Nappies are a key part of a new parent's life. Watchdog reporter and mum of twins Alice Beer, says her little ones went through a 2,200 nappies a year when they were growing up. Ask any mum or dad and they'll testify, once you find your favourite brand, you tend to stick to it. But what happens when your chosen brand lets you down?
Pampers are the UK's leading brand of nappies, trusted and used by thousands of parents. But Watchdog's recently received dozens of complaints about Pampers' range of Active Fit nappies. Keen to get to the bottom of the problem we arranged to meet some of the concerned parents who'd got in touch with the programme.
Sue Lamb and husband Shaz tried many brands of nappy before settling on Pampers Active Fit. They were perfectly happy with them until they bought two bumper boxes in March and realised something was quite different...
According to Sue, within an hour of the new nappy being on, their daughter Amy had leaked at the back.
For Tina Cann, the experience was similar. She also purchased her usual two bulk boxes from the supermarket. It was only when she went to change her daughter Poppy at home that she noticed the marked difference with the new nappies. Tina thought they had a lot less stuffing than she was used to - she actually thought she'd bought a defective packet. Tina then pulled all of the nappies out of the pack and, realising they were all the same, changed Poppy into one. A couple of hours later Poppy was wet.
According to Poppy's mum: "The nappy hangs really low when it gets fuller and then just trickles down her leg so we end up with wet legs, wet socks, trousers, whatever she has on."
We asked some families to try the new nappies, and they couldn't see a problem. But with so many mums adamant there is Alice decided to take a closer look. As far as the packaging, Alice and the parents all agreed that the old and new packs look exactly the same. It's only on closer inspection of the nappy itself that the difference is easy to see. The old nappies seem fatter than the new, modified ones. A lack of padding would appear to be the problem.
Yet with nothing on the packaging to tell parents of a change in design, how would they know their trusted Pampers had changed?
Tina wasn't impressed: "...You go out and buy what you think is a normal product and you get it home and you feel deceived - and cheated".
In fact, the only clue parents have that the nappies have changed is a small purple leaflet tucked inside the pack, asking for feedback.
Watchdog asked the opinion of marketing whizz Chris Arnold. He said he can see why Pampers customers are furious:
"It seems a very odd way to do it," said Chris. "Because you know mothers and babies have a strong trust in brands and you cannot damage that trust whatsoever. So putting something new into the box without telling them is a complete breach of trust. Usually, I mean, if you have a new product you want to sing and dance about it, you want to tell everyone it's wonderful. So doing it this way seems completely barmy."
It's not just in the UK that Pampers customers are complaining, customers of Pampers in America are also cross. There has been a design change there too. Last year Pampers redesigned their 'Cruiser' nappy. Although there are some differences between this and the UK's Active Fit nappy (they use different amounts of absorbent material and fragrance) fundamentally the products are made the same way, using the same technology. The US customers aren't just complaining about leaks. Some parents in the States claim that the new Cruisers have given their babies a rash.
Following press reports and complaints about Cruisers, the US Consumer Product Safety Commission has launched an investigation into the nappy.
Pampers have denied their nappy causes rashes, and have made a video featuring Dr J Atherton, a Consultant Paedeatric Dermatologist in which he says: "Nappy rash is an extremely common condition, according to the NHS website it affects about a third of all babies at any one time. And in ten percent of those, it will be severe enough that parents will consider taking him to their GP. Nappy rash is caused by the direct irritating effect of faeces or urine on the baby's skin and despite the name it has absolutely nothing to do with nappies."
Despite this, all the angst across the pond has got mums in the UK worried, too. And the parents we've spoken still can't understand why Pampers changed the design of their nappy without telling them.
Pampers Statement
"Thank you for contacting us about New Pampers Active Fit with Dry Max.
Pampers Active Fit with Dry Max is our best nappy ever. It contains the same types of materials as our previous version. In particular, these nappies continue to use the same type of absorbent gel material. What we've done with the new product is improve the way the gel material works to lock in wetness - we've made sure it's located in the parts of the nappy that need it most. This means we can continue to provide outstanding Pampers dryness in a nappy that is 20 percent thinner than before offering more comfort and freedom of movement for babies.
You mention nappy rash in your letter, so we would like to ensure the facts are clear. Leading dermatologists and experts confirm it is a common misconception that nappies cause nappy rash. Nappy rash is a common condition caused by irritants in urine and faeces on the baby's skin and not by a nappy. It is called nappy rash because of the area of the rash. This skin distress is caused by a number of factors including a change in feeding habits, teething, ill health etc. Babies of all ages, and wearing all types of nappies (cloth or disposable), will be affected by nappy rash at some point. At any given time there are more than 400,000 babies with nappy rash and about 10% of these cases can be severe. To illustrate this point, please refer to the attached link from an NHS website which clarifies that 'nappy rash is a common condition thought to affect up to a third of nappy-wearing babies at any given time'. http://www.nhs.uk/conditions/nappy-rash/Pages/Introduction.aspx.
We're also very proud that a number of healthcare professionals around the world are supportive of new Pampers Active Fit with Dry Max, including Dr. David Atherton, a paediatric dermatologist working as a consultant in Paediatric Dermatology at Great Ormond Street Hospital for Children, and a Pampers Village expert. The advice provided by experts such as Dr. Atherton is invaluable in helping us to continually improve our products so that they deliver outstanding performance.
Understandably there are a great many UK parents who have grown to love our older Active Fit nappies, and they may have questions about new Active Fit with Dry Max. We would encourage any of our consumers or any Watchdog viewers who have questions, to get in touch with our Consumer Care Line [0800.328.3281 or for Ireland 1800.535124]."
Pampers - causing a stink?
Pampers are the UK's leading brand of nappies, trusted and used by thousands of parents. But Watchdog's recently received dozens of complaints about Pampers' range of Active Fit nappies. Keen to get to the bottom of the problem we arranged to meet some of the concerned parents who'd got in touch with the programme.
Sue Lamb and husband Shaz tried many brands of nappy before settling on Pampers Active Fit. They were perfectly happy with them until they bought two bumper boxes in March and realised something was quite different...
According to Sue, within an hour of the new nappy being on, their daughter Amy had leaked at the back.
For Tina Cann, the experience was similar. She also purchased her usual two bulk boxes from the supermarket. It was only when she went to change her daughter Poppy at home that she noticed the marked difference with the new nappies. Tina thought they had a lot less stuffing than she was used to - she actually thought she'd bought a defective packet. Tina then pulled all of the nappies out of the pack and, realising they were all the same, changed Poppy into one. A couple of hours later Poppy was wet.
According to Poppy's mum: "The nappy hangs really low when it gets fuller and then just trickles down her leg so we end up with wet legs, wet socks, trousers, whatever she has on."
We asked some families to try the new nappies, and they couldn't see a problem. But with so many mums adamant there is Alice decided to take a closer look. As far as the packaging, Alice and the parents all agreed that the old and new packs look exactly the same. It's only on closer inspection of the nappy itself that the difference is easy to see. The old nappies seem fatter than the new, modified ones. A lack of padding would appear to be the problem.
Yet with nothing on the packaging to tell parents of a change in design, how would they know their trusted Pampers had changed?
Tina wasn't impressed: "...You go out and buy what you think is a normal product and you get it home and you feel deceived - and cheated".
In fact, the only clue parents have that the nappies have changed is a small purple leaflet tucked inside the pack, asking for feedback.
Watchdog asked the opinion of marketing whizz Chris Arnold. He said he can see why Pampers customers are furious:
"It seems a very odd way to do it," said Chris. "Because you know mothers and babies have a strong trust in brands and you cannot damage that trust whatsoever. So putting something new into the box without telling them is a complete breach of trust. Usually, I mean, if you have a new product you want to sing and dance about it, you want to tell everyone it's wonderful. So doing it this way seems completely barmy."
It's not just in the UK that Pampers customers are complaining, customers of Pampers in America are also cross. There has been a design change there too. Last year Pampers redesigned their 'Cruiser' nappy. Although there are some differences between this and the UK's Active Fit nappy (they use different amounts of absorbent material and fragrance) fundamentally the products are made the same way, using the same technology. The US customers aren't just complaining about leaks. Some parents in the States claim that the new Cruisers have given their babies a rash.
Following press reports and complaints about Cruisers, the US Consumer Product Safety Commission has launched an investigation into the nappy.
Pampers have denied their nappy causes rashes, and have made a video featuring Dr J Atherton, a Consultant Paedeatric Dermatologist in which he says: "Nappy rash is an extremely common condition, according to the NHS website it affects about a third of all babies at any one time. And in ten percent of those, it will be severe enough that parents will consider taking him to their GP. Nappy rash is caused by the direct irritating effect of faeces or urine on the baby's skin and despite the name it has absolutely nothing to do with nappies."
Despite this, all the angst across the pond has got mums in the UK worried, too. And the parents we've spoken still can't understand why Pampers changed the design of their nappy without telling them.
Pampers Statement
"Thank you for contacting us about New Pampers Active Fit with Dry Max.
Pampers Active Fit with Dry Max is our best nappy ever. It contains the same types of materials as our previous version. In particular, these nappies continue to use the same type of absorbent gel material. What we've done with the new product is improve the way the gel material works to lock in wetness - we've made sure it's located in the parts of the nappy that need it most. This means we can continue to provide outstanding Pampers dryness in a nappy that is 20 percent thinner than before offering more comfort and freedom of movement for babies.
You mention nappy rash in your letter, so we would like to ensure the facts are clear. Leading dermatologists and experts confirm it is a common misconception that nappies cause nappy rash. Nappy rash is a common condition caused by irritants in urine and faeces on the baby's skin and not by a nappy. It is called nappy rash because of the area of the rash. This skin distress is caused by a number of factors including a change in feeding habits, teething, ill health etc. Babies of all ages, and wearing all types of nappies (cloth or disposable), will be affected by nappy rash at some point. At any given time there are more than 400,000 babies with nappy rash and about 10% of these cases can be severe. To illustrate this point, please refer to the attached link from an NHS website which clarifies that 'nappy rash is a common condition thought to affect up to a third of nappy-wearing babies at any given time'. http://www.nhs.uk/conditions/nappy-rash/Pages/Introduction.aspx.
We're also very proud that a number of healthcare professionals around the world are supportive of new Pampers Active Fit with Dry Max, including Dr. David Atherton, a paediatric dermatologist working as a consultant in Paediatric Dermatology at Great Ormond Street Hospital for Children, and a Pampers Village expert. The advice provided by experts such as Dr. Atherton is invaluable in helping us to continually improve our products so that they deliver outstanding performance.
Understandably there are a great many UK parents who have grown to love our older Active Fit nappies, and they may have questions about new Active Fit with Dry Max. We would encourage any of our consumers or any Watchdog viewers who have questions, to get in touch with our Consumer Care Line [0800.328.3281 or for Ireland 1800.535124]."
Pampers - causing a stink?