In 1985 Davies reported that in Hong Kong, where the common Chinese habit was for supine infant sleep position (face up), SIDS was a rare problem. Thus, then Secretary of Health and Human Services Donna Shalala and Tipper Gore refocused the 'Back to Sleep' campaign on minority babies. It was found, however, that a significant portion of African-American babies were still sleeping on their stomachs in 1999, an African-American baby was 2.2 times more likely to die of SIDS than a white baby. The campaign was successful in that it significantly reduced the percentage of babies sleeping on their stomachs ( prone position). NICHD launched the 'Back to Sleep' campaign in 1994 to spread the message. In 1992, the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) issued the recommendation that babies sleep on their backs or sides to reduce the risk of SIDS (a revised statement in 1996 retracted the side-sleeping option). Consequently, the campaign has broadened its goal to focus on safe sleep conditions and further preventative measures. However, there has been a rise in infant sleep-related suffocation events. Since 'Safe to Sleep' was launched in 1994, the incidence of SIDS has declined by more than 50%. The target age group of the campaign is 0–1 years of age, because this is when babies are at the greatest risk of experiencing SIDS. The Safe to Sleep campaign, formerly known as the Back to Sleep campaign, is an initiative backed by the US National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD) at the US National Institutes of Health to encourage parents to have their infants sleep on their backs ( supine position) to reduce the risk of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome, or SIDS.

Public health initiative to promote safe sleeping positions for babies A plot of SIDS rate from 1988 to 2006

Safe 7 sleep