An example of the unintended effects of federal regulations can be seen in the reported disappearance of children's pajamas. In practice, this has meant pajamas made from polyester rather than cotton. After almost two decades, the CPSC finally acknowledged parents were circumventing the law and in April 1996 voted to allow cotton sleepwear beginning in January 1997.
Manufacturers say the tight-fitting sleepwear is unsaleable.
And consumer activists are concerned sneaky parents will just buy larger sizes to compensate for the tighter fit. Activists point out that annual deaths due to clothing ignition among children under the age of 15 fell from 60 in 1970 to four in 1995. But observers say this may be mainly due to other factors, rather than the pajama regulations, such as the decline in smoking, safer portable heaters and greater awareness of fire hazards.