WE were very sorry to hear about the tragic death of Angela and Martin Shaw's baby Hannah, which you reported (LET, May 8).

This is a terrible reminder that the cot death problem is still far from being solved. With seven babies dying each week, it remains the leading kind of death for babies over one month old and there is a desperate need to provide support for families when tragedy strikes.

The Foundation for the Study of Infant Deaths (FSID) would like to stress that although there is no known cause of cot death, there are several ways parents can help reduce the risk of it occurring. To reduce the risk of cot death:

Cut smoking in pregnancy -- fathers too!

Do not let anyone smoke in the same room as your baby.

Place your baby on their back to sleep.

Do not let your baby get too hot.

Keep baby's head uncovered -- place your baby with their feet to the foot of the cot, to prevent wriggling down under the covers.

If you baby is unwell, seek medical advice promptly.

Do not share a bed with your baby if you or your partner are smokers (no matter where or when you smoke), have been drinking alcohol, take medication or drugs that make you drowsy and feel very tired.

Do not sleep together on a sofa, armchair or settee.

There are also risks of accidents when bedsharing with babies: you might roll over in your sleep and suffocate your baby, or your baby could get caught between the wall and the bed, or the baby could roll out of the bed and be injured.

Its safest to sleep your baby in a cot in your bedroom for the first six months.

JOYCE EPSTEIN, Foundation for the Study of Infant Deaths, Artillery Row, London.