Latesha Hinton
EDU 0100
Ms. Martin
May 23, 2013

SIDS Sudden Infant Death is the leading cause of death for babies under a year old with most sids deaths occurring between the ages 2 to 4 months. The deaths come without warning, and for a long time without any known cause. Parents these days are told to put their babies to sleep on their backs to reduce the risk of sids. “The back to Sleep” campaign has been successful, reducing the number of crib deaths by about half since it began in the early 90’s. Still, thousands of seemingly healthy babies die in their sleep each year. In a typical situation parents check on their supposedly sleeping infant to find him or her dead. This is the worst tragedy parents can face, a tragedy which leaves them with sadness and feeling of vulnerability that lasts throughout their lives. Since medicine can no tell them why their baby died, they blame themselves and often others innocent people. Their lives and those around them are changed forever. Prevention Revised American Academy of Pediatrics' (AAP) guidelines, released in October 2005, recommend the following: Always put a baby to sleep on its back. (This includes naps.) DO NOT put a baby to sleep on its stomach. Side sleeping is unstable and should also be avoided. Allowing the baby to roll around on its tummy while awake can prevent a flat spot (due to sleeping in one position) from forming on the back of the head. Only put babies to sleep in a crib. NEVER allow the baby to sleep in bed with other children or adults, and do NOT put them to sleep on surfaces other than cribs, like a sofa. Let babies sleep in the same room (NOT the same bed) as parents. If possible, babies cribs should be placed in the parents' bedroom to allow for night-time feeding. Avoid soft bedding materials. Babies should be placed on a firm, tight-fitting crib mattress with no comforter. Use a light sheet to cover the baby. Do not use pillows, comforters, or quilts. Make sure the room temperature is not too hot. The room temperature should be comfortable for a lightly-clothed adult. A baby should not be hot