OPSS warns about baby sleeping bags without arm holes or with a hood over suffocation and overheating risk

Official notice

The notice's own wording from OPSS.

Product Safety Alert: Baby Sleeping Bags (PSA9)

Measures taken

other

Key safety messages

- Not all Baby Sleeping Bags are safe - Only buy or use a baby sleeping bag that has arm holes and no hood What are ‘Baby Sleeping Bags’? ‘Baby Sleeping Bags’ are products which are marketed or intended to be used as bags for babies to sleep in unsupervised, when in a crib or cot. This does not include items designed to be worn in a pram such as a pramsuit or muff. This alert does not apply to products designed specifically to swaddle a baby. Why are they dangerous? Baby sleeping bags are not safe to be used for babies to sleep in or to be placed in, unsupervised, if they lack arm holes or include a hood. Some dangerous baby sleeping bags lack armholes and include a hood. Baby sleeping bags that lack arm holes or include a hood pose a serious risk of harm. The main harms are suffocation and overheating, which can lead to serious injury or death in babies. Suffocation and asphyxiation: without armholes to retain a child in position, a baby may slip into the sleeping bag and the material may cover a baby’s nose and mouth, which could result in asphyxia leading to serious or even fatal harm. Similarly, due to natural movement of the material, a hood may cover a baby’s nose and mouth, which can lead to suffocation or asphyxiation. Overheating: materials that are heat retentive and/or enclose a baby’s head will prevent heat from escaping and a baby can get too hot if left for too long. There is a higher risk of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome if a baby overheats. Background OPSS is concerned by the availability of baby sleeping bags that are unsafe as described above. We have published nearly 50 recalls or product safety reports for dangerous baby sleeping bag products since 2023. Consumers, parents and other carers, educators, Local Authorities and businesses are asked to be alert to the dangers of unsafe baby sleeping bags and to take action as advised below, where appropriate. This Product Safety Alert does not apply to Baby Sleeping Bags that meet voluntary standard BS EN 16781:2018 (safety requirements and test methods for children’s sleep bags for use in a cot).

Advised Action

Consumers, Childcare and Education Settings: - Do not buy or use a baby sleeping bag that lacks armholes or which includes a hood. - If the product was marketed for unsupervised baby sleep, you should contact the business that supplied the product; you may be entitled to redress under the Digital Markets Competition and Consumers Act 2024 . Businesses: - Must comply with their obligations under the General Product Safety Regulations 2005 to only place safe products on the market. Any products which are marketed or intended to be used as bags for babies to sleep in or to use unsupervised must include armholes and must not contain a hood. Products which do not comply must be removed from sale and corrective action taken. - OPSS recommends that retailers and importers should consider only supplying or importing baby sleeping bags that meet voluntary standard BS EN 16781:2018. Local Authority Trading Standards and Environmental Health in Northern Ireland: - Take action to remove any unsafe baby sleeping bags from sale within their local areas.

Additional Information and Resources

- OPSS News Story - NHS Guidance on Safer Sleep for Babies: NHS safe-sleep-advice-for-babies - NHS Guidance on Reducing the risk of SIDS: Reduce the risk of sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS) - NHS - NHS Guidance on Baby and Toddler Safety: Baby and toddler safety - NHS