
SIDS solved - EGreg
http://www.npr.org/2011/07/15/137859024/rethinking-sids-many-deaths-no-longer-a-mystery
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pesfandiar
As a father of a 1 month old, nothing is scarier than SIDS, so the title
("SIDS solved") grabbed my attention.

The article is from 2011 though and most of the findings (particularly the
sleeping on the back part) are well-known and widely taught in hospitals now.
It was a great read anyhow.

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pfranz
What's also interesting is that side-effects of the Back to Sleep campaign.
I've noticed a rather large increase in corrective helmets for babies with
oddly shaped heads. This seems to be a side-effect of babies sleeping on their
back and modifying the shape of their heads. I've also heard that babies have
been rolling and crawling later, in many cases skipping crawling and going
straight to walking. They now recommend supervised "tummy time" to help build
muscles and skills for crawling that used to just happen when babies were left
on their stomach.

All that said, those are really minor side-effects to losing your child.

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itsdrewmiller
Have you noticed this in a statistically significant way or is there a
reasonable chance this is just variance?

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pfranz
While I personally don't have anything measurable to back it up, I'd be
surprised if it wasn't out there already. Tummy Time's main goal is to address
side effects from "Back to Sleep"[1]. The rest of the things I said came from
pediatricians, physical therapists, and other specialists I've talked to about
it. Half of the reason I threw out those statements was to see if anyone had
more concrete or additional information about those things.

[1] "While it's recommended that you place your baby on his or her back to
sleep to reduce the risk of sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS), tummy time
gives a baby the chance to experience a different position. This can help
reduce the risk of flat spots. Research also suggests that babies who spend
time on their tummies crawl on their stomachs earlier than do babies who don't
practice tummy time." [http://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-lifestyle/infant-and-
toddl...](http://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-lifestyle/infant-and-toddler-
health/expert-answers/tummy-time/faq-20057755)

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falcolas
Since my mother faced this, I feel a bit sorry for the parents whose children
died of SIDS before the cause was identified. Can you imagine the piled up
guilt of knowing that you could have easily prevented the death of your child?

Frankly, it's a topic I avoid with her anymore.

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mcphage
> Frankly, it's a topic I avoid with her anymore.

Couldn't you just stop haunting her from beyond the grave _entirely_?

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falcolas
Disturbing, yet morbidly entertaining. Thank you for the smile.

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mcphage
You're welcome :-)

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tristanj
Article is from 2011.

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alanfranzoni
Sids usually means inexplicable deaths for babies less than one year old.

I can remember my daughter at five months, as soon as she learned how to turn,
she would start sleeping on her stomach, no matter what we did. What should a
parent do, then?

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EGreg
Isn't there some sort of technology by now that can detect a child's breathing
and alert you when something is wrong?

Like a baby monitor but that is automatic?

Maybe uses eulerian video magnification, and sound?

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AstralStorm
These things are already being sold.

Or you could grab an anatomically shaped cot and/or pillow designed for this.

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EGreg
Can you please post some links to those things?

I haven't seen any good solutions yet.

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pfranz
This is what my wife bought last year to address this [1]. It doesn't detect
breathing, but it goes off if there's no movement for 20 seconds (from
breathing). It goes under the mattress and you calibrate it by draping a towel
over the bed--it's that sensitive. It'll also act as a baby monitor (audio)
and air temperature sensor. It is annoying when you pick up your child, you
have to reach over to turn it off or the alarm will go off. We've never had it
actually go off for stopped breathing, but we definitely sleep better.

[1] [http://a.co/4pdu0nI](http://a.co/4pdu0nI)

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nbanks
I wonder if the Finland's baby boxes help. They have almost half the infant
mortality of the US.

