Sids, The English Version
A recent study on Sids in England revealed that over half of the babies there who died from Sids were co-sleeping. That’s not all. It further suggests that the adult who was sleeping with the infant on the couch perhaps were also either drunk or under the influence of drugs. They have added this to the ever growing list of reasons why a baby would die from Sids.
All I know for sure is that my 2 year old nephew died from Sids sleeping alone in his crib. I believe my sister found him on his stomach, but he was a month short of his 2nd birthday and could and did turn over and reposition himself in his sleep. My sister did nothing wrong and did nothing to cause this.
Medical Residents and Sleep
I have watched my share of medical shows on TV and one of the things you learn from these shows is that doctors in training work very long shifts, somtimes 24, 36, or even more hours straight. That has always worried me. As a patient walking into an ER, I don’t want an overtired doctor working on me.
There are plenty of other jobs where there are limits on the amount of hours they can work in a shift and in a pay period, like airline pilots, air traffic control, and truck driviers, to name a few. Seems to me doctors should be right up there in that list.
Beside money, which is always the very bottom line, the other reasoning for these long shifts is that when a person comes in and is seen by one of the doctors, tests have to be done and most of the time these tests take hours. If a doctor or resident only works 8 to 10 hour shifts, they may be off duty by the time the test results come back, which means another doctor would be on duty and not familiar with the case.
I’m not sure whether I agree that it’s a valid point for working long shifts, but I do know that I find it troublesome that doctors know the body needs the proper amount of sleep and yet they go about life without it themselves.
They do have restictions on shift hours, however they are still too long, and if one life is lost because of this it’s one life too many. Stick to a max of 16 hours at a time, and call it a day.
New Study On Sids
This is a picture of my new grandson. Today he is only 1 week old. My family, just like all other families with new babies is very aware of Sids. We lost a child from Sids years ago when my sister awoke to find her son dead in his crib. There is no more painful loss than to lose your child. At the time I said it felt like the whole family had broken hearts that would never be whole again.
A new study suggests that there are things parents and caregivers can do to greatly cut the risk of Sids. The first and most important thing is to lay babies on their backs, this alone is said to cut the risk of Sids by 51%. The next thing is to turn a fan on in the babies room. This cuts the risk by 72%, using a pacifier cuts it further to about 94%. This is especially true when the room temperature is over 69%. Having an open window cuts it even further, although that has not been proven yet as a factor.
They think that Sids occurs when there are things around the baby’s mouth and nose that block the circulation of fresh air and as a result get a build up of carbon dioxide. That is why you should lay the baby on his back. My nephew died at almost 2 years of age. He was by then of course turning over by himself, however there was a bumber guard on the crib and his blanket. She found him in the corner of his crib he positioned himself with these too close to his face. Mind you this was years ago before they knew as much as they do now. I take from this personal experience that it’s better to leave out the bumber guard and blanket, and just dress the child in very warm sleepers till he’s older.
Don’t forget also that the people who care for your baby such as daycare centers and babysitters need to know this and follow the correct sleeping rules you have set down for your baby. NEVER assume that because they are professionals that they automatically do this.