Infant Safe Sleep Awareness Month Puts Focus on Preventing Infant Deaths
Sep 22, 2016
(Berrien County, MI) – Governor Rick Snyder has declared September to be Infant Safe Sleep Month in Michigan and in order to recognize this important observance, the Berrien County Health Department is reminding parents and caregivers of techniques that can help to substantially reduce the infant death rate in Berrien County.
Sleep-related infant deaths are those where the baby’s sleep environment was likely to have contributed to the death. Babies can easily suffocate while sleeping in an adult bed, sharing a bed with an adult or child, sleeping on furniture, or sleeping with pillows, cushions, and blankets. From 2010-2014, there were 712 sleep-related infant deaths or a rate of 1.2 deaths per 1,000 live births in Michigan. Sadly, Berrien County has a sleep-related infant death rate of 2.3 deaths per 1,000 live births – far greater than the overall rate in Michigan.
“Infant deaths due to unsafe sleep are still a leading cause of death among babies less than one year old in Michigan, and they are 100% preventable,” said Dr. Frederick Johansen, Medical Director/Examiner for Berrien County. “Although we have made great strides in reducing the number of preventable infant deaths, more work remains and everyone has a responsibility to help spread the message about infant safe sleep practices.”
In observance of Infant Safe Sleep Month, the Berrien County Health Department has partnered with Lakeland Health to provide safe sleep packages for every new baby born at a Lakeland hospital during the month of September. The safe sleep packages given to each family contain educational materials to teach parents about the importance of providing a safe sleep environment for their child, small gifts for the new baby, and materials for the family to share with other caregivers to ensure that their new baby will always have a safe place to sleep regardless of who is caring for him or her.
The Berrien County Health Department, in accordance with recommendations from the American Academy of Pediatrics, wants parents to always place their baby to sleep in a safety-approved crib, bassinet, or portable crib with a firm mattress and tight-fitting sheet; on a surface separate from adults or other children free of blankets, pillows, or toys; and on his or her back for sleep every time. Besides safe sleep practices, other factors that may decrease the risk of sleep-related infant death include: breastfeeding, pacifier use at sleep time, and caregiver avoidance of smoking, alcohol, and illicit drug use while caring for an infant. Everyone caring for a baby should know these guidelines, including babysitters, friends, and family members.
There are many resources available to the general public, parents, families, professionals, and caregivers of infants. Visit www.bchdmi.org/community_health/safesleep or www.michigan.gov/safesleep for more information. The safe sleep packages provided to new babies by the Berrien County Health Department are made possible through grant funding from the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services.
# # #
Photo Caption:
Julia Edinger born on September 20 at Lakeland Medical Center, St. Joseph to Carly (pictured) and Ryan Edinger with obstetrics nurse, Nancy Brown, RN.