Hi Rachel,
  I did a quick google search under pacifiers and SIDS, the resaerch was
done
in 1999 by Dr. John Brooks of Dartmouth Medical School Children's
Hospital.

I don't have time to do a medline search right now, but I'll bet you could
find something under his name.

Let us know what you find. I'm sure we'd all like to know what this
research is about.
  Naomi Bar-Yam



Here's on web article I saw.


There are now four published, well-designed studies which support a
substantially lower     incidence of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome in
infants who use pacifiers compared to those     who do not. According to
the current data, the use of pacifiers appears to halve the risk.     Two
other studies, published in abstract form, report similar results. A
review of the     recent scientific literature demonstrating an apparent
protective association between     pacifier use and SIDS was presented by
John Brooks, MD*, at the SIDS Alliance National     Conference in Atlanta
on April 9, 1999.

The reason or reasons for this apparent protective effect are not yet
evident. A variety of mechanisms by which pacifiers may protect against
SIDS have been proposed. It has been suggested that the presence of a
pacifier in the mouth may discourage babies from turning over onto their
faces during sleep. Moving or turning may dislodge the pacifier, which
may have the effect of encouraging babies to stay on their backs.

Another theory suggests that pacifier use might help to keep the tongue
positioned     forward, keeping the airways open. Some scientists
speculate that an infant sucking on a     pacifier may be more attuned to
keeping his or her nose free of bedding in order to     breathe. It has
also been hypothesized that pacifier use may quiet a restless infant, who
    might otherwise move more aggressively around the crib and end up
underneath the bedding.     On the other hand, pacifiers may stimulate
the upper airway muscles and saliva production,     possibly triggering
brain activity and ability to arouse from sleep. Increased
arousability is seen in infants who usually sleep with a pacifier, even
if the pacifier is     not being used.

The current data are consistent with the interpretation that pacifier use
may only be     protective against SIDS among habitual or daily pacifier
users. At the same time, evidence     suggests that occasional pacifier
use offers no protective effect. Although pacifier use     has been
associated with increased ear infections, increased dental malocclusion,
and     shortened duration of breast feeding, the current findings
indicate that it may not be     appropriate for health care professionals
to routinely discourage the use of pacifiers in     young infants.

KEY POINTS

1. Current research connecting pacifier use with a lower risk of SIDS has
been strong and consistent, however, the current findings tell us little
about the mechanisms that may be involved and do not prove that pacifier
use prevents SIDS.

2. It is important to consider that the apparent beneficial effect may
have nothing to do with pacifiers, but pacifier use might be associated
with some other characteristic(s) or factor(s) that protect against SIDS.

3. The SIDS Alliance recommends that babies be positioned on their backs
for sleep. Prone (stomach) sleeping is a recognized risk factor for SIDS.
Besides being routinely placed prone, there is a high SIDS risk when
infants who are unaccustomed to prone sleeping are placed prone or
spontaneously roll to prone.

4. The apparent protective association between pacifier use and SIDS
presents an     interesting new avenue for SIDS research. Further
research is needed in order to explain     this significant finding, as
well as to uncover additional risk factors and possible     underlying
causes of SIDS.

*Chairman of the Department of Pediatrics at Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical
Center, Dr.     Brooks is a member of the American Academy of Pediatrics
SIDS Task Force and serves as     Chairman of the SIDS Alliance Medical
and Scientific Advisory Council.

taken from:  http://sids-network.org/experts/pacifiersama.htm

             ***********************************************

To temporarily stop your subscription: set lactnet nomail
To start it again: set lactnet mail (or digest)
To unsubscribe: unsubscribe lactnet
All commands go to [log in to unmask]

The LACTNET mailing list is powered by L-Soft's renowned
LISTSERV(R) list management software together with L-Soft's LSMTP(TM)
mailer for lightning fast mail delivery. For more information, go to:
http://www.lsoft.com/LISTSERV-powered.html