Scream ‘fowl’ over disparity in infant morality rates

Indigenous communities in the United States have the highest rate of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome [SIDS], according to information collected by the National Institute of Health in the U.S.

And in Canada the situation is the same.

The data, which was presented at the 4th International Meeting on Indigenous Child Health this March in Vancouver, states that in the US SIDS is two to four times more likely to occur in American Indian and Alaska Native [AI/AN] communities.

This makes it the leading cause of death in infants between one month and one year of age. The highest rates of SIDS was noted in the northernmost Indigenous communities of Alaska and those that border Canada.