MILWAUKEE — If you're a parent buying baby items in a store, you may assume those items are safe for your infant. But that's not always the case with certain sleep products. A new law, the Safe Sleep for Babies Act, is addressing that.
It bans the manufacturing or sale of crib bumper pads and inclined sleepers. However, retailers and manufacturers are being given six months from the signing of the bill into law, to comply. That means you may still find them for sale in a store and online, especially second-hand.
That's why child safety advocacy group Kids in Danger is warning parents about the potential dangers, like suffocation risks, of these baby sleep products.
"We have been waiting for a long time for crib bumper pads and the inclined sleep products. Both products - we know how dangerous they are, to finally be taken off the market," said Nancy Cowles, executive director of the non-profit.
"We think this is going to make sleep time for babies so much safer," she added.
Cowles highlights how critical this law is in keeping infants safe.
The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission or CPSC has received 113 reported deaths involving crib bumpers from Jan. 1, 1990, through March 31, 2019.
Kids in Danger reports more than one hundred babies have died in infant inclined sleep products.
That's the reason why in 2019, the popular Fisher-Price sleeper, the Rock 'n Play, was recalled.
Cowles points out many versions and even the recalled product itself are still being sold used on social media.
"Kids in danger is not opposed to secondhand, hand-me-downs. Let's face it, the minute you bring it home from the store, it's second-hand, whether you continue using it or you pass it along, or you continue to use it yourself. So, they should be safe for multiple babies to use these products. But, we are just concerned that so many recalled products remain out there in the second-hand market."
The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends babies sleep on their backs on a flat firm surface like a bassinet or crib with nothing else in the sleep space.
"When parents see these products in the store, they just assume they're safe. They don't understand the danger, and so this way they won't be available to buy," said Cowles.
If you buy a baby item second-hand, especially a sleep product, check and see if it's recalled by clicking here.
You can also even search for the safety history of the manufacturer by clicking here.