Does bed-sharing increase the risk of SIDS?

Key words: SIDS, bed-sharing, proximal care, breastfeeding.

Sharing a bed with an infant is actually considered one of the environmental risk factors for SIDS (Sudden Infant Death Syndrome). Nevertheless, scientific evidences on this topic are still controversial also for the low methodological quality of some studies that demonstrated this association. Against existing evidences, the prevention campaigns in various Countries publish significantly different recommendations on the topic. In this article we discuss these informative choices, also and above all because in the last few years a growing body of evidences have appeared in literature regarding the benefits linked to a “proximal” child-rearing style, which expresses itself through physical contact.