Nursing pillows are loved by parents and caregivers, on the top of baby registry lists, and recognized by industry and regulators. These products have been on the market for decades and the name has significant equity built up with consumers and in retail environments.
But reality is that the term “pillow” given to this product is a misnomer.
Pillows are most often thought of in the context of sleep or lounging.
While nursing pillows provide their own type of comfort, the products were never intended for sleep or luxury. In fact, if you look at product labels, you will see that nursing pillows are intended for awake time only.
The comfort comes in its utility: support for moms and caregivers as they breast or bottle feed their little ones. And because every individual requires a different type of support during this important time, ensuring the availability of various different shapes and sizes of the product is so important to promoting healthy feeding and bonding between baby and caregiver.
BFIDSA supports manufacturers and the ASTM standard setting process in the evolution of the product category – from “nursing pillow” to “feeding support” – to more accurately convey the value and utility of the product. To be clear, these products are intentionally created for the primary purpose of supporting caregiver during breastfeeding or bottle feeding, and the product name should reflect that intention.