A CORONER has issued a warning about the dangers of baby slings after a six-week-old boy tragically died during “hands-free” breastfeeding. James Alderman, affectionately known as Jimmy, was being breastfed in a baby carrier worn by his mother as she moved around their home.
The inquest heard that Jimmy was positioned unsafely, too far down in the sling, and after five minutes, he had collapsed. Although resuscitation efforts were started immediately, he sadly passed away three days later on 11 October 2023.
“Very little” safety information about baby slings is available to parents, noted Lydia Brown, senior coroner for west London, despite a “significant increase” in their use in recent years.
The practice of “baby-wearing” is believed by some to foster bonding between mother and baby due to their close physical proximity.
It has become something of a trend among ‘mumfluencers’ on social media, many of whom advocate for the benefits of the technique while downplaying the risks, especially for very young babies.
The coroner highlighted that there appeared to be “no advice that breastfeeding hands-free a young baby is unsafe due to the risk of suffocation” and called for industry standards to promote the safe use of slings. “There appeared to be no helpful visual images of ‘safe’ versus ‘unsafe’ sling/carrier postures,” she said, adding that “the NHS available literature provides no guidance or advice”.
