Research conducted by the Consumer Product Safety Commission provided the first direct epidemiologic evidence that infants who sleep on their stomachs on top of soft bedding are at risk of suffocation and death. This hidden hazard may contribute to as many as 1,800 infant deaths a year. Working with public and private health organizations, the CPSC helped to promote side and back sleeping positions for infants and warned against the dangers of soft bedding.

CPSC became aware of the dangers of soft bedding in late 1990 when several infant deaths were associated with the use of infant bean bag cushions. CPSC worked with manufacturers to recall infant cushions in early 1991 and banned them in June 1992. There were 35 infant deaths associated with these cushions. Most of the infants who died had been diagnosed as Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS), although they were found with their faces buried straight down into a product that molded around their heads. Medical experts in SIDS at St. Louis University tested the cushions and concluded that the deaths were likely due to rebreathing of lethal levels of carbon dioxide (CO2) trapped in the infant cushions.

Further research into SIDS deaths by Commission staff showed that rebreathing CO2 trapped in other soft bedding may contribute to the deaths of as many as 30 percent of the infants initially diagnosed as SIDS. Results of the study showed that infants who died with their nose and mouth covered by soft bedding were more likely to be sleeping on their stomachs on top of pillows, comforters and other soft bedding. About half the infants who rolled to their stomachs from their backs or sides were found with their airways covered, emphasizing the need to remove soft bedding from under infants while they sleep.

CPSC warned the public about the hazard through Safety Alerts, a national press conference, and by joining in the "Back-to-Sleep" public health campaign promoting side and back sleeping for infants with the American Academy of Pediatrics, the National Institute for Child Health and Human Development, and the SIDS Alliance. These organizations also published CPSC's study results in the Pediatrics Journal and distributed pamphlets with CPSC's warnings. As one SIDS expert commented, "You and your staff have done a tremendous service to infants and their families by completing this important study. Sparing families from the tragedy of the sudden and unexpected death of their infant is a huge contribution to the public good."

GO TO THE INDEX

Office of Information and Public Affairs

Washington, D.C. 20207

(301) 504-7908