Skip to content

Surgery Door
Search our Site
Tip: Try using OR to broaden your
search e.g: Cartilage or joints
.

Reducing the risk of cot death

Sadly, we don’t yet know why some babies die suddenly and for no apparent reason from what is called cot death or Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS). This section lists, in detail, all the advice we now have for reducing the risk of cot death as well as other dangers such as suffocation. There are three ways in which you can reduce the risk:

 

  • always put babies to sleep on their backs;
  • avoid dressing your baby too warmly or overheating the room;
  • do not smoke or allow others to smoke near your baby or the room your baby sleeps in.

 

A safe place to sleep

Babies should always be put to sleep on their backs unless there is clear medical advice to do something different. abies sleeping on their backs are not more likely to choke, and the risk of cot death is greatly increased for babies sleeping on their fronts.

Keep your baby’s head uncovered and place your baby in the ‘feet to foot’ position to prevent your baby wriggling under the covers. Make the cot so that the covers reach no higher than your baby’s shoulders.

Ask your doctor or midwife for the leaflet, Reduce the risk of cot death, published by the Department of Health and Foundation for Study of Infant Death (FSID).

 

The right temperature

Small babies are not very good at controlling their own temperature. It’s just as important to avoid getting too hot as it is to avoid getting chilled. Overheating is known to be a factor in cot death. Remember:

  • if the room is warm enough for you to be comfortable wearing light clothing (16–20°C) then it is the right temperature for your baby;
  • give your baby one light layer of clothing (or bedding) more than you are wearing. If the room is too hot for you, keep your baby’s clothes or bed-covering light;
  • don’t use duvets (quilts) until your baby is a year old – they get too hot;
  • keep your baby’s head uncovered when inside (unless it’s very cold) as babies need to lose heat from their heads and faces;
  • never use a hot water bottle or electric blanket as babies have delicate skin which can scald easily;
  • ill or feverish babies do not need any extra bedding – in fact, they usually need less;
  • there has been some advice suggesting that it is unwise to have your baby in bed with you – there is no clear evidence of risk, but it would be wise not to have your baby in your bed if you have been drinking alcohol or have taken drugs which can cause drowsiness, and to be careful not to get the baby too hot;
  • babies chill easily if it’s cold, so wrap them up well when you go out, but remember to take off the extra clothing when you come back inside, even if you have to wake your baby to do it;
  • avoid plastic sheets or bumpers, ribbons and bits of string from mobiles anywhere near your baby, who could get entangled in them;
  • make sure there’s no gap between the cot mattress and the sides of the cot which your baby’s body could slip through;
  • remove any loose plastic covering from the mattress which could come off and smother your baby.

 

Clean air

Babies should not be exposed to tobacco smoke, either before birth or afterwards. If you, or anyone else who looks after your baby, smoke then don’t smoke anywhere near the baby. Ask friends to smoke outside or before visiting you. It would be even better if everyone could make an effort to give up completely. Babies and young children who breathe in cigarette smoke are also more likely to get coughs, asthma and chest infections. For more advice on giving up smoking see 'Your health in pregnancy'.

 

Cot mattresses

There have been suggestions that toxic gases from fire-retardant materials found in some cot mattresses are another potential cause of cot death. However, a recent report examining this link found no evidence that cot mattresses contribute to cot death.

  • Following the advice given above will help to reduce the risk of cot death.
  • If your baby seems at all unwell, seek medical advice early and quickly.
  • Do remember that cot death is rare. Don’t let worrying about cot death spoil the first precious months you have with your baby.

 

Information provided by Health Promotion England.