User guide

Since medicine can not tell them why their baby died, they blame themselves and often other
innocent people. Their lives and those around them are changed forever.
Being prepared
Still today, "cot death" is an unforeseeable occurrence from which every 500th baby dies. 80%
of infants affected are entirely healthy beforehand. Only 20% come from so-called risk groups
(former premature births or babies already suffering from life threatening conditions or with a
"cot death" among close relatives).
Only a prompt alarm in the event of irregularities provides the possibility of introducing life-
saving measures within the shortest possible time. Such measures should be learned
beforehand in special courses. Our instructional film "Lifeline" shows the main situations for
which parents should be prepared.
What Can Be Done?
Unfortunately, we cannot expect to prevent all SIDS deaths now. To do so require a much
greater understanding of SIDS, which will be achieved only with a commitment from those
who value babies and with a considerably expanded research effort. However, there are things
that can be done to reduce the risk of SIDS.
Parent-To-Be
1. Get medical care early in pregnancy, preferably within the first three months, followed by
regular checkups at the doctor's office or health clinic. Make every effort to assure good
nutrition. These measures can reduce the risk of premature birth, a major risk factor for SIDS.
2. Do not smoke, use cocaine, or use heroin. Tobacco, cocaine, or heroin use during pregnancy
increases the infant's risk for SIDS.
3. Don’t get pregnant during the teenage years. If you are a teen and already have one infant,
take extreme caution not to become pregnant again. The SIDS rate decreases for babies born to
older mothers. It is highest for babies born to teenage mothers. The more babies a teen mother
has, the greater at risk they are.
4. Wait at least one year between the birth of a child and the next pregnancy. The shorter the
interval between pregnancies, the higher the SIDS rate.
Parents
1. Place infants to sleep on their backs, even though they may sleep more soundly on their
stomachs. Infants who sleep on their stomachs and sides have a much higher rate of SIDS than
infants who sleep on their backs.