SIDS and Serotonin

Sudden Infant Death Syndrome is both devastating and a poorly understood cause of death in children. Research published in the Journal of the American Medical Association offers an explanation for this syndrome as well as a reason why males are more susceptible. Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS) is any sudden and unexplained death of an apparently healthy infant, aged one-month to one year. SIDS is responsible for roughly 50 deaths per 100,000 births in the U.S. The major risk factor for SIDS is putting infants to bed on their stomachs. Serotonin levels in the brainstem may be a contributing factor. Serotonin is a neurotransmitter in the brain that is involved in regulating mood. In fact, many medicines, such as Prozac, Zoloft and Paxil act to boost the level of serotonin in the brain. Serotonin also controls many other functions of the brain, including regulating breathing, blood pressure and sensitivity to carbon dioxide. In the study, researchers compared the brainstem serotonin levels of 31 babies who fell victim to SIDS with the brainstems of ten infants who had died for other reasons. Three quarters of those who had SIDS had problems in the brainstem?s serotonin pathways. Researchers also found that male infants who died of SIDS had significantly fewer receptors when compared to female SIDS infants and the control group. Given these results, it is believed that babies who develop SIDS may not have the ability to compensate for changes in the environment. Because of the observed abnormalities in serotonin production, breathing and waking reflexes may be impaired. This may lead to sudden death of infants. This also may explain why the rate of SIDS has been cut in half over the past decade because many doctors now recommend that babies be placed on their backs when they sleep. This may reduce the likelihood of infants becoming distressed in the first place.