The US Consumer Product Safety Commission has announced a new federal safety standard for infant bath seats. This is the first mandatory standard issued by CPSC as required under the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act (CPSIA) specifically for infant and toddler durable products.
The new federal requirements for infant bath seats are aimed at preventing the bath seat from tipping over, as well as for keeping children from slipping through leg openings. The requirements also call for larger warning labels to alert parents that bath seats are not safety devices and that infants should never be left unattended in a bath seat.
The new safety standard comes after 174 reported deaths in the period from 1983 through November 2009, involving bath seats. Many of these deaths involve babies left unattended while bathing, so parents should be more aware of the dangers of leaving small infants alone in baths.
Some parents use bath seats as support for babies while they are being bathed.
Since these products are not safety devices to prevent small children from drowning, they should not be used as such. Infants can drown quickly, even in small amounts of water. The CPSC warns to always keep a young child within arm’s reach in a bathtub.
Currently, no baby bath seat on the market complies with the new mandatory standard.
The final rule on infant bath seats goes into effect six months after publication in the Federal Register. Bath seats manufactured or imported on or after that date will be required to meet the new mandatory standard, CPSC reports.
