SIDS Sudden Infant Death Syndrome
is a sudden death of an infant that is not predicted by medical history and
remains unexplained after a thorough forensic autopsy and detailed death scene
investigation. This is a very sad topic for me to read about but I feel that I
must raise awareness whenever I have a chance. I come from a Spanish culture to
which it is acceptable to sleep with a baby in the same bed. Also it is
encouraged because it makes it easier to breastfeed in the middle of the night.
I however find it inexcusable for a baby to be in bed the whole night as you
and your partner sleep. I can’t say that my baby has not slept in my bed
because it would be a lie. However, I have been awake the full time watching TV
and the same goes for my husband (wide awake). I was searching around the world
statistics and my findings led to the United States of America being the
highest SIDS statistics leading with 2,523 and the second highest was Germany
with 429 deaths. Our number is beyond overwhelming. I know everyone has their
own way of raising their child but this is one huge deal where I feel that
people should read about SIDS and take maximum efforts to follow the
preventative ways of avoiding SIDS. I added the link if anyone is interested in seeing the statistics:
http://www.nationmaster.com/graph/mor_sud_inf_dea_syn-mortality-sudden-infant-death-syndrome
http://www.nationmaster.com/graph/mor_sud_inf_dea_syn-mortality-sudden-infant-death-syndrome
That truly is an alarming number of SIDS in the United States and then Germany is far behnd it. I am shocked. I know many women sleep with their babies, especially newborns. My mother did it with my 3 siblings and myself. It does make me think twice about every doing it when I have my own children.
ReplyDeleteI find it surprising that the US had the highest ranking of SIDS death's especially with all the research and awareness that has been brought to the publics attention. I do think it's interesting how other cultures encourage or discourage issues such as this.
ReplyDeleteElizabeth,
ReplyDeleteThe statistics are quite alarming! Do you think that co-sleeping is the main cause of the high rate of SIDS in the US? Do you come across any other contributing factors? Many other nations throughout the world practice co-sleeping but have lower rates of SIDS. Did you come across any information that explains this difference? When my daughter was infant I made sure that I didnt fall asleep with her in my bed. She slept in her crib by our bed until she was close to one. In my culture children sleep in close proximity to their parents until they are at least 3 years old. Not everyone in my family was pleased to hear when we moved her to her own room which we felt would allow all three of us to sleep better.
Elizabeth,
ReplyDeleteIt is quite alarming that the US has such a high rate of SIDS. Do you think that co-sleeping is the main cause of SIDS? There are many other nations around the world that practice co-sleeping but have lower rates of SIDS. Did you come across any information that explains this difference. Like you I made sure that we never fell asleep with our daughter in our bed. Until she was one she slept in her crib in our room. In my native country Sri Lanka children sleep in close proximity to their parents at least until they about 3 years old if not longer. My family wasnt too happy to hear about my daughter's move to her own room because of this!
Hi,
ReplyDeleteI agree that the US rate for SIDS is very high. It is heartbreaking when an infant dies from SIDS. I hope that one day they can find a way to prevent it.
I did the same thing when my son was born. I stayed up most of the nightwhen he was with my wife and I, and even when he slept in his own crib, I stayed up to periodically check on him. I was more than ready to make sure we were aware of this. Thanks, this is good for more discussion.
ReplyDelete