Analyzing safe sleep messages to parents on Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS) prevention, breastfeeding, and bedsharing

Purpose: SIDS prevention messaging and general recommendations regarding breastfeeding and bedsharing are very important for parents given: 1) the positive correlation between breastfeeding and bedsharing, 2) the importance of day and night frequency to breastfeeding success, 3) the protective effect of breastfeeding against SIDS, and 4) the demographic data showing that on any given night the prevalence of bedsharing in the US is greater than 40%. The prevalence of parent-infant bedsharing ranges from approximately 45% to 65% as demonstrated by the National Infant Sleep Position study and the Infant Feeding Practices Study II, respectively. The purpose of this analysis is to examine the information that parents are receiving from non-governmental organizations at the national, state, and local level regarding SIDS prevention, breastfeeding, and bedsharing. The hypothesis is that SIDS prevention messages regarding breastfeeding and bedsharing differ greatly between organizations and among organization levels. In addition, we hypothesize that messages presented will differ by intended target audience, particularly by age, race, ethnicity, and income status. Methods: Searches are being conducted and inclusion criteria include: 1) messages will be from NGOs, 2) the organization must have 501(c)3 status, 3) the organization disseminates information and materials to the general public, and 4) information and messaging on SIDS to the general public will have been updated since January 2008. The search terminology includes “SIDS, safe sleep, bedsharing, breastfeeding, and co-sleeping” and utilizes common search engines accessible to the public. Qualitative analysis software, Atlas.ti, will be used to determine themes and significant differences between messages.