FDA warns parents against using ‘head-shaping pillows’ because they can suffocate and KILL babies
- Food and Drug Administration said the pillows had no ‘medical purpose’
- Parents who own one should ‘throw it away’ and not ‘donate or give’ to others
- Agency warned pillows raise the risk of an infant suffocating while asleep
Parents were today told to stop using ‘head-shaping pillows’ on their babies because they can suffocate and kill infants.
The pillows — created with an indent or hole in the center — are often advertised as being able to treat flat head syndrome.
Around one in five babies develop the condition, usually from sleeping or during childbirth, because their skulls are so soft.
But the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) said in a safety alert that the pillows have no ‘medical purpose’ — and can be deadly.
Parents who own one should ‘throw it away’, the agency said, and ‘not donate or give it to anyone else’.
Agency officials said the shape of the pillows — which are not FDA approved — ‘may contribute to the risk of suffocation and death’.
The angle of the pillows can press babies’ chins against their chest and runs the risk of blocking their airways.
Pictured above is an infant head-shaping pillow. Parents are being told not to use these, and throw them away if they own one (stock image)
Flat head syndrome, medically termed plagiocephaly or brachycephaly, is triggered because babies skulls are still soft.
If they spend a long time on one side of the head — such as when they sleep — the persistent pressure can cause the bones to change shape.
Premature babies are also at higher risk of the condition because their skull bones are softer.
Doctors say when this happens it is ‘not a major cause for concern’ and does not harm development.
Overtime the bones naturally move back into place, they add.
The FDA issued the warning Thursday after becoming aware of head-shaping pillows being advertised online that claimed to ‘correct’ the condition.
It has also contacted the manufacturers to express its concerns.
None of the products were named in the alert.
The pillows leave infants at risk of sudden unexpected infant death, they warned.
This is the leading cause of death in infancy, with about 3,400 babies dying from it in the US every year.
The FDA said in its release: ‘The FDA is not aware of any demonstrated benefit with the use of infant head shaping pillows for any medical purpose.
‘The use of head shaping pillows can create an unsafe sleep environment for infants and may contribute to the risk of suffocation and death.’
Many grocery stores are yet to pull the head-shaping pillows from their shelves.
But doctors hope this may now lead to the products being removed.
Dr Sarah Schaffer, a pediatrician at the National Children’s Hospital in Washington DC told CNN: ‘Hopefully this recommendation will lead to their removal from these websites.’
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