Pediatrics

The children are our future - let's keep them happy and healthy. An important message from your Pediatrician: "Let's Protect the Children…" We all cherish our children and want to protect and nurture them. In year 2001 Snohomish County had, for an unknown reason, recorded an increased number of SIDS (Sudden Infant Death Syndrome) deaths. SIDS is defined as the sudden, unexplained death of an infant in the first year of life. While the cause of SIDS largely remains a mystery, there are some risk factors that can be modified.

Dr. M. Ward Hinds (Snohomish County Health Officer) states that "infants who sleep on their stomach and are exposed to cigarette smoke run a greater risk of SIDS." Further he has said that when a mother smokes during pregnancy the risk is tripled and exposure to smoke after birth nearly doubles the risk of SIDS.

• Infants should be put to sleep on their back!
• Babies should not be exposed to cigarette smoke while in the womb or after birth.
• Babies should not be overdressed for sleep and the temperature in the room should be comfortable for an adult.
• Sofas, sheepskin, and waterbeds are not safe sleeping surfaces for infants.
• Parents who smoke or are under the influence of alcohol or other drugs should not share a bed with an infant.
• Love, nurture and appreciate your children every day.
• Check the web for more information at www.sids.org/featuredques.html or www. nichd.nih.gov/sids/reduce_infant_risk.htm

Let's keep our children happy and healthy.

Please feel free to call the Tulalip Health Clinic for more information. (Portions excerpted from a recent Snohomish Health District release dated 8/20/01)

Parents can find information and advice on a wealth of subjects on the Web. Learn about child health and safety, parenting, pregnancy - and much more. Click here for a list of helpful websites.