ARE ELECTRIC BLANKETS AND MATTRESS PADS SAFE?

On this page you will find information about electric bedding related to:

·  Who should NOT use

·  Pregnancy

·  Artificial pacemakers

·  Diabetes

·  EMF’s (Electronic Frequency Waves)

·  General rules for safe use

WHO SHOULD NOT USE ELECTRIC BLANKETS OR PADS

Just as with any electrical appliance, things do occasionally go wrong with electric blankets or electric mattress pads. For example, a control may not work properly, a blanket may become bunched up which might cause an overheated condition or a heater wire might break. Therefore it is foolish to allow infants or small children to use these products. Likewise for the same reasons, anyone who is helpless, paralyzed, insensitive to heat, or who cannot understand the control’s operation should never be allowed to use these appliances. Some elderly people with one or more of these conditions sometimes insist on having their electric blanket. Be strong and refuse them. Show “tough love” or you may regret it.

PREGNANCY and ELECTRIC BLANKETS OR PADS

Medical websites differ about the use of electric bedding during pregnancy. Some say: “Absolutely no problem”. Some say: “Never use”. Many say: “Ask your doctor”. We always tell people that in the absence of conclusive proof about EMF’s and to avoid possible overheating of the fetus, it’s better to err on the side of caution and forgo the warming bedding for nine months. If desirable, automatic products could still be used to warm the bed and then turned off prior to getting in.

ARTIFICIAL PACEMAKERS and ELECTRIC BLANKETS OR PADS

Numerous well known associations, hospitals and doctors (e.g. The American Heart Association at http://www.americanheart.org/presenter.jhtml?identifier=24 and the Mayo Clinic at http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/pacemakers/HQ01165) advise that electric blankets have not been shown to damage pacemakers or interfere with their functions. Although we personally have never heard of any pacemaker problems due to electric bedding, we always recommend that the person should check with his or her doctor AND the manufacturer of the pacemaker (e.g. Medtronic, St Jude Medical, etc).

DIABETES and ELECTRIC BLANKETS OR PADS

One frequently sees comments that electric blankets or pads should not be used by people with diabetes. The reason for this goes back to the warning about insensitivity to heat. Diabetics often lose some feeling in their legs or arms and could sustain a burn if they cannot feel that a blanket or pad has become too warm. Of course, if the diabetic wishes only to warm the bed and then turn off the electric blanket or electric mattress pad when getting into it, this restriction would not apply.

ELECTRIC BLANKET EMF’S (60 Hz Electromagnetic Frequency Waves)

In the late 1980’s and early 1990’s, some scientists and others began to be concerned over the safety of electromagnetic fields (EMF’s). Various studies in that timeframe had raised concerns over the possibility that the EMF’s generated by power companies’ overhead transmission lines and some appliances could cause cancer especially in children. The United States government became involved and studied over 500 peer reviewed papers written on this potential problem. The National Research Council spent around 65 million dollars and finally stated that there was no conclusive evidence that residential EMF’s play any role in the development of cancer, in reproductive issues or in learning/behavioral issues. Nevertheless Sunbeam, which was then the only major United States manufacturer of electric blankets, altered the design of its products to reduce EMF’s. Redesigned blankets produced after 1992 had much weaker electrical fields than their predecessors. The argument over EMF’s has never gone away completely although very few scientists and medical experts continue to believe that they can cause problems.

GENERAL SAFETY RULES for ELECTRIC BEDDING

All brands of warming bedding contain recommendations for safe use of their product. Many of them are quite similar to those found below because a rather extensive list of safety recommendations must be issued with each product in order to conform to the UL standard.

·        Never run the control cords between the mattress and the box springs. (This advice is similar to the oft-repeated advice never to run an appliance cord under a rug.) The cord could become damaged by friction or the heat from the electricity in the cord could be trapped there with no place to escape eventually becoming a fire hazard.

·        Never pinch any of the heating wires or the control cords in any way. For this reason, it is recommended that you do not use automatic bedding with adjustable beds, Murphy beds, pull-out sofas, or reclining chairs where any electrical cords could become pinched in the mechanisms.

·        Do not use an electric blanket or electric mattress pad on a waterbed or an air mattress for obvious reasons.

·        The heated area of any warming bedding should always lie flat. That is, it should never be bunched up, folded or balled up (e.g. between the mattress and the footboard) such that the heat generated in the middle of that ball has no place to escape. Likewise the heating wires should never be tucked between the mattress and the box springs – the heat will have no place to escape and will continue to build with the potential of fire.

·        Do not allow pets to be around your warming bedding. A sharp claw or a tooth may puncture the wire insulation or damage the wiring itself. Additionally many dogs have been known to bite through the controller wiring.

·        Do not use pins around warming bedding lest the heater wire insulation be punctured.

·        Turn off the bedding appliance when not in use.

·        Never iron your electric blanket or electric mattress pad. Ironing may melt the heating wire insulation.

·        Never dry clean or use cleaning fluid on your product. Dry cleaning solvents may damage the heater wire insulation.

Finally if you observe your electric blanket or electric mattress pad operating unusually or improperly (e.g. seems too hot in one area or you see a scorch mark) call the manufacturer. All of them provide customer service centers with toll free numbers to answer questions about their products (click on the More Information navigation tab at the left side of this article).

There may seem to be many rules for using these appliances but they are mostly common sense. If you follow these general rules, there will be little chance of anything going wrong with your product.