Reducing the Risk of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS)

A safe sleep environment can help reduce the risk of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS) and other sleep-related causes of infant death, like suffocation. The Safe to Sleep^® campaign (formerly the Back to Sleep campaign), available in Spanish, provides a number of resources (many of which can be ordered for free) to help with education and outreach efforts, including:

• An Interactive Safe Sleep Environment Tool caregivers can explore to help them learn how to create a safe sleep environment for baby in the home.
• Videos (some also in Spanish), such as Safe Sleep for Your Baby, grandparent videos, and Breastfeed Your Baby to Reduce the Risk of SIDS (with an accompanying handout that helps explain the information in the videos).
• Fact sheets, such as What Does a Safe Sleep Environment Look Like? and other downloadable materials for caregivers, including handouts, brochures, and door hangers. Many of these are tailored for specific communities, including African American, American Indian/Alaska Native, and Spanish-speaking communities.
• The Healthy Native Babies Project toolkit and guides, which include videos, handouts, and training for the American Indian/Alaska Native communities.

The American Academy of Pediatrics also provides information on infant sleep and recommendations for caregivers, including How to Keep Your Sleeping Baby Safe that explains their policy statement, a checklist of items for making a baby’s room safe, why "back is best" for an infant’s sleep position, and other information.

Another interactive tool WIC staff can use during their visits with participants is an e-handout that depicts different sleep scenes and environments and can be used to inspire learning conversations.

The Consumer Product Safety Commission provides information on product recalls for infant safety and other safe sleep information for parents, available also in Spanish.