Infant Mortality: A Heartbreaking Loss From A Mother Sparked ABCs of Safe Sleep Importance

A mother from Ohio pointed the importance of safe sleep after losing her almost one-month-old boy during his night's rest. Amanda Saucedo reportedly slept after breastfeeding his son but unfortunately, the dear child did not wake up the following day. She received a teddy bear at her baby's funeral which gave her the inspiration behind the non-profit organization Benny Bears that aims to reduce infant mortality.

Saucedo is now currently promoting the ABCs of safe sleep through Benny Bears. ABCs of safe sleep stands for A for "alone," B for "on their back" and C for "in a crib." Benny Bears has an attached note about the ABCs of safe sleep along with baby Ben's story.

The Ohio mother aims to distribute Benny Bears to all new parents from different hospitals to help in spreading the significance of safe sleep and ensure that mothers would not have to go through the same pain she experienced. She believes that Ben's death could have been prevented and she has future plans for Benny Bears, including the release of an educational video that discusses baby Ben's story for new parents.

Her dedication to Benny Bears reportedly gave her some sort of comfort after losing her child. "When people are like, 'Because of him I decided to change what I do with my babies' and 'Thank you because Ben might have saved my baby's life,'" Saucedo claimed.

Saucedo revealed that his son Ben died on Oct. 20, 2014, a day before his first month birthday. The mother was in grief as she discovered her second child without life after sleeping through the night. She said that her baby was hungry so she took him to her bed and changed his diaper.

"He latched on to eat like we did every night and then we both fell asleep, Saucedo said in a report from WTHITV. "The only difference between that day and the other days is that he didn't wake up," the mother continued. Baby Ben's death was ruled to be a positional asphyxiation due to unsafe sleeping conditions.

It is recommended by The American Academy of Pediatrics for parents to observe the ABCs of safe sleep to reduce infant mortality and prevent such tragedies. Stephanie Weigel, an injury prevention coordinator at Akron Children's Hospital explained that ABCs of safe sleep is important as sleeping in bed or sharing the bed with infants have shown a high incidence of suffocation, sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS) and asphyxiation.

However, Wiegel made it clear that it is not wrong for parents to fall asleep as parents are usually exhausted, WKBN reported. What Weigel want to express is that it is important for parents to be encouraged in following the ABCs of safe sleep to ensure the baby's safety and reduce infant mortality. What can you say about safe sleep practices? Let us know your thoughts in our comments section below.