Breast feeding and the sudden infant death syndrome in Scandinavia, 1992-95.
OBJECTIVE
To assess the effects of breast feeding habits on sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS).


METHODS
The analyses are based on data from the Nordic Epidemiological SIDS Study, a case-control study in which parents of SIDS victims in the Scandinavian countries between 1 September 1992 and 31 August 1995 were invited to participate, each with parents of four matched controls. The odds ratios presented were computed by conditional logistic regression analysis.


RESULTS
After adjustment for smoking during pregnancy, paternal employment, sleeping position, and age of the infant, the adjusted odds ratio (95% CI) was 5.1 (2.3 to 11.2) if the infant was exclusively breast fed for less than four weeks, 3.7 (1.6 to 8.4) for 4-7 weeks, 1.6 (0.7 to 3.6) for 8-11 weeks, and 2.8 (1.2 to 6.8) for 12-15 weeks, with exclusive breast feeding over 16 weeks as the reference. Mixed feeding in the first week post partum did not increase the risk.


CONCLUSIONS
The study is supportive of a weak relation between breast feeding and SIDS reduction.
Alm
B
B
Department of Paediatrics, Queen Silvia Children's Hospital, Göteborg Department of Paediatrics, Karolinska Hospital, Stockholm, Sweden. bernt.alm@medfak.gu.se
Wennergren
G
G
Norvenius
S G
SG
Skjaerven
R
R
Lagercrantz
H
H
Helweg-Larsen
K
K
Irgens
L M
LM
D001942:Breast Feeding / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D016017:Odds Ratio; D015995:Prevalence; D012537:Scandinavian and Nordic Countries / Q000453:epidemiology; D013398:Sudden Infant Death / Q000453:epidemiology*