SIDS

[atouria]

Forgive me for not knowing much about SIDS before making this post. It seems that there is no known cause for it, from what I have always read. The only preventions were certain sleeping positions, like on the back (I think?).

I was looking at organic baby clothes, blankets, etc and came across www.ecobaby.com. They have an article with intersting information on SIDS, and I'm wondering if any of you had seen any research that confirms on denies their claims that the chemicals in flame retardants, etc are a very good possible cause and using organics can protect your baby from SIDS.

http://www.ecobaby.com/sids.htm

[Sunnysublime]

Research isn't clear on what causes SIDS.
At first it was thought that how the baby slept (on their side, back, stomach..) Or if its the brain not sending the right messages, sleep apnea...etc. It's not really clear :umm:

[MissLovely]

I would try to avoid alarmist theories.

[Miso Vegan]

SIDS is used as a diagnosis when they don't know what caused the death. So naturally, the cause of SIDS is unknown. And can be one of many possibilities.

It wouldn't surprise me if the chemicals and off-gassing of plasticizers and flame retardants were a problem. However, as for it being a "very good cause" I'm not certain. I haven't seen decent studies to back that up. It just makes sense to me that a baby's systems are so underdeveloped that we should protect them from strange (unnatural) influences. I went to great lengths to keep my baby in an organic and chemical-free environment.

I will point out this:
The anti-vaccine camp claims that early and too many vaccines (or any at all) can contribute to SIDS.
The organics mattress/linens/clothing companies will tell you that formaldehyde, flame retardants, or plasticizers could cause death.
The "Back to Sleep" campaigners will tell you it's from babies sleeping on their tummies. Or sides - they aren't sure.
The sleep experts will say it's sleep apnea.
Family-bed advocates say only babies left alone in their cribs/other rooms die of SIDS.
And I wouldn't be surprised if some breastfeeding zealots claimed it was baby formula (or something in it).

So, you catch my drift. It's unknown and that's why it's SIDS.

So I avoided vaccines, chemicals, PVC and other plastics, and I breastfed, let my son sleep on his side, in my bed, and usually put him in cloth diapers. And we avoided death.

Not to make light of it - in those early days/weeks, I remember being TERRIFIED of SIDS. I couldn't sleep (on top of already being over-tired from being a single mom with a newborn)! I would tremble at the thought, and I had nightmares about it. I lived, for awhile, in a state of barely-concealed panic.

What I am trying to say is that, you can and should take as many precautions as possible, but it's the unknown stuff, the things you don't know or can't control, that cause SIDS.

[hazelfaern]

I was born back when common wisdom said that babies should sleep on their tummies and never, ever on their backs (to avoid choking). I managed to survive infancy (but if I sleep on my back I get nightmares :confused: which is odd)

Interestingly, I've read that the invention of the bassinet back in the early 20th century was a direct result of early research into SIDS and one of the first public campaigns against SIDS was getting parents to move infants out of the family bed (early researchers believed parents might have been rolling over onto their children in their sleep -- which was never, ever backed up with proof, so far as I know)

Of course, an intersting thought about SIDS and nonorganic/ flame-retardant bedding is that SIDS predates the common use of both. So what was happening to the infants affected by SIDS who were born before pesticides were commonly used in cotton, or flame-retardants were commonly applied to bedding?

I don't know if it's possible, but it would be interesting to compare incidences of SIDS worldwide. If SIDS occurs more or less frequently in cultures like ours with more of a focus on consumer goods and medical services, it might make sense that SIDS is a result of something parents can control. But if SIDS is relatively evenly distributed across financial and cultural boundaries, then there could be a very good chance that SIDS is simply the result of pre-existing medical conditions like sleep apnea or subtle heart arythmias. There is an adult condition called SUDS, or sudden unexplained death syndrome, which tends to occur during sleep or periods of rest and inactivity in which the heart simply stops recieving impulses from the brain and ceases to beat for as long as 20 minutes. Some researchers believe SUDS might help to explain certain conditions in SIDS.

But then, too, as Miso Vegan pointed out, the term is a catch-all term, not a description of a specific diagnosis, so it's entirely possible that SIDS may reflect the existence of multiple factors with hundreds of thousands of influencing variables.

I think the most important thing is to do the best you can with what you know.

I'll also add the caveat that I'm not a parent so I have no real idea what I'm talking about, I just like to read a lot and think about how varying cultural factors may affect us over time :)

[bird]

Wonderful posts, Miso & hazel.

[hazelfaern]

Wonderful posts, Miso & hazel.

Aw, Miso said the important stuff and as a Mom she's the real authority. I'm just a nerdy bookworm. :)

[bird]

nerdy bookworms unite!
umm... pretend that is a smiling face.

[hazelfaern]

nerdy bookworms unite!
umm... pretend that is a smiling face.

:laugh:

You rock, bird :D

[atouria]

Thanks for all the responses! I trust VRF like no other, so I always come here to really see issues. I know that we have a bias, but I think it's a good bias and we usually point out the opposing views ~ which has been done here.

hazelfern In the article, they do point out that SIDS has increased since the flame retardants were put into use. I think they also compare different countries and when the SIDS increase after they followed the lead of other countries. That is what I got from it anyhow. Admittedly, I didn't read the entire thing.

[gladcow]

I, like Miso, was horribly worried about SIDS with my children. It still gives me a little chill when I think about it. However, since the cause is unknown (the very definition of SIDS, as Miso pointed out) there really is no specific thing you can do. Like a lot of the bumpy roads (this one being particularly bumpy) of parenting, you just do the best you can and hope hope hope for the best. It's one of the heartbreaks of parenting. Some things are just out of your control. This sounds like a downer, I'm sorry. But my main point is that your best is perfect for your child.

[hazelfaern]

Honestly, I'm feeling a bit too lazy to look at the references they're citing, but I'd be concerned that the biggest problem with analyzing data on SIDS is that since it's a catch-all term anyone's ability to sort through the data would be altered simply by the changes in definition being used from year to year. Did Japan's incidence rate of SIDS balloon because they were using Western flame-retardants on their infants beds or because they adopted a Western medical nomenclature post-WWII?

And I get a serious case of the :rolleyes: when any article says that a product which is used by millions of people worldwide produces a toxicity level on that with a par to Saran gas. If the offgassing of plastics and flame-retardants was truly that bad, you'd have a mortality rate among both humans and infants that would make plague look trivial.

And the article goes on to suggest that parents can lower the incidence of SIDS simply by tilting the head of the bed up and allowing the toxic gases to roll down toward the foot of the bed. Considering the fact that the infant would be lying directly on top of a surface which is theoretically directly producing a toxic gas, this should make no difference whatsoever.

Also, the article goes on to throw in a rather random reference to Leviticus as a further proof of the dangers of plastic. I'm sorry, it's most likely a reaction of a predjudiced nature, but when I see Biblical references in an article on health and human safety, my inner "nut-job" alarm goes off. Loudly.

I think it's a good idea to stay away from PVC and unnecessary plastics, "conventionally" produced fabrics using pesticides, etc, simply from the perspective of environmental concerns and long-term human, animal and planetary health. But I'd have a very hard time taking this article seriously, especially when it looks alarmist, unbalanced and aimed to simply ring in more sales on environmentally friendly children's products. That's just my 2 cents. I could be wrong.

[Sunnysublime]

Also, the article goes on to throw in a rather random reference to Leviticus as a further proof of the dangers of plastic. I'm sorry, it's most likely a reaction of a predjudiced nature, but when I see Biblical references in an article on health and human safety, my inner "nut-job" alarm goes off. Loudly.


:laugh: that happens to me too

atouria, I asked my mom about SIDS (mostly to see if my answer was ok) and she said they also blamed it in vaccinations ( wich Miso said as well) However, the same thing has happened with autism, were people have blamed vaccinations, genes, lead paint, breastfeeding, not breastfeeding, certain foods being introduced to soon........

Pretty much like Miso Vegan said, everybodys got there own theory.

[Miso Vegan]

Just to be clear -

vaccines
plasticizers/phthalates/VOCs
formula (usually not organic, and usually fed from plastic bottles)
babies left alone to sleep
formaldehyde/flame retardants
pesticides, fungicides, herbicides

I actually DO think these things can be harmful, not each one individually but in their compounding effect - where, when we add all these things up, they have greater potential damage then each one individually.

A child left alone to sleep can be fine. But a child left alone to sleep on a mattress that's off-gassing, breathing in formaldehyde from the bed linens, wearing flame-retardant PJs, with freshly-painted walls and new carpet off-gassing, getting doses of pesticides in their food... I do think these things can gang up on a newly formed being and could have an unfair advantage.

And considering the rise in SIDS, autism/spectrum disorders, asthma, allergies in general, very serious allergies, and so on - I think it's reasonable to say we're doing not just one thing wrong, but a lot of things wrong.

[atouria]

Ok, so I'm going to fill the room, barring a small walkway and places for the furniture, with air filtering plants that grow up the the ceiling. That should help, right? :)

[Dandelion]

Ok, so I'm going to fill the room, barring a small walkway and places for the furniture, with air filtering plants that grow up the the ceiling. That should help, right? :)
as nature intended. :silly:

[Miso Vegan]

Ok, so I'm going to fill the room, barring a small walkway and places for the furniture, with air filtering plants that grow up the the ceiling. That should help, right? :)
A perfect plan!!



Just make sure they aren't plants that are poisonous if ingested.... :o

[atouria]

No diffenbachias!

[chikara_no_tori]

i was really scared about SIDS...but with so much being said by so many, i did few things i guess i shouldn't have (i.e., my daughter slept in the bed with me, whenever i was able to coax her to her crib, she slept on her side...)

i think at the end of the day, doctors like to hear themselves talk (or type) and all you can do as a parent is worry and love your kid.