n light of the current recall of the Infantino “SlingRider” and “Wendy Bellissimo” slings in the UK, Europe and North America, Rebecca Ward of the Consortium of UK Sling Retailers and Manufacturers says, “We are pleased that steps have been taken to ensure that using a baby sling is a safe way to carry your baby. If you are using a ‘bag style’ baby carrier and have concerns, we urge you to contact the manufacturer. The majority of baby carriers and slings are still safe to use, if they hold baby in proper alignment and fit snugly by design and instruction. These safe designs of sling include shallow pouch-style slings, ring slings, soft carriers and wrap slings.”

According to the World Health Organization (WHO) providing breastfeeding education and support to new mothers could prevent more than one million child deaths every year. The WHO recommends that infants start breastfeeding within one hour of birth and consume nothing but breast milk for the first six months of life. Despite this advice, less than 40% of mothers worldwide exclusively breastfeed for this time. Insufficient breastfeeding is a problem in both rich and poor countries, the agency says.

The Department of Health has revealed it is to scrap plans for healthy children under five to continue to be vaccinated against swine flu, just three months after urging GPs to vaccinate more than three million youngsters against the outbreak. In a major U-Turn, the Chief Medical Officer, Sir Liam Donaldson, revealed the programme of vaccinating healthy children would wrap up at the end of next month, although GPs have been told to continue to try vaccinate children until then. Extending the vaccination campaign to children has proved a disappointment, with just 17% of children in England having had the vaccine according to the latest uptake figures.

Child nutrition guru - Annabel Karmel has been criticised for adding sugar and salt to her ready meals for toddlers. Annabel Karmel has sold millions of books guiding parents on how to wean children on to healthy food. However, it has emerged that her Eat Fussy ready meals are laced with added sugar and salt. Annabel Karmel has developed a multi-million pound empire from her book the Complete Baby and Toddler Meal Planner.