Amazon, Target and other retailers have pulled weighted infant sleepwear because of safety concerns
Investigating the Safety of Infants with Weighted Sleepwear Under Concerns of the Safety. Reply to Blumenthal’s “Comment on a Call for an Investigation”
Three of the nation’s largest retailers have pulled weighted infant sleepwear from their shelves over mounting concerns that the products could be unsafe for babies.
“It is essential that products for infants undergo rigorous safety testing and meet the most stringent standards before they are available in the market”, Barry stated in a statement.
Last week, Sen. Richard Blumenthal announced that he was calling for an investigation into two of the top weighted infant sleepwear companies.
Williams said she knew of two fatalities involving weighted infant sleep products, but that the autopsy reports for both deaths mentioned unsafe sleep practices and one doesn’t mention a weighted product at all.
Williams said that they were a small business and that the United States government was fighting Dreamland Baby and Nested Bean. This is not a new category. It’s been out for over 10 years. There’s over 3.5 million [products] sold with no pattern of hazard.”
Manasi Gangan, founder and president of Nested Bean, said her company is offering is a “safe, effective sleep tool” that has helped millions of babies.
She said that any claims to the contrary were false. The FTC and Senator Blumenthal will be working with us to find ways to help families get a great night’s rest.
Why aren’t Babylist’s products sold in the United States? A spokesperson for Babylist, a subsidiary of Dreamland Baby, said it does not disclose any product safety risks
There has been little research on the safety of infant sleep products. One safety study published in the journal Advances in Neonatal Care in 2020 reported “no adverse events” among babies who slept under a weighted blanket, but their heart rates slowed and sessions lasted only 30 minutes at most.
According to the safety study conducted for Nested Bean, 1-ounce weight applied to an infant’s chest does not present clear indications for or against potential breathing hazards, but 3- and 9-ounce weights may increase potential hazard and subsequent risk.
Gangan said that the report in the death cites a tragic combination of unsafe sleep practices. It does not mention a weighted product nor a Nested Bean product.”
“Public officials do not have a license to spread spurious claims when there is a small, minority female-owned business at risk,” Gangan said.
The founder and CEO of Babylist, Natalie Gordon, says that the company stopped selling the products because they were not keeping up with the latest industry guidance.
I believe there is enough evidence to justify an investigation. He told NPR that this federal agency should do that. Referring to past marketing claims by the companies, he added, “other agencies should join in demanding that these companies tell the truth.”
The language referred to standards of flammability and lead. She added that although Dreamland Baby’s staff didn’t believe the claim was misleading, the company removed it so as not to confuse customers.
We want to make it clear that this is what the product is, and we’re trying to work with any involved. This is what it does. She said “Here are your expected results.”
Gangan said representatives from Nested Bean shared the research behind their marketing claims with Blumenthal’s staff and later changed a few of those claims to make them more specific.
Two women-owned small businesses are investigated under a federal probe of their kinematics, operations, and operations: A Comment on Gangan
“Calling for a federal investigation of two women-owned small businesses may only put a strain on our resources and hurt our ability to help families achieve safe sleep,” Gangan said.
