Parents should be on “high alert” for online ads which claim to help with infants suffering from colic, reflux and poor sleep.
The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) said it investigated online adverts claiming products designed to position or elevate a baby could reduce symptoms linked with these conditions or improve sleep.
It reviewed 350 online ads for baby products and services, deeming 59% “high risk” and identifying 60 other ads for follow-up action due to the potential for physical harm.
The ASA said many of the ads were targeted at sleep-deprived or first-time parents who might be more susceptible to unverified claims.
Some of them suggested that sleep or elevation devices could reduce or stop reflux, improve sleep or prevent colic, and included pictures of babies in potentially unsafe devices.
NHS guidance states that babies should sleep flat on their backs on a firm, flat surface and cautions against inclined or elevated sleep products.
The ASA said the ads pose serious risks, given that unsafe sleeping practices could lead to injury or death.
The Office for Product Safety and Standards issued another safety alert about dangerous baby sleeping bags that include a hood but are missing arm holes alongside the ASA warning – telling parents to be wary of ads offering a “quick fix”.
Jessica Tye, regulatory projects manager at the ASA, said: “Parents may, understandably, be worried and exhausted when their baby is struggling with reflux, colic or not sleeping and may be looking for anything that could help.
“But when an ad takes those worries and uses them to promote a product or practice that could put a baby in danger, it’s unacceptable and something we take very seriously.”
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She added: “The ads we identified through our monitoring raised serious concerns for us, which is why we’re taking immediate action today to warn parents and share what we’ve found with our regulatory partners.”
Minister for consumer protection, Kate Dearden, added: “As these findings demonstrate, parents must be able to trust baby products are safe and do not undermine established medical advice.
“We will continue working closely with regulators, businesses and safer-sleep experts to remove unsafe baby products and hold those responsible to account.”
