02/03/2026
Vaccines and SIDS
The talk and debate of vaccines is highly controversial. My goal is to always share evidence-based facts and to continue to learn and grow and never assume “the science is settled”.
This is a long summary, but it contains lots of numbers, facts, and details. I added the biggest highlights above the break (~~~~~), in this post. Everything after this is deeper detail with statistics and numbers.
This is my own summary of “Vaccines and sudden infant death: An analysis of the VAERS database 1990–2019 and review of the medical literature”. All of the information is directly quoted or shortened directly from the article itself. The graphic attached to this post has some of, what I thought were, the most important highlighted points from the article.
With that said, let’s get into this research article on Vaccines and SIDS. The highlights of this paper are as follows:
• Additive or synergistic toxicity may occur following multivalent vaccines.
• Of all SIDS reported after vaccination, 75% occurred in the following 7 days.
• Infant deaths post-vaccination are often misclassified as suffocation in bed.
• Inflammatory cytokines in the medulla act as neuromodulators causing prolonged apneas.
• Adjuvants that cross the blood-brain barrier may induce fatal disorganization of respiratory control.
- Summary of Abstract
Even with considerable evidence that a subset of infants has an increased risk of SIDS after vaccination, health authorities eliminated “prophylactic vaccination” as an official cause of death. This resulted in misclassification since medical examiners were forced to use other categories to classify these deaths.
Of 2,605 infant deaths from 1990 to 2019, 58% clustered within 3 days of vaccination and 78.3% within 7 days. This finding is statistically significant.
- Summary of Section 1.1: International Classification of Diseases
When an infant dies, there are 130 categories of death the coroners must choose from. Previously, “prophylactic inoculation and vaccination” was listed separately with subcategories for each vaccine. In 1979, all cause-of-death classifications associated with vaccinations were eliminated. This is odd since permanent disability and death are recognized after vaccines. This is the very reason for the National Childhood Vaccine Injury Act of 1986, which created VAERS and VICP.
-Summary of Section 1.2: Sudden Infant Death Syndrome
Prior to the introduction of organized vaccine programs, “crib death” was so rare it was not mentioned in infant mortality statistics. In the 1960s, several new vaccines were introduced and promoted. Most U.S. infants were required to receive multiple doses of DTP, polio, and measles vaccines. At this time, (1963-1965) measles vaccine was given at 9 months. Mumps and rubella vaccines were also introduced in the 1960s. By 1969, so many unexplained infant deaths were happening, a new term was given — SIDS.
By 1972, SIDS became the leading cause of death in infants occurring between 28 days to 1 year of life in the U.S. In 1973, the National Center for Health Statistics, operated by the CDC, created SIDS as a new cause of death category. An autopsy with SIDS ruled as the cause of death often reveals congestion and edema of the lungs and inflammation in the respiratory system. Throughout the 1980s, SIDS continued to skyrocket.
-Summary of Section 1.3: Back To Sleep Campaign
In 1992, the AAP came up with a plan to reduce SIDS. The AAP initiated the “Back to Sleep” campaign. From 1992-2001, SIDS declined by an average annual rate of 8.6%. It seemed that “Back to Sleep” was successful and SIDS was not related to vaccines. However, a closer inspection revealed a loophole within the ICD. They didn’t have to list the death as SIDS. Postnatal SIDS rate dropped from 1992-2001, but “suffocation in bed” increased by an average annual rate of 11.2%. Unexplained, sudden infant deaths that were classified as SIDS prior to “Back to Sleep” were now classified as “suffocation in bed”. Other causes of death that increased during this time were “suffocation other” and “unknown and unspecified causes”. Although SIDS declined, there was no difference in infant mortality rate backing the inspection that revealed the loophole of categorization.
From 1999 to 2015, the U.S. SIDS rate declined 35.8% while infant death due to suffocation increased 183.8%. As quoted by Lambert et al., “There is evidence of continuing diagnostic shift between SUID subtypes,” but “there have been little changes in the overall SUID rates since 1999.”
As previously described, the true extent of vaccine-related infant mortality has been obscured by:
•The cause-of-death classifications associated with vaccination that were eliminated from the ICD.
•SIDS became a commonly utilized cause-of-death category for at least some vaccine-related deaths (as confirmed by the VCIP awards that were misclassified as SIDS).
•SIDS cases were later reclassified under alternate ICD codes.
-Summary of Section 3: Results
From 1990-2019, there were 2,989 infant deaths reported to VAERS. 2,605 (87.2%) occurred within 60 days of vaccination. Infants less than 6 months compromised 86.5% of all deaths. Of the 2,605 deaths, 58% clustered within 3 days post-vaccination and 78% within 7 days post-vaccination. The deaths between 8-60 days occurred at an average of 11 per day compared to 760 deaths on day 2. Of the 1,048 SIDS cases, 51% were clustered within 3 days post-vaccination and 75.5% within 7 days post-vaccination. The remaining between 8-60 days occurred at an average of 4.8 deaths per day.
-Summary Section 5: of Conclusion
This study found a substantial proportion of infant deaths and SIDS cases that occurred in temporal proximity to vaccine administration.
*The excess of deaths during early post-vaccination periods was statistically significant.*
Several theories behind these events have been proposed, such as:
•Vaccine-induced inflammatory cytokines as neuromodulators in infant medulla preceding abnormal response to accumulations of carbon dioxide.
•Fatal disorganization of respiratory control induced by adjuvants that cross the blood-brain barrier.
•Biochemical or synergistic toxicity due to multiple vaccines administered concurrently.
There are 130 official ways for an infant to die when categorizing using the ICD, and ONE unofficial way: fatal reaction to vaccines. Because of this, the true number of vaccine-related deaths is uncertain. This is why increased transparency is a desirable goal.
Below this is further details, facts, and discussion points that pertain to this article and its findings.
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-Summary of Section 4: Discussion
Infant deaths as a whole and SIDS were not randomly distributed each day. Instead, death and SIDS cases reported to VAERS tended to occur early after vaccination (1-7 days). Theories of pathogenic mechanisms have been proposed, such as:
•Douglas Miller, neuropathologist and SIDS expert witness, suggests that vaccines evoke cytokine production that can produce a fever and inhibit the activity of 5-HT neurons in the medulla, causing prolonged apneas and interference with auto-resuscitation.
•Matturri et al. Hypothesized that luminous adjuvants cross the blood-brain barrier, “inducing neuronal molecular alterations in DNA, RNA, and proteins of the brain stem neurons regulating vital functions, with consequent fatal disorganization of respiratory control in particularly predisposed infants.”
•Miller and Goldman suggested the potential for biochemical or synergistic toxicity due to multiple vaccines administered concurrently.
•Torch (1982) found unvaccinated babies who died from SIDS did so most often in the fall or winter, while vaccinated babies died most often at 2 and 4 months of age — the same age when infants received their initial doses of DPT.
-Summary of Section 4.1: Early Evidence Linking SIDS to Vaccines
The following are documented cases of infants who died after receiving routine vaccinations.
•In 1933, Madsen documented sudden death of 2 infants soon after whole-cell pertussis vaccines. The first child developed cyanosis and convulsions 30 minutes after vaccination and died a few minutes later. The second child developed cyanosis 2 hrs after vaccination and died.
•In 1946, Werne and Garrow documented sudden death of identical twin boys 24 hrs after diphtheria and pertussis vaccinations. The babies had symptoms of shock through the night prior to the fatal reactions.
•Another case of 12-week-old identical twins died “lying on their backs”. Their deaths were labeled as SIDS. Five days prior, they each received multiple vaccines concurrently. These vaccines were DTaP, oral polio, hepatitis B, and Hib. - Mitchell et al.
•Huang et al. published a case of sudden death involving 10-week-old twin boys. Their mother found them on their backs, lifeless just 10 days post-vaccination of DTaP and oral polio.
•Balci et al. reported a case of 15-week-old identical twin girls who died suddenly 2 days after receiving oral polio, hepatitis B, and DPT vaccinations. Both were found by their mother “on their backs”. They were both healthy prior to vaccination.
In the 1960s and 1970s, Australian babies were dying at alarming rates. In some regions, as much as 1 out of every 2 babies. Archie Kalokerinos made the connection between their deaths occurring shortly after their vaccinations. Their deaths corresponded with the recent vaccine program. He also realized these infants were severely malnourished. Their underdeveloped immune systems couldn’t handle the added stress of vaccination. Some would die of vitamin C deficiency precipitated by the vaccine. Others died later of immunological insults such as pneumonia, gastroenteritis, or malnutrition. In response to this, Kalokerinos saved numerous babies by administering vitamin C (100mg per month of age prior to vaccination).
*Immunization leads to destruction of vitamin C. - Linus Pauling (Nobel Prize winner in Chemistry) supported the work of Kalokerinos.
In Japan, from 1970 through 1974, there were 37 documented SIDS deaths following pertussis vaccination. They reacted to this by changing the recommendation of vaccination from 3 months of age to 2 years of age. After doing this, deaths dropped from 37 cases during a 5-year period to 3 in the next 6.5 years. The rate dropped from 1.47 to 0.15 deaths per million — a 90% improvement. From the early 1970s to the mid-1980s, Japanese infant mortality rates dropped from 12.4 to 5.0 — a 60% improvement.
A special task force on Pertussis and Pertussis Immunization investigated the Japanese data and published it in the journal “Pediatrics”. They also made the following observation:
•”It is clear that delaying the initial vaccination until a child is 24 months, regardless of the type of vaccine, reduces most of the temporally associated severe adverse reactions.”
Goldman and Miller investigated more than 38,000 infant reports filed with VAERS. This included non-serious events. The hospitalization rate for infants vaccinated shortly after birth was 20.1%, but decreased to 10.7% for infants vaccinated just prior to their 1st birthdays.
Below are the following details of studies of infants who died due to SIDS following vaccination.
•1978-1979:
•11 babies
•Died 8 days post DTP vaccination from the same lot
•As a response, the manufacturer revealed a new policy of limiting shipment so no geographical location would receive product from the same lot to avoid a cluster of SIDS post-vaccination.
•2005
•Von Kries et al. analyzed the risk of sudden death in children 1-28 days following the hexavalent (6-in-1) vaccine (DTaP, Hep. B, Hib, Polio). In the 2nd year of life, children were significantly more likely to die within 1-2 days following hexavalent vaccination.
•2007
•Soldatenkova and Yazbak examined Hep. B vaccination and unexplained neonatal deaths. Of the 29 deaths reported to VAERS, 24 were attributed to SIDS.
•Of the 29, 13.8% died within 24hrs, 32% died within 3 days, and 44.8% died within 7 days.
•Authors concluded that any death following Hep. B vaccination should undergo a systematic review, and this should happen at an international level.
•Sudden Deaths within 20 days after hexavalent vaccination:
•97% occurred in the first 10 days. (Data obtained from a confidential report by GlaxoSmithKline, 2011).
•2015
•Another confidential report from GSK showed 52.5% of deaths were clustered within 3 days post-vaccination, 82.2% within 7 days, and 97.9% within 10 days.
•2015
•The CDC characterized the main causes of death reported to VAERS from 1997-2013. Among 1,244 child reports with autopsy or death certificates for review, SIDS was the cause. Most SIDS cases were around 2-4 months of age. Among 1,165 infants, 86.2% received multiple vaccines prior to death.
-Summary of Section 4.5: Case Reports
In 2019, Japanese scientists studied autopsy reports associated with SIDS in previously vaccinated children. Three of the children died within 3 days post-vaccination. The following are the case reports of 2 of those children.
•Case 1:
•3-month-old female
•Received: Hib, Pneumococcus, and Rotavirus vaccines. One week earlier, the baby received DTaP and Polio vaccines.
•Infant was found limp in the evening, transported by ambulance. Shallow breathing upon arrival, died 12 hrs with little response to resuscitation.
•Case 2:
•3-month-old male
•Received: 8 vaccines in total being Hib, Pneumococcus, Hep. B, Rotavirus, DTaP, and Polio.
•Baby was experiencing cold-like symptoms continuously from the day of vaccination. Found dead early morning of the third day.
-Summary of Section 4.6: Recent VAERS Reports
SIDS continues to occur shortly after vaccination. Here are 5 recent reports filed with VAERS.
• #860135 - February 1, 2020:
•2 months old
•6 vaccines concurrently being DTaP, Hep. B, Pneumococcal, and Rotavirus
•Cardiac arrest 3 days after vaccination
• #867981 - April 8, 2020
•2-month-old female
•7 vaccines given concurrently in the morning
•”Arrived in ER deceased” by 1:30 p.m. Physician claims the 2-month exam was normal prior to the vaccines.
• #873934 - May 21, 2020
•1-month-old male
•8 vaccines given concurrently being DTaP, Polio, Hep. B, Hib, Pneumococcal, and Rotavirus
•Was taken to the ER with SIDS 5 days later
• #873474 - June 11, 2020
•6-month-old male
•7 vaccines received concurrently
•4 days later, suffered from cardiac arrest at home and died from SIDS.
• #883878 - September 1, 2020
•3 month old male
•7 vaccines received concurrently
•2 days later he “experienced cardiac arrest” and was taken to ER but was unable to be resuscitated. No autopsy available at the time. SIDS suspected.
-Summary of Section 4.7: Sudden Unexplained Death in Childhood (SUDC)
SUDC is now a leading cause of death in toddlers, (1-4yrs of age). Although 100s are certified cases by medical examiners yearly, 392 cases were recorded by the CDC in 2018. In a recent study by Crandall et al., experts disagreed with the original certified cause of death in 40% of cases, including many that were considered accidental or natural but ruled “unexplained”. There is a low rate of consistency and precision in death certification as SUDC; therefore, true SUDC cases are likely higher than reported by the CDC.
https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC8255173/
