Child Development and Public Health

Child Development and Public Health

I chose the public health topic of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS) because it hits close to home for me.  My mother’s sister passed away from SIDS and I often wonder what might have caused it.  I plan on sharing the information that I learn about SIDS in my classroom with my families and co-workers.

 Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS) is one of the leading causes of death among infants one month through one year of age in the United States. The National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD) defines SIDS as 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. SIDS is a diagnosis of exclusion, assigned only once all known and possible causes of death have been ruled out.

SIDS claims the lives of almost 2,500 infants in the US each year - that's nearly 7 babies every day. Deaths usually occur unexpectedly and quickly to apparently healthy infants, usually during periods of sleep, but it is not caused by suffocation or choking. It occurs in families of all races and socioeconomic levels and is also not caused by child abuse or neglect. 

Reference

What is Sids? Retrieved from: http://www.cjsids.org/resource-center/what-is-sids-suid.html

Preventing SIDS

How to prevent SIDS: You can reduce the risk of SIDS significantly by doing the following:

Always put your infant to sleep on her back (make sure  all caregivers do so, too).

Use a firm mattress and tightly fitted sheets for baby crib and no comforters, fluffy blankets, or pillows.

 The AAP also strongly advises skipping the crib bumper pad (which can restrict your baby's breathing when she presses her nose or mouth against it), and you should pass on those wedges designed to keep an infant on her back or side, since their safety and effectiveness have not been proven.

Keep your baby from overheating — no hats, extra clothes, or woolly blankets while sleeping, and keep the room cool (68 to 72 degrees F).

Keep your baby's room well ventilated. A recent study found that using a fan in an infant's room that has poor ventilation could reduce the risk of SIDS.

Never allow anyone to smoke near your baby.

Reference

Facts on SIDS –What to Expect.  Retrieved from: http://www.whattoexpect.com/first-year/sids.aspx#

Sudden Infant Death Syndrome in Africa and Asian Cultures

In many African and Asian cultures, it is normal practice for the infant to sleep close to the mother in the same bed (co-sleeping). While unintentional suffocation or overlaying of the infant by the mother or another person does occasionally occur, this is generally on an unsuitable sleeping environment such as a sofa. Often the adult is obese, or alcohol or drugs are involved. Infants may also occasionally be strangulated by the bars of a cot or by cords in clothing or bedding. However, suffocation of the infant has been repeatedly rejected as a major cause of SIDS.

SIDS rates are actually lowest in Asian communities where co-sleeping is the norm. Parental sleep contact provides constant stimulation to the infant through vocalizations, body movements, radiant heat, and respiratory sounds. In fact infants who share the parents’ bed exhibit synchronous arousal and co-ordination of sleep stages with the parent. Some researchers therefore consider that parent-infant contact throughout the night may help some vulnerable infants to override the deficits that result in SIDS.

Reference

Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS) Health 24, (2012). Retrieved from:

http://www.health24.com/Medical/Diseases/Sudden-Infant-Death-Syndrome-SIDS-20120721

Childbirth In Your Life and Around the World

My Best Friends Personal Birthing Experience

My friend’s first pregnancy was a very exciting time for her and her husband. They had been trying to have a child for a while.  At first everything seemed fine but shortly into her pregnancy it started taking a toll on her body. During her first trimester, she had severe nausea and fatigue. In her second trimester she experienced daily headaches severe swelling, back pain, and rapid weight gain. Around 22 weeks she was placed on bed rest for pregnancy-induced hypertension for the remainder of her pregnancy and because of this her doctor recommended that she take hypno-birthing class and does prenatal yoga.

Around 38 weeks, they told her she was three centimeters dilated and 70-percent effaced. Unfortunately, her blood pressure was 160/100 and the doctor told her and her husband to head to the hospital immediately for induction. She was already dilated and effaced, so her doctor agreed to break her water, and give her an hour to see if that was enough to start her labor. When the water was broke, which she said she didn’t even feel, she said her doctor got this very strange look on her face and she said, “I’m going to go grab an ultrasound machine.” This really scared her and her husband and they asked if everything was OK. She said, “I’m not convinced that what I’m feeling is the head.” She brought in the machine and sure enough, the baby was breech. So, a C-section was immediately scheduled. Her husband tried to ease her nerves because she was very anxious about having a C-section. Needing the epidural did not bother her but the thought of being cut open while she was awake was very scary.

After about an hour, the anesthesiologist came in to give her the epidural. Her husband was trying to support her as she leaned over and she remembers trying to think happy thoughts of the baby to forget about what they were doing. After the epidural was in, they started to wheel her into the OR.  She said that there were all these monitors and things beeping and people calling out her vital signs. She had a sheet over her neck so all she could see was her husband and all she felt was a lot of pressure. She remembers moaning and said she felt no pain but could feel them pushing and shoving on her to pull the baby out!  She remembers just trying to breathe and relax. After only a few minutes they said, “It’s a girl!” They quickly showed her and her husband their daughter over the curtain, and then whisked her away. They cleaned her up a little and brought her back for them to see, and then her daughter and her  husband went to recovery, and she had to stay in the OR  while they finished (as she puts it) putting her back together.  After she was finally sewn up, stapled, she was taken over to recovery. After an hour she and her husband were moved up to a postpartum room and she was finally allowed to hold her daughter. Seeing those sweet eyes gazing up at her made everything she had gone through completely worth it. She was a very proud mommy at last!

Birthing in China

I chose to learn about the birthing in China.  What I read was very interesting to me.  Every culture has superstitions and beliefs that surround pregnancy but some of their beliefs and superstitions in China I found to be very unique from other cultures.  Here are some of the things that I learned:

During Pregnancy:

Traditionally Chinese society blames the mother of a child that is physically disabled or deformed for the imperfections of the child, as it is believed that this has resulted from the mother’s actions during pregnancy. 

A pregnant woman is expected and encouraged to continue working, as it is believed that this will ease labor and delivery.

Nutritious foods and herbal soups should be eaten and sharp foods such as pineapple and some other fruits avoided as they may cause miscarriage.  Eating squid and crab are discouraged because they believe this will cause the uterus to stick during delivery and in result of this they will have a mischievous child. 

A pregnant woman should not walk around barefoot and rubbing the abdomen too often is thought to result in a spoiled and over demanding child.

The major responsibility for care of the pregnant woman is taken by her mother –in- law, not her husband.

Male descendants are essential to ensure the continuance of ancestor worship and the continuity of family lineage and name.  Females cannot inherit, and in the Chinese family system the wife lives with the husband’s family and is deemed as no longer part of her own family, but the property of the husband’s family.  Female offspring are thus thought of as being only temporary family members while male offspring belong to the family for their lives.

After Birth:

When a Chinese baby is born they are already considered to be a year old because age is calculated from the date of conception not the date of birth.

Praise should never be given to or applied to a new born Chinese baby as this may invite the attention of demons and ghost. The baby instead should be referred to with unfavorable terms and words!

After birth, the mother is expected to observe a 40 day period of confinement. During this period, she is not allowed to eat food considered cold or have cold baths.  They have to keep warm by wearing thick clothes.  If it can be afforded a special helper responsible for both mother and child is hired to tend the new mother for at least two weeks.

References

Baby and Birth in China- Retrieved from http://www4panda.com/chinatips/culture/baby.htm