The staff of the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) recommended the first federal requirement for nursing pillows, following an investigation that claimed they had resulted in the deaths of more than 100 infants.
The staff suggested that the U-shaped pillow, which mothers use while breastfeeding, “is dense enough that the product is unlikely to fit the baby’s face.”
The proposal comes two weeks after NBC News reported at least 162 babies have died in incidents involving nursing pillows since 2007 — with most of them dying after they were placed on or with pillows to sleep on.
The proposal also calls for the pillow to have a wide enough opening to avoid restricting baby’s head movement, which could cut off their airflow.
“Because babies often fall asleep during or after breastfeeding, nursing pillows are predicted to be misused for infant sleep, which creates potential harm for babies,” read the draft guidelines, according to NBC News.
This chart is a breakdown of 154 deaths related to nursing pillows from 2010 to 2022, according to the Consumer Product Safety Commission. Consumer Product Safety Commission
CPSC staff are also pushing for more prominent warning labels on pillows to tell consumers that the luxury product can be dangerous for babies if left unattended, and that it should not be used for sleeping.
This type of warning already appears on nursing pillow tags, but staff recommends it be more visible and harder to remove from pillows.
CPSC staff recommends that warning labels on nursing pillows be more difficult to remove. Consumer Product Safety Commission
Additionally, the proposal recommends removing straps on nursing pillows, which staff say lead caregivers to believe it is safe to leave small babies alone in the product.
CPSC staff cited 154 deaths involving nursing pillows from 2010 to 2022, including from suffocation, asphyxia and sudden infant death syndrome.
The latest complete data shows there were 38 deaths related to nursing pillows in 2020.
NBC News claims most of the babies in its count are less than 4 months old, with the youngest just 3 days old.
The nursing pillow on the left would pass the test CPSC staff wanted to initiate, while the pillow on the right would fail. Consumer Product Safety Commission
“Thousands of babies die every year in their sleep, and it’s a myth that all those deaths are unexplained,” said CPSC Commissioner Richard Trumka Jr. in a statement. “When a product contributes to the death of an infant, I believe it is the CPSC’s job to eliminate that risk.”
CPSC commissioners are expected to meet on September 13 to decide whether they will proceed with the staff’s recommendation.
If so, the public will be able to provide feedback before it is finalized and goes into effect.
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Source: thtrangdai.edu.vn/en/
