No Evidence Cardboard Baby Boxes Cut Cot Deaths Bristol University Professors Says

Cardboard Baby Box Safety Concerns:

There is no evidence to support the use of cardboard baby boxes to reduce the number of cot deaths, Bristol University professor Peter Blair says.

In a letter to the BMJ, he raises concerns about the baby boxes which are now being given out free to new mothers in some areas of the UK.

The baby boxes with a mattress that fits in at the bottom have been routinely given out to mothers-to-be in Finland since the 1930s.

But Peter Blair says that there is no evidence that the boxes reduce cot deaths when compared to the statistics from neighbouring countries such as Sweden and Denmark where they are not used.

He is also concerned that the boxes do not meet safety regulations and should only be used as a ‘temporary substitute is nothing else is available’.

Problems he says the box poses is a lack of visibility, lack of air flow, potential flammability and if placed on a floor leave the baby at risk from draughts, pets and siblings. There are also concerns about boxes with babies in them being placed at height and how durable the box is should it become wet or dirty.

“We support any initiative that raises awareness of SIDS, including appropriate SIDS risk reduction advice distributed with cardboard baby boxes,” he writes, “But this advice can be undermined if the messages given are incorrect or mixed with non-evidence based messages about the intervention itself.”

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