Parents are being told to stop using self-feeding baby pillows because they risk causing their child serious harm or could even lead to their death from choking.

Any household with one of the pillows - that is designed to attach a bottle to - should stop using it immediately and dispose of it safely, insists the Office for Product Safety and Standards (OPSS).

It has today issued an urgent safety alert for the self-feeding pillows which it says do not - and never will - comply with safety standards.

Baby self-feeding pillow products are designed to be attached to a bottle so that the baby can be positioned on its back to feed itself without needing the help of a parent or carer to hold the bottle and control the speed of the feed.

However, safety experts say the design is inconsistent with NHS guidance connected to safe bottle feeding and even when used under supervision the feeding technique risks choking or a condition known as aspiration pheumonia which happens when liquid or food is breathed into the airways or lungs instead of being swallowed.

Under the General Product Safety Regulations 2005 any business selling the pillows must, say government officials, now stop selling them and clear their shelves straight away.

The OPSS, which says this 'category of products will always be dangerous due to their design and intended use and can never be made safe' is now issuing advice to households, local authority trading standards services and businesses selling the pillows.

Any family with a self-feeding pillow should stop using it straight away, say officials, and find a way to get rid of it safely while all companies and businesses selling the products must now remove them from the market because they do not meet safety regulations.

While all local authority trading standards departments are being advised to be aware of the self-feeding pillows in order to take appropriate action against any businesses still found to be selling them in breach of the law.