Your Health -- SIDS risk greater in day care

From staff and wire reports

CHICAGO (CNN) -- A substantial number of crib deaths take place in day care settings, where caretakers may be less likely know the importance of putting babies to sleep on their backs, according to a new study.

Appearing in the journal Pediatrics, the study of 1,916 SIDS deaths in 11 states found a much higher than expected rate of sudden infant deaths in day care -- about 20 percent.

"If you look at Census Bureau statistics for the number of children who are in child care, you would expect the rate to be about 7 percent -- certainly less than 10 percent," said Dr. Rachel Moon, a pediatrician at Children's National Medical Center in Washington, D.C., and the study's lead author.

VIDEO CNN Medical Correspondent Rhonda Rowland explains the study Play video (QuickTime, Real or Windows Media)     ALSO Find out what to do if your baby's head seems flattened from sleeping on its back    Background: Experts recommend taking these precautions to reduce the risk of SIDS for babies under 12 months: Put babies to sleep on their backs on a firm mattress Do not use fluffy pillows or comforters, and remove soft pillow-like toys from crib Do not put babies to sleep on a soft surface like a waterbed If using a blanket, only bring it up to the baby's chest Keep the baby's head uncovered during sleep Keep baby in a smoke-free environment Get regular checkups to detect any abnormalities that could lead to SIDS Sources: Back to Sleep Campaign and Association of SIDS and Infant Mortality Programs

Especially troubling, she added, was a finding of children placed on their stomachs by caretakers, more than half were usually put to sleep on their backs by their parents.

Just last month, the Consumer Product Safety Commission launched a 10-year "Safe Sleep" campaign to help lower SIDS rates, particularly among African-Americans, who, surveys show, are more likely to put babies down on their sides or stomachs to sleep

The newest study noted that about a third of the SIDS deaths took place during the first week in child care. In addition, 60 percent of SIDS deaths happened in day care homes, which tend to be unlicensed and run by older women who have less access to pediatricians or medical information about ways to reduce SIDS risk.

"This study is the most important study that has been completed since we made the recommendation that all babies should be placed on their backs to sleep," said Dr. M. Edward Keenan, a member of the American Academy of Pediatrics' task force on infant positioning and SIDS and a former academy president.

The highest risk period for SIDS is for infants between the ages of two and five months, which coincides with the time many mothers return to work, noted Dr. John Kattwinkel, chairman of the academy's SIDS task force.

"It's just one other bid of evidence from a national health standpoint that tells us we ought to be educating day care centers and grandparents, as well as parents" about the importance of putting babies down to sleep on their backs, Kattwinkel said.

Phipps Cohe, spokeswoman for the SIDS Alliance, said all child care providers should be required to have education on SIDS risk reduction.

Census figures show that about 17 percent of children under the age of 1 are in some kind of child care setting, Moon said.

Parents need to make their expectations known, in writing as well as verbally.

"You need to talk to them about sleep position, just as you would talk to them about what your baby is eating," Moon said.

CNN Medical Correspondent Rhonda Rowland and The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Officials seek to reduce SIDS deaths among African-Americans
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Brooklyn baby deaths double the national average
April 1, 2000
Mississippi's infant mortality challenge
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CDC: Birth defect deaths in infants fall dramatically over past 15 years
September 26, 1998
Heartbeat defect linked to some sudden infant deaths
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American Academy of Pediatric -- SIDS policy statement
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
State Health Ranking, Ranking of States by Infant Mortality
Association of SIDS and Infant Mortality Programs
CDC: Infant Death
Healthy Start Initiative: Facts about Infant Mortality
Infant Deaths in Utah and the United States
Consumer Product Safety Commission
American SIDS Institute
SIDS Network
Sudden Infant Death (SIDS) Alliance

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