Abstract
BackgroundIn the United States, sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS) is the leading cause of death in infants aged 1 month to 1 year. Approximately 3500 infants die from SIDS and sleep-related reasons on a yearly basis. Unintentional sleep-related deaths and bed sharing, a known risk factor for SIDS, are on the rise. Furthermore, ethnic disparities exist among those most affected by SIDS. Despite public health campaigns, infant mortality persists. Given the popularity of social media, understanding social media conversations around SIDS and safe sleep may assist the medical and public health communities with information needed to spread, reinforce, or counteract false information regarding SIDS and safe sleep.ObjectiveThe objective of our study was to investigate the social media conversation around SIDS and safe sleep to understand the possible influences and guide health promotion efforts and public health research as well as enable health professionals to engage in directed communication regarding this topic.MethodsWe used textual analytics to identify topics and extract meanings contained in unstructured textual data. Twitter messages were captured during September, October, and November in 2017. Tweets and retweets were collected using NUVI software in conjunction with Twitter’s search API using the keywords: “sids,” “infant death syndrome,” “sudden infant death syndrome,” and “safe sleep.” This returned a total of 41,358 messages, which were analyzed using text mining and social media monitoring software.ResultsMultiple themes were identified, including recommendations for safe sleep to prevent SIDS, safe sleep devices, the potential causes of SIDS, and how breastfeeding reduces SIDS. Compared with September and November, more personal and specific stories of infant loss were demonstrated in October (Pregnancy and Infant Loss Awareness Month). The top influencers were news organizations, universities, and health-related organizations.ConclusionsWe identified valuable topics discussed and shared on Twitter regarding SIDS and safe sleep. The study results highlight the contradicting information a subset of the population is exposed to regarding SIDS and the continued controversy over vaccines. In addition, this analysis emphasizes the lack of public health organizations’ presence on Twitter compared with the influence of universities and news media organizations. The results also demonstrate the prevalence of safe sleep products that are embedded in safe sleep messaging. These findings can assist providers in speaking about relevant topics when engaging in conversations about the prevention of SIDS and the promotion of safe sleep. Furthermore, public health agencies and advocates should utilize social media and Twitter to better communicate accurate health information as well as continue to combat the spread of false information.
Highlights
Sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS) is the leading cause of death in infants aged between 1 month and 1 year and the third leading cause of infant mortality in the United States [1]
While bed sharing is a known risk factor for infant death [6], bed sharing has increased in the United States, with 50%-61% of mothers admitting to bed sharing at some point [6,7] and African American women bed sharing with infants for perceived safety, improved infant sleep, and convenience [4,8]
In September, some of these messages originated from public health agencies, including a video from the National Institutes of Health promoting safe sleep, and statewide efforts to reduce sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS)
Summary
Sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS) is the leading cause of death in infants aged between 1 month and 1 year and the third leading cause of infant mortality in the United States [1]. 3500 infants die every year due to SIDS and sleep-related reasons [2]. While bed sharing is a known risk factor for infant death [6], bed sharing has increased in the United States, with 50%-61% of mothers admitting to bed sharing at some point [6,7] and African American women bed sharing with infants for perceived safety, improved infant sleep, and convenience [4,8]. In the United States, sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS) is the leading cause of death in infants aged 1 month to 1 year. Given the popularity of social media, understanding social media conversations around SIDS and safe sleep may assist the medical and public health communities with information needed to spread, reinforce, or counteract false information regarding SIDS and safe sleep
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