GPs who advise parents on infant safety need to be particularly vigilant over the coming months.

Australia is ripe to become a dumping ground for dangerous infant mattresses diverted from the US market, where they can no longer be sold.

Dangerous mattresses, which are three times more likely to kill a baby, are permitted in Australia but not in the US after the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) in February banned overly soft infant mattresses.¹

In introducing the mandatory safety standards on infant mattresses, which come into force mid-August, the CPSC looked at other international standards, including Australia and New Zealand’s voluntary standard, which includes a firmness test.