Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS) is the unexplained death of an infant during sleep. The inability to detect or react to high levels of CO 2 around air passages is believed to be a contributing...

Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS) is the unexplained death of an infant during sleep. The inability to detect or react to high levels of CO₂ around air passages is believed to be a contributing factor. Recommendations to prevent SIDS include sleeping infants on their backs and removing all objects such as blankets that could cover an infant’s mouth and nose from cribs. Additionally, pacifiers may help to reduce the chance of SIDS. The exact way pacifiers reduce the chance of SIDS is unknown but one hypothesis is that pacifiers lead to CO₂ retention in the lungs. Why would this prevent SIDS? Please identify how and where CO­₂ is detected and explain the effect on ventilation.