Your Checkup: What You Wish Your Doctor Explained

Safe Sleep: Every Parent Needs to Know These Life-Saving Guidelines

Ed Delesky, MD and Nicole Aruffo, RN Season 2 Episode 5
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00:00 | 29:14

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Safe infant sleep guidelines have reduced SIDS deaths by 50-80% over the last three decades, yet funding for this critical public health campaign is now at risk of being cut.

• Explained difference between SIDS (sudden infant death syndrome) and SUID (sudden unexpected infant death)
• Described the "triple risk model" that leads to SIDS: vulnerable infant + critical developmental period + external stressor
• Detailed the history of the Back to Sleep campaign which began in 1994
• Outlined key safe sleep recommendations: babies on backs, firm flat surface, no loose bedding or soft objects
• Discussed why co-sleeping increases SIDS risk despite cultural preferences
• Clarified that products like Dockatot are not designed for safe sleep
• Highlighted that Black and Indigenous communities experience higher SIDS rates
• Examined how funding cuts could impact access to life-saving health information
• Connected these changes to a broader pattern of removing evidence-based health information from government resources

Check out our website, email us at yourcheckuppod@gmail.com with questions or feedback, and most importantly, stay healthy until next time.


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Production and Content: Edward Delesky, MD & Nicole Aruffo, RN
Artwork: Olivia Pawlowski

People on this episode