SIDS- Sudden Infant Death Syndrome
Physicians have been researching SIDS to find out why it occurs and how to prevent it. One recent theory is that it might be caused by a virus. Other theory is that the infant's neural breathing mechanism is immature; thus, shuts down inappropriately. Currently, the etiology is not known but studies have shown certain risk factors:
-parents or guardians who smoke around the infants
-excess of bedding (blankets and pillows)
-excess of stuffed animals
-infants sleeping on their bellies
-infants sleeping in the same bed as their parents
With the "Back to Sleep" campaign, many infants are now sleeping on their backs. There appears to be a decrease in SIDS related deaths.
Now the problem is flat heads.
There was an article in the paper recently about flat heads and a new approach to dealing with it.
Helmets!
Yes, poor infants subjected to wear a weird contraption; you can imagine many will not give in easily.
Why flat heads? Too much time on their backs. Physicians have been encouraging "tummy time" when it first started to appear. "Tummy time" should happen when the infant is awake and supervised. Tummy Time will help decrease "flat heads" and give babies the much needed time to develop other muscles. Infants slowly gain strength in the neck and shoulder regions that allow them to raise their heads. Tummy time also helps develop lower body muscles that will be crucial for crawling.
The helmets are the latest thing out there. Depending on the degree of flatness, your infant might NOT need it. Increased Tummy Time might be the best (and cheapest) remedy. Not all insurance companies will cover it since there isn't sufficient data to prove the helmets work.
Insufficient data - that's a phrase physicians always hear.
Added a SIDS link above, click on it for more information.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
7 comments:
I am a flathead. Feel my skull.
For a moment I thought you were talking about Ayla and the Clan of the Cave Bear.
Anyway, seems like we humans are complicating our lives just for kicks, I wonder how we made it through all that millenia without someone calling something SIDS.
ayla and the clan of the cave bear? que es eso?
aha! so that's what it is... i know someone w/ that flathead syndrome. (you're the 2nd one, analisa!).
I've seen flathead. I would think that it would eventually go away as the person grows but I've seen grown men with fades that have flatheads. what about putting baby on its side.
"The Clan of the Cave Bear" is a book by Jean M Auel that describes the transition between an Earth dominated by Neanderthals to one where the Cro-Magnons took the upper hand.
The Neanderthals are described as Flat-Heads.
Hey speaking of helmets Gazoo should be in on this conversation. Will the manufacturer of the flat head helmets
sell advertising space?
Post a Comment