While sleeping on a soft surface, an infant may turn over on his/her side or on the stomach obstructing the free flow of air around his or her nose. This will make the infant breathe exhaled air containing a higher concentration of carbon dioxide. There is poor air circulation around the baby's face because of close proximity to the soft sleeping surface. The normal healthy baby's brain would respond to this situation with a protective cough or moving the head to a safer position to obtain better airflow.
Babies at risk for SIDS (Sudden Infant Death Syndrome) do not respond to this stress due to an abnormality in their developing brain stem, a part of the brain located towards the back of the brain, which contains the centers that regulate breathing and many other vital functions. This abnormality is not enough to cause death in and of itself, however, it puts these babies at higher risk for possible sudden death.
These babies overcome this weakness in their central nervous system if they survive till they are more than a year old. Other recognized risk factors include the rapid rate of growth of babies in the first six months of life, which appears to make them vulnerable to poor response to stress, like re-breathing of carbon dioxide. Combination of this defect in the brain stem and the rapid growth period in the first six months appears to make these babies unable to cope with environmental stress such as re-breathing of carbon dioxide, second hand smoke, overheating or a cold or virus infection, all of which have been noted to contribute to SIDS in babies at risk.
Knowledge is not complete in the understanding of all situations in SIDS. Continued research is needed. At present it is not possible to detect those babies who has the brain stem defect. So all the babies need to be provided with precautionary measures until the risk period is over. Mothers of newborns and infants should follow the current recommendations of firm sleeping surfaces in a safety-approved crib for their babies and avoid soft sleeping surfaces, pillows and loose blankets and all other objects in the sleeping area which may make the baby re-breath carbon dioxide.
You can get more information on these topics, discussed in very simple and understandable language, in the web site of the First Candle organization. Please visit their website for more detailed information if you are a parent or caregiver of an infant.
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