SIDS is so horribly mysterious to date that it enters my mind every day at work. I care for 8 infants at a facility run by a government agency.  They have many rules in place to reduce the risk of SIDS.  We are sent to recurrent training, monitored on camera, observed by trainers, and occasionally scolded for bringing in an item to benefit the babies  that was not pre-approved.  I find myself annoyed at some practices; the babies don't sleep well without blankets, the lights are always on, and they have to be put in the crib if they fall asleep while playing on the floor (which of course wakes them when they are moved). Our boppies and  receiving blankets were confiscated, and we are not allowed to have a cloth barrier between babies faces and the carpet (unsanitary!) Where do you draw the line between risks and infants need for rest?

Well, the findings from researching SIDS statistics had me convinced that all these precautions are valid. New Zealand had highest rates as of SIDS since the 1950's. (Franklin)  An amazing theory by Barry Richardson, an expert in materials degradation from Britain,  makes so much sense, and there have been some early research and statistics to validate his claims. This research was conducted by Dr. T. James Sprott from New Zealand, a forensic scientist and chemist. This is the basic idea:

Common household fungus, S. Brevicaulis, is harmless by itself but when it feeds on certain chemicals used as flame retardants the byproducts produced are dangerous nerve gasses. They don't make the baby ill, they shut down the nervous system, stopping the heart function and breathing.(Quinn, 2002). Babies who are put "back to sleep" and with little bedding have better ventilation, so the campaign for having babies sleep on their backs was successful in saving lives.  There was a great deal of justification on the following websites by comparing statistics of countries that did not have chemicals in their mattresses, or had wrapped them to prevent vapors from escaping. I was very excited about all this news and ready to approach my annoying regulations at work with a better attitude. I also wondered why this wasn't big news, and I had never heard of it considering the attention SIDS prevention gets at the Marine Corp Child Development Center.

Unfortunately, an editor's note at the bottom of one website(Quinn, 2002) directed me to a further study stating that research into this theory has declared it unfounded.(Sids-network.org) So the mystery remains, and the fear is ever-present.

http://www.johnleemd.com/store/art_sids.html

http://www.midwiferytoday.com/articles/bedding.asp

http://sids-network.org/images/limer1.pdf