Skip directly to search Skip directly to A to Z list Skip directly to navigation Skip directly to page options Skip directly to site content

Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS)

Babies receive many vaccines when they are between 2 to 4 months old. This age range is also the peak age for sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS), or infant death that cannot be explained. The timing of the 2 month and 4 month shots and SIDS has led some people to question whether they might be related. However, studies have found that vaccines do not cause and are not linked to SIDS.

 

Vaccines do not cause SIDS.

Multiple research studies have been conducted to look for possible links between vaccines and SIDS. Results from these studies and continued monitoring show that vaccines do not cause SIDS.

Some studies include:

 

baby

SIDS deaths declined due to recommendations to put infants on their backs to sleep.

As a result of the American Academy of Pediatrics’ 1992 recommendation to place healthy babies on their backs to sleep, and the success of the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development’s Back to Sleep campaign in 1994, SIDS deaths have declined considerably.

For more information on SIDS and CDC’s work to prevent it, see http://www.cdc.gov/sids/.

TOP