Electric Fans: Ways to Prevent Sudden Infant Death Syndrome

Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS) is the sudden death of an infant under one year of age. It isn't any one illness or disease, but a diagnosis that's given when a child under a year old dies suddenly and an exact cause can't be found after a complete medical and legal investigation. The complete investigation includes an autopsy, examination of the death scene, and a review of the symptoms or illnesses the infant had prior to dying including any other pertinent medical history. SIDS is very devastating for families because it can happen without warning.

SIDS most commonly occurs during cold weather months to infants between the ages of 2-4 months, with 90 percent of cases in infants under 6 months. This syndrome kills about 2,500 infants annually in the United States and is the leading cause of death for babies between 1 month and 1 year old. SIDS is also known as crib death because it happens mostly during sleep and between the hours of 10 p.m. and 10 a.m. SIDS does not only occur at night, though. 20 percent of SIDS deaths happen in childcare settings. The incidence of SIDS has decreased dramatically in recent years. There is no 100 percent way to prevent SIDS but there are steps you can take to reduce an infant's risk of SIDS.

The Back to Sleep campaign informs parents to put their infants to sleep on their backs and not on their sides or stomachs. An infant's risk of SIDS has been found to be 1.7 to 12.9 percent higher if sleeping on the stomach instead of the back. Betty McEntire, the executive director of the American SIDS Institute, warns believes that when a baby sleeps on the stomach, overheating is more likely, pauses in breathing can happen and the baby can re-breathe the air he has just exhaled, which can raise carbon dioxide levels. Also, if a baby is used to sleeping on his back and is placed to sleep on his tummy, studies have shown that the risk of SIDS rises significantly. It is not safe for a baby to sleep on his/her side either because it can roll over onto the stomach. The baby should never be put on a waterbed, bean bag or soft blanket alone. Never uses a soft blanket that can cover his face and cause choking. It is important to make sure daycare personnel and babysitters know these safety procedures as well.

Another risk factor for SIDS is thermal stress or being overheated. An infant should always be provided a comfortable room temperature that isn't too warm or hot. Excessive bedclothes, covering the head and too much bundling should all be avoided. Exposure to second hand smoke is also a risk factor. It is probably not enough to just smoke outside of the house, either. Of course, smoking during pregnancy should be avoided as well because it is another risk factor for SIDS.

A study published in 2007 recognizes a connection between hearing ability and SIDS. A pediatric anesthesiologist named Daniel D. Rubens at Seattle Children's Hospital analyzed the results of newborn hearing tests. He found that babies who were struck by SIDS had consistently tested lower on the inner ear function of the right ear than babies who didn't die of SIDS. Healthy infants usually test stronger in the right ear than the left. The results of this study suggest that there are new areas of research and possible identifying factors for babies that are at a higher risk for SIDS.

There was another study that found that the use of electric fans in a baby's nursery decreases the risk of SIDS. The Kaiser Permanente Division of Research in Oakland, Ca studied 185 babies who died from SIDS in 11 California counties between May 1, 1997 and April 30, 2000 in comparison to 312 normal infants from similar socioeconomic and ethnic backgrounds living in the same counties. The mothers were asked several questions about fan use, pacifier use, room location, sleep surface, the type of covers over the baby, bedding under the infant, room temperature and whether a window was open. It was found that using a fan cut the risk of SIDS by 72 percent. Using a fan in a room with a temperature higher than 69 degrees Fahrenheit is associated with a decreased risk of SIDS compared with no fan use.