My view on SIDS and babies sleeping on their tummies

First off I would like to quote the definition of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS).

"SIDS is the sudden death of an infant under one year of age which remains unexplained after a thorough case investigation, including performance of a complete autopsy, examination of the death scene, and review of the clinical history." (Willinger et al, 1991).

So we have established that by definition (at least currently) the actual cause of SIDS is unexplainable. YET, we are told many ways to "lessen the risk of SIDS" for our babies. If it's unexplainable how can they really know how to prevent it? They don't even know what causes it.

For instance, we are told babies should sleep on their backs because there is more of a chance of them having sleep apnea (pauses in breathing) when sleeping on their stomachs. Not true. Any baby can have sleep apnea; it is more common in premature babies and it is often caused by an immature nervous system in babies. Pauses in breathing can occur whether your baby sleeps on his back or his tummy. The factor is whether they have sleep apnea or not.

Next point with regard to putting your child to sleep on their tummy. Supposedly they tend to "rebreathe" and thus it can raise their levels of carbon dioxide. Kids and adults sleep all night on their stomachs and there's no problem. Plus even if that IS the case, then wouldn't a lack of oxygen and therefore a type of suffocation be the cause of death instead of SIDS which is supposedly UNEXPLAINABLE. One would think the levels of carbon dioxide would be detectable in an autopsy, therefore ruling SIDS out since the death would then have been explained with a true cause.

Also, we are encouraged to not put baby to sleep with pillows, covers, toys etc in the bed with them because that raises the risk of SIDS. What it raises is the risk of suffocation. The blankets and pillows either caused suffocation or they didn't. Suffocation is a clear cause of death and if pillows and blankets were the cause of death, it was a suffocation, not SIDS.

To reduce the risk of SIDS, we are also encouraged not to have our baby sleep in bed with us or fall asleep holding them in a chair. Are you serious people? Again, if a baby dies in bed with their parent, it's likely that they got rolled on and suffocated. Or it's possible they suffocated because of the sheets, blankets, pillows etc on the adult bed. See my last point. The cause of death would be suffocation.

My rant is almost over. My point being that obviously there are MANY cases of infant death that are misdiagnosed. Which means that the studies concerning SIDS are not accurate. Not many years ago, it was perfectly normal for moms to put baby to sleep on their tummy. SIDS has no rhyme or reason. In my opinion, people just still refuse to accept that sometimes there is NO REASON and you just have to accept that. God is still God and he knows what is ultimately best for us whether that is keeping our child on earth for many years or gaining a little Patron Saint in heaven if they pass. Instead we find ways to try to explain the unexplainable. If sleeping on your back or stomach was a real factor, then research would show that the only babies who died of SIDS slept on their tummies. But that is not the case. Babies die of unexplainable deaths when they are sleeping on both their back and their tummies. I, for one, am going to let my babies choose their sleep preference and leave the rest up to God. Ultimately they were given to us as parents to guide them and help them grow in the love of Christ so they ultimately they return to him. If He calls them back sooner than we would hope, I have faith that He will also give us the Grace to endure the pain involved, and realize that their journey has ended happily in Heaven with Christ.