReplyDeleteI agree with you that the pain of such a loss and the added agony that one cannot explain the root cause is just very devastating to families.
I came to the US in 2008, and I had not heard about SIDS until 2011!! I started to work at a child care company and it is there that I heard about a center that lost a baby that was just put to sleep by one of the best infant caregivers there was in that center. She has not been able to recover from the shock and the parents were inconsolable and I am not sure if they will ever be able to accept SIDS as the cause of their baby's death.
It is also interesting that you spoke about India because half way through your post, I was thinking about India where I am from, and how I had not even heard of it before, considering that babies sleep with the parents there. I must say though, that most babies are placed in a cloth swing that keeps they well aerated and there is no suffocating material over them. I am not sure if this helps a bit although they are in the parents' room. But there is definitely a chance that they tip over and are found on their tummies. Bed sharing is also very common there - probably people do not know about SIDS as a popular reason for death as known in certain other nations!
It will be great to get to the bottom of this mysterious cause/s and find permanent solution to it and 'eradicate' it, because we have worse issues to deal with regarding children all over the world!
Thanks,
Divya