While the cause of SIDS is unknown, many clinicians and researchers believe that SIDS is associated with problems in the ability of the baby to arouse from sleep, to detect low levels of oxygen, or a buildup of carbon dioxide in the blood. When babies sleep face down, they may re-breathe exhaled carbon dioxide.
Scientists in Australia have found that some babies at risk of sudden infant death syndrome, or SIDS, have low levels of an enzyme called butyrylcholinesterase (BChE) in their blood.
SIDS has no symptoms or warning signs. Babies who die of SIDS seem healthy before being put to bed. They show no signs of struggle and are often found in the same position as when they were placed in the bed.
The rate of SIDS deaths per 100,000 live births has declined in Australia since the beginning of national public education campaigns about risk factors associated with SIDS in 1991 (AIHW 2012). Between 2007 and 2017 the rate declined from 28 per 100,000 to 6 in 2017, following a peak in 2009 of 32 per 100,000.
SIDS is less common after 8 months of age, but parents and caregivers should continue to follow safe sleep practices to reduce the risk of SIDS and other sleep-related causes of infant death until baby's first birthday. More than 90% of all SIDS deaths occur before 6 months of age.
SIDS and Age: When Is My Baby No Longer at Risk? SIDS can occur anytime during a baby's first year of life (it's extremely rare after 1 year of age). Although the causes of SIDS are still largely unknown, doctors do know that the risk of SIDS appears to peak between 2 and 4 months of age and decreases after 6 months.
White noise reduces the risk of SIDS.
We DO know that white noise reduces active sleep (which is the sleep state where SIDS is most likely to occur).
Dr. Hauck: We don't know for sure why room-sharing without bed-sharing is protective, but we have some theories. One is that the babies are sleeping more lightly because there is more movement around them (so they cannot get into as deep a sleep, which can contribute to the final pathway in SIDS).
Epidemiologic data suggest that SIDS is related to the sleep state, but exiguous literature has addressed infants who had been awake at the time of sudden catastrophic deterioration and subsequent death.
Sleep position:
Babies who are used to sleeping on their backs but who are placed on their stomachs or sides for sleep, like for a nap, are at very high risk of SIDS.
Breastfeeding has been shown to reduce the occurrence of SIDS by over 50 percent by improving the immune system, promoting brain growth, reducing reflux and a variety of other factors.
SIDS is most common at 2-4 months of age when the cardiorespiratory system of all infants is in rapid transition and therefore unstable. So, all infants in this age range are at risk for dysfunction of neurological control of breathing.
The results showed a positive correlation between temperature and SIDS in 3–12 month-old infants specifically. On days when temperatures were greater than 29 °C, there was a 2.78 times greater chance of sudden infant death than on 20 °C days.
Studies have shown that the increased SIDS risk associated with colder temperatures in the winter can be explained by excessive clothing and overwrapping of infants.
Babies can become wedged between a parent's body and the back of a couch or the arm of a chair and the weight of the adult's body can prevent them from breathing. Sleeping with your baby on a sofa also puts your baby at a greatly increased risk of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome.
It is important to make sure that your baby is a comfortable temperature – not too hot or too cold. The chance of SIDS is higher in babies who get too hot. A room temperature of 16-20°C – with light bedding or a lightweight, well-fitting baby sleep bag– is comfortable and safe for sleeping babies.
The results found that running a fan in a sleeping infant's room lowered the risk for SIDS by 72 percent. That risk was lowered even further when the infant's sleeping conditions put him or her at higher risk for SIDS, such as sleeping in a warm room or sleeping on the stomach.
Infants at the age when SIDS occurs quite frequently spend most of their sleep in a stage known as rapid eye movement or REM sleep. This sleep stage is characterized by the dysregulation of various mechanosensory airway and chemosensory autonomous reflexes that are critical for survival (18, 19).
As a rule of thumb, babies should not be exposed to noise levels over 60 decibels. The noise level recommended for hospital nurseries is actually lower, at 50 dB. For reference, a quiet conversation is between 50 and 55 dB and an alarm clock is 80 dB.
The Moro reflex is the cause of your newborn baby to sleep with his arms above his head. This reflex, commonly referred to as the “startle reflex”, disappears by 6 months of age. It occurs when light or noise startles your baby, even if the noise is not enough to fully wake the baby.
It may be because babies don't sleep as deeply when they have a pacifier, which helps wake them up if they're having trouble breathing. A pacifier also keeps the tongue forward in the mouth, so it can't block the airway.
The way parents put their children to sleep is learned behavior, passed down from their parents or cultures. Asian families are no different — and their cultural behavior could account for why Asian babies are the least likely to die of SIDS.
The lowest SIDS rates among these countries were in the Netherlands and Japan. It is important to note that the age of inclusion for SIDS varies from country to country, with some countries defining SIDS as occurring from age 1 week to age 1 year, while others use a range from birth to age 1 year or another range.