There is currently no way to detect these problems when a baby is alive. Out-of-balance levels of serotonin could affect how the baby’s body handles regular functions or everyday processes, like waking from sleep and breathing. 2 This finding could suggest a problem with how the body uses serotonin, a chemical that carries messages between nerves. Researchers also found that babies who died from SIDS had high levels of serotonin in their blood. Other research suggests that changes in the baby’s genes may cause problems with how the body functions, including breathing and waking from sleep. In some cases, the problem was found in a network of nerve cells in a part of the brain that controls breathing, heart rate, blood pressure, temperature, and waking from sleep. Researchers have found problems in the brains of babies who died from SIDS.
However, they do have an informed idea, or theory, that may explain how SIDS happens. Researchers do not know exactly what causes SIDS.
