When Jalan Burton, M.D., MPH, CLS, was preparing for the arrival of her third child in early 2020, she took out her baby gear from storage — including a Fisher-Price Rock ‘n Play sleeper. Having not used it since her son was an infant, she was shocked to learn it was associated with several infant deaths.
The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) first recalled the Rock ‘n Play in 2019 after 30 infants died rolling “from their back to their stomach or side while unrestrained, or under other circumstances.” Four years later, the CPSC announced the recall again after another estimated 70 fatalities occurred. With this re-announcement, the agency reminded retailers and people that “it is illegal to sell or distribute the recalled sleepers.”
Despite these warnings and recalls, unsafe baby products — like the Rock ‘n Play, the Boppy Newborn lounger, and the DockATot Deluxe+ pillow — still consistently appear on second-hand e-commerce retailers like Facebook Marketplace and eBay where they’re purchased and used by unknowing families.
Why are baby products recalled so often?
As the government agency responsible for safeguarding the public against dangerous products, the CPSC announces more than 300 recalls involving millions of defective or hazardous items every year.
This only happens, however, after a product hits store shelves.
“CPSC does not have pre-market approval authority over consumer products,” says Judy Echavez, a spokesperson for the CPSC. “But all children’s products and toys are required to be tested by an accredited CPSC-accepted third-party laboratory.”
In other words, it’s the manufacturer’s responsibility to comply with safety standards — whether it’s making products or importing them to the U.S.
Product designers, engineers, and testers have to think like children and caregivers and catch potential hazards before going to market, explains Nancy Cowles, executive director of Kids in Danger (KID), a nonprofit product safety organization.
If a consideration slips through the cracks, then a recall can retroactively try to fix the damage — but only after hundreds or thousands of unsafe products have entered nurseries, playrooms, and daycares.
Why are there so many unsafe baby products out there?
Children’s products made up 34 percent of all recalls last year, and getting consumers to return or throw away recalled products is a tough task.
Companies legally have to report defects, hazards, and safety issues with their products to the CPSC, says Echavez. Then time is of the essence.
“The quicker items are removed from store shelves, the more effective the recall is and the safer consumers are,” she says.
From there, CPSC works with the company to put the recall in place and spread the word to the public. (If a company does not agree to a recall, CPSC can take other action, including litigation.) From there, results vary.
Take the 2021 recall of nearly 3.3 million Boppy pillows, as an example. Two years later, we still don’t know how many of the loungers consumers actually returned. It’s nearly impossible to track how many are still being used today years later. Recalls leave the door open for a lot of hazardous products like these to hang around.
We do know that not everyone is returning or throwing away those products: While 24 percent of parents say they do make that effort to get recalled products back to manufacturers and 19 percent will throw them out, many say they do not, a What to Expect survey found. In fact, 12 percent of families will continue using the product, and others will store it (14 percent), give it away to a friend or family member (9 percent), donate it elsewhere (5 percent), try to fix it on their own (8 percent) or sell it (3 percent).
Oftentimes, parents don’t even realize their stored baby gear or box of hand-me-downs contains a recalled product, explains Cowles.
How to solve the problem of unsafe baby products
It can’t only be up to observant parents and caregivers to keep dangerous baby products out of homes and daycares. Manufacturers, resale sites, and regulators need to act.
The CPSC has pointed fingers at resale platforms and demanded that they step up their game. “Unfortunately, we continue to see recalled and banned products being sold on Facebook Marketplace and other e-commerce platforms,” says Echavez. “Large platforms have the resources to better protect the safety of their customers and stop the listing of violative products. They can and should do more.”
The CPSC and manufacturers could also do more, Cowles says. “It doesn’t work to just tell [parents and caregivers] once that a product is recalled,” she explains. The CPSC, for example, could translate all children’s product recalls into Spanish. Companies could post every recall announcement
on their social media pages immediately and often.
“If these same companies went to their marketing department and said, ‘We have a great toy here … Let’s send out one press release, and that’s all we’ll need to do to sell it,’ they wouldn’t get very far,” Cowles adds. “The same is true for the recalls.”
The messaging needs to get louder — but steer clear of judgment. Consistent recall reminders drive the point home, whether it’s to skeptics or shamers, who unfairly accuse caregivers of user error and negligence.
Pediatricians and parents can help spread the word
Dr. Burton regularly makes house calls to her Healthy Home Pediatrics patients and their families where she can deliver information with empathy, not judgment. Pediatricians like herself can offer another layer of protection and guidance when it comes to recalls.
“Our role as providers is definitely to stay abreast,” she says. For example, Dr. Burton regularly shares pediatric health information in a patient newsletter. Then parents can pass the information onto neighbors and friends whose kids are of similar ages.
“The more we all share it, the more likely someone who’s got the product is going to see the warning,” Cowles says.
How to stay informed about baby product recalls
Sign up for recall emails from CPSC. You can also follow them on social media, where the organization regularly posts recall alerts.
Get KID’s monthly newsletter, which includes a recall digest detailing the products consumers should stop using immediately.
Report an unsafe children’s toy or nursery product to the CPSC, and help protect other families.
Staying informed about recalls is not just a precautionary measure; it’s a responsible action that can potentially save lives, Cowles emphasizes. By being proactive and engaged, companies, government agencies, media, providers, and parents can help protect our population’s most vulnerable members.
