The word was going around in baby wearing circles, a national channel will broadcast a news clip warning parents on the dangers of bag slings. The widest most common heard response was “finally!”
Many of us are breathing a sigh of relief that the national TV Channel has taken the burden of approaching parents using bag-slings (or duffle-carrier, as the community is calling them) tactfully and advising them against continued use. This is something we have all fretted over and sought advice regarding and have tried to be very sensitive when approaching parents either using them or looking into buying them.
Today at Target, I saw the Eddie Baur sling-to-hip carrier displayed in the aisles and though the hip position looked like it was safe enough, but the way the carrier was used as a sling was definitely not. Yes, the drawing on the back makes it seems like safe positioning is possible, but you know what, there is a reason there is a drawing used and not actual mom and baby modeling proper position, because it is just NOT possible to get one for more than a few minutes. Even when learning ring slings, I was not able to keep infant Monster from turing into a dangerous position without a series of tugs and tightening. With these duffle carriers, there is NO WAY to adjust the thing!
Rule of thumb when it comes to baby wearing: You need to be able to see the baby ALL THE TIME! Anything that has a drawstring on the top rail of the sling is a no-go. I was surprised to see some Dr. Sears slings have this structure and even though I love Dr. Sears and his philosophy, I cannot back this product.
When demonstrating newborn wrapping, I teach moms how to maintain the natural curvature of the baby’s spine supported by the tension in the cloth covering the baby’s back. At the same time, keeping the neck held up and the head turned to the side supported by the mother’s chest (the slope that occurs between collar bones and the top of the breasts). This natural slope is the best support for a newborn’s head, and you must have noticed so as well how your baby just tucks his head under your neck when held in arms. This position is optimum for normal breathing flow. To recreate how breathing flow can be restricted, try laying on bed with three pillows right at the base of your skull, forcing you to tuck your head. With a newborn's undeveloped larynx, this position can cut off breathing, and with the baby so far away from you and covered from sight because of the drawstring design, that is not the position you want to leave your child in.
Keep the necks straight, heads at kissing-level and let’s keep our babies safe.
Examples of bag slings currently found in stores:
Eddie Baur Infant Sling
Infantino Sling Rider
Showing posts with label Babywearing Fails. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Babywearing Fails. Show all posts
Sunday, March 14, 2010
Tuesday, January 26, 2010
Dangers of Bag Slings
All baby carriers have the potential of being unsafe if not put on correctly. However, if a carrier’s construction is such that it is impossible to get a correct positioning that does not compromise the worn baby’s breathing, is not worth taking the risk with.
Recently in the news, a family whose 6 days old infant suffocated in an Infantino Slingrider last spring, filed a lawsuit against the company. The case has brought attention to the dangers of bag type slings, a topic M’Liss Stelzer, former registered nurse, has been researching for quite some time.
M’liss covers the various design flaws in her research:,
1. Bag slings are roughly triangle shaped; flat bottom and two sides that slant upwards toward the elastic top. This “triangle” means that the pouch fabric is always angled very close to the sides of baby’s face. If baby rotates even slightly he ends up with his nose within a ¼” of the side, or even pressed against the side of the pouch. Once baby has his head pressed against the side of the carrier and/or against the parent's body there is a risk of him becoming oxygen deprived or even suffocating.
2. It is difficult for the parent to closely monitor their infant unless the top of the sling is pulled open. Bag slings are generally deep, plus they sag when baby is placed in it, further increasing the depth of the carrier. The gathered top, and the fact that the sling hangs so low, obstructs the parent’s view of baby. If a newborn were to have difficulty breathing, and/or rotate until his nose and mouth was pressed against the side of the carrier, the parent may not be aware of the baby’s respiratory distress for some time. Compounding this problem is the difficulty of feeling the baby's distress through the thick fabric of the sling.
3. Although there are bag slings designed with large mesh panels placed near the infant’s head, others are not. There is a possibility that, with only a very small opening at the top of a non-mesh sling, an infant may not receive an adequate amount of fresh air. There is the concern that carbon dioxide levels could rise the longer the infant remains in the sling.
4. The design of a bag sling causes baby to curl chin to chest, larger babies more so because their heads are positioned further up in the carrier. This position kinks baby's airway causing the baby to work harder to breathe.
“In October of 2006 I emailed Infantino with my concerns,” write M’liss. “I included a file with all the information I have concerning adverse events or infant deaths in fabric carriers, a copy of my "Correct Positioning" article as well as photos illustrating the differences in positioning in fabric carriers like pouches, RSs, MTs and wraps versus their product. In the spring/summer of 2007 I resumed researching the SlingRider and all additional sling tests and photos were emailed to Infantino as soon as they were obtained. In June 2007 I mailed all pertinent information to the Consumer Product Safety Commission.
“Infantino has added a mesh panel to the upper half of the SlingRider. This should improve airflow to the newborn but does not, IMO, address other problems inherent to the design.
“The CPSC, to my knowledge, has not taken any action.”
Many parents do not realize that “grunting” is NOT normal, as was the case with one of her guest parents. Grunting means the baby is having trouble breathing, either in or outside a baby carrier. It happens most commonly if the child is laying in a position that pusher her chin to chest. "The analogy I use, to help explain the difference, is that a newborn’s airway is like a straw and when the “straw” is kinked it is a lot harder to get air through," writes M’liss. "Once the baby’s breathing becomes more labored the baby starts forcing air through the 'kinked straw'/airway and that is why the whistle or grunting noises are with every, or almost every, breath. "
Compare the SlingRider with a shallow fabric pouch or adjustable open-tailed sling (or mei tai or wrap). In these types of carriers an infant is easily monitored and visualized. Also, a newborn's head is effectively sandwiched between the sides of these carriers, preventing the infant from rotating his/her head into the sides of the carrier.
"Using a bag sling is, in my opinion, just playing russian roulette." --M'liss
More of M’liss article and observations from her research are found at http://www.blogger.com/www.%20babyslingsafety.blogspot.com
Recently in the news, a family whose 6 days old infant suffocated in an Infantino Slingrider last spring, filed a lawsuit against the company. The case has brought attention to the dangers of bag type slings, a topic M’Liss Stelzer, former registered nurse, has been researching for quite some time.
M’liss covers the various design flaws in her research:,
1. Bag slings are roughly triangle shaped; flat bottom and two sides that slant upwards toward the elastic top. This “triangle” means that the pouch fabric is always angled very close to the sides of baby’s face. If baby rotates even slightly he ends up with his nose within a ¼” of the side, or even pressed against the side of the pouch. Once baby has his head pressed against the side of the carrier and/or against the parent's body there is a risk of him becoming oxygen deprived or even suffocating.
2. It is difficult for the parent to closely monitor their infant unless the top of the sling is pulled open. Bag slings are generally deep, plus they sag when baby is placed in it, further increasing the depth of the carrier. The gathered top, and the fact that the sling hangs so low, obstructs the parent’s view of baby. If a newborn were to have difficulty breathing, and/or rotate until his nose and mouth was pressed against the side of the carrier, the parent may not be aware of the baby’s respiratory distress for some time. Compounding this problem is the difficulty of feeling the baby's distress through the thick fabric of the sling.
3. Although there are bag slings designed with large mesh panels placed near the infant’s head, others are not. There is a possibility that, with only a very small opening at the top of a non-mesh sling, an infant may not receive an adequate amount of fresh air. There is the concern that carbon dioxide levels could rise the longer the infant remains in the sling.
4. The design of a bag sling causes baby to curl chin to chest, larger babies more so because their heads are positioned further up in the carrier. This position kinks baby's airway causing the baby to work harder to breathe.
“In October of 2006 I emailed Infantino with my concerns,” write M’liss. “I included a file with all the information I have concerning adverse events or infant deaths in fabric carriers, a copy of my "Correct Positioning" article as well as photos illustrating the differences in positioning in fabric carriers like pouches, RSs, MTs and wraps versus their product. In the spring/summer of 2007 I resumed researching the SlingRider and all additional sling tests and photos were emailed to Infantino as soon as they were obtained. In June 2007 I mailed all pertinent information to the Consumer Product Safety Commission.
“Infantino has added a mesh panel to the upper half of the SlingRider. This should improve airflow to the newborn but does not, IMO, address other problems inherent to the design.
“The CPSC, to my knowledge, has not taken any action.”
Many parents do not realize that “grunting” is NOT normal, as was the case with one of her guest parents. Grunting means the baby is having trouble breathing, either in or outside a baby carrier. It happens most commonly if the child is laying in a position that pusher her chin to chest. "The analogy I use, to help explain the difference, is that a newborn’s airway is like a straw and when the “straw” is kinked it is a lot harder to get air through," writes M’liss. "Once the baby’s breathing becomes more labored the baby starts forcing air through the 'kinked straw'/airway and that is why the whistle or grunting noises are with every, or almost every, breath. "
Compare the SlingRider with a shallow fabric pouch or adjustable open-tailed sling (or mei tai or wrap). In these types of carriers an infant is easily monitored and visualized. Also, a newborn's head is effectively sandwiched between the sides of these carriers, preventing the infant from rotating his/her head into the sides of the carrier.
"Using a bag sling is, in my opinion, just playing russian roulette." --M'liss
More of M’liss article and observations from her research are found at http://www.blogger.com/www.%20babyslingsafety.blogspot.com
M'liss Stelzer is a former registered nurse and now a babywearing educator and now mother of two.
Author "Correct Positioning", September 2006
Author "Babywearing Bliss", Mothering magazine January - February 2007
Instructor Chicago Babywearing Conference, June 2008
Author "Correct Positioning", September 2006
Author "Babywearing Bliss", Mothering magazine January - February 2007
Instructor Chicago Babywearing Conference, June 2008
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