Child Development and Public Health

This week in EDUC 6160 we are asked to pick a public health topic that impacts children’s development all over the world. The topic I choose is Sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS). SIDS is the unexpected sudden death of a child under the age of 1 that an autopsy cannot show an explainable cause of the child’s death.

I am interested in this topic because it is one that with proper education to parents can become almost non-existent. If educators and public health organizations continue to spread the word on how to prevent SIDS and get the younger population involved this can truly become a positive trend toward ending SIDS.

What are some of the ways SIDS occur:

The child is placed in bed with parent or care giver and is accidently smothered during sleep. This especially happens when the caregiver is extremely tired and lays the infant next to them with intentions to place the infant in their crib but falls asleep.

The child is place on their stomach to sleep.

The child’s bedding is too soft which allows for the babies face to easy become covered.

Poverty plays a big part because accommodation is limited.

Studies from 1990 to 2008 show that Japan had the lowest decrease of 30% in SIDS deaths and Ireland had the highest decrease of 73% in SIDS related deaths after risk campaigns ran in their country. Overall, all countries had significantly dropped all over.

References:

Statistics and Information Department, Ministry of Health, Labor, and Welfare

SIDS data: www.sids.gr.jp/en/recent_projects.html

Mother’s & Children’s Health Organization, Maternal and Child Health Statistics of Japan, March 29, 2006 (in Japanese), www.mcfh.or.jp/index.php

Irish National Sudden Infant Death Register, www.sidsireland.ie