DETROIT, April 18, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Secure Beginnings LLC., a Detroit-based manufacturer of innovative breathable crib mattresses, is supporting a petition to create higher standards of testing and regulation for baby sleep surfaces.

Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20160415/356012
Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20160415/356013

The petition was filed to urge the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) to lobby for stricter regulations on infant mattress pads by David Karow, the father of Abigail "Abby" Milagros Karow.

On April 22, 2010, Abby passed away after a daycare provider put her down for a nap in an Evenflo portable play yard. She was found face down on the mattress pad and had suffocated.

Abby's death was originally attributed to sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS), but the Karows successfully argued that she suffocated because of the non-air-permeable mattress pad.

During the trial, the head of the American Academy of Pediatrics' (AAP) SIDS Task Force, Rachel Moon, M.D., testified that SIDS has been historically over-diagnosed in the United States and that suffocation is sometimes diagnosed mistakenly as SIDS. Dr. Moon also testified that anything up against a baby's face should be breathable.

After a long legal battle, a jury in Redwood City, Calif. returned an $8 million verdict against Evenflo Co., Inc. in favor of the Karows.

Currently, the United States requires that infant mattresses meet the same flammability standards as regular adult mattresses. This is the only mandatory standard. Furthermore, the AAP's official recommendation for baby sleep surfaces is that a firm mattress with tight fitting sheets is used. For portable crib surfaces, such as the one Abby suffocated on, the only regulations concern the thickness of fabric and foam, not whether the surface is permeable to air.

The International Sleep Products Association (ISPA) led efforts for crib mattress manufacturers to establish new crib mattress safety standards. The initiative helped develop a new ASTM safety standard for crib mattresses in July 2013; however, this standard is completely voluntary.

Under oath, a forensic pathologist testified there is no governmental or industrial regulation in the United States that requires mattress pads on which babies are placed on to be air permeable, or breathable. Consumers believe that since a product is sold for an infant to sleep on it must be safe.

Secure Beginnings currently has the most air permeable crib mattress pad on the market. In fact, the Secure Beginnings' mattress has an air permeability rating of over 330 times higher than traditional fiber filled crib mattresses. They also submitted their mattress to be tested for the Australia/New Zealand Firmness Standard, currently the only mattress firmness test, and passed.

The Air Permeability and Firmness Standard tests are completely voluntary and are not often used by large manufacturers of crib mattresses. Secure Beginnings believes that these standards should be mandatory for all manufacturers of baby sleep surfaces in order to reduce the risk of suffocation.

It is Secure Beginnings' belief that all baby sleep surfaces should be breathable. That's why they have joined efforts with the Karows and are supporting the "Abby's Law" petition.

For more information on the petition, visit the Change.Org page. For more information on Secure Beginning's safety tests and their breathable crib mattresses, visit http://www.SecureBeginnings.com/. 

Secure Beginnings, LLC
2699 Guoin St,
Detroit, MI 48207

Contact: Julie Andreae
Office: 313.926.6885
Direct: 586.219.7112
Email

SOURCE Secure Beginnings

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http://www.SecureBeginnings.com