Watchdog Warns Some Baby Mattresses Aren't Safe

Some brands of cot mattresses on sale in Hong Kong could put babies at risk of suffocation, the Consumer Council warned on Thursday.

Of eight brands tested, three failed to meet European safety standards, the council said. These three mattresses were made by 0/3 baby, Minimoto, and Candide.

The watchdog said it enlisted the help of International Consumer Research and Testing to carry out checks on the cot mattresses and the three found to be problematic were not firm enough.

"It cannot be too hard or too soft," the council's chief executive Gilly Wong explained.

She said if a mattress is too soft and a baby lies face-down on it, they would be at risk of suffocating. A mattress that is too hard on the other hand would be uncomfortable for the child, she added.

Wong said parents should use their hands to test the firmness of different mattresses when they are shopping for one, taking into account the baby's weight.

She also noted that the prices of the mattresses were not related to their performance in the tests, and little difference was found in the quality between foam and spring versions.

Meanwhile, the watchdog also said it found large gaps between the cot frame and the mattress in one product tested, which exceeded safety standards. It said if such gaps are too wide, babies could trap their head, limbs, fingers or toes in them.

The council said it had passed details of the brands it found to be problematic to the customs department, which issued a press release saying officers had carried out spot-checks at chain stores and wholesalers in the past two weeks, seizing 59 mattresses suspected of being unsafe.