Munchkin Revolutionizes Breastfeeding Support with Groundbreaking Innovation Backed by New Clinical Research

LOS ANGELES--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Aug 4, 2025--

Munchkin Inc. (“Munchkin”), the most loved baby lifestyle brand in the world, owned by WHY Brands Inc. (“WHY”), today announced in conjunction with National Breastfeeding Awareness Month and World Breastfeeding Week, the completion of new groundbreaking clinical research that supports how Munchkin’s Flow Nipple Shield+ is changing lives, empowering breastfeeding journeys and helping moms achieve their nursing goals with unprecedented success.

This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20250804861459/en/

According to Munchkin’s recently completed U.S. clinical research study* of approximately 300 moms, the Flow Nipple Shield+ achieved remarkable results and showcased a paradigm shift in breastfeeding support, including:

"Flow Nipple Shield+ represents a significant breakthrough in maternal health technology," says Dr. Mona Amin, Board Certified Pediatrician and International Board-Certified Lactation Consultant. "By removing the guesswork and offering real-time reassurance, it’s a powerful tool to build confidence and strengthen mothers’ trust in their own abilities while delivering measurable impact on breastfeeding success rates. This innovation could help reshape national maternal health outcomes by making a meaningful difference for families wanting to continue their breastfeeding journey."

What sets this innovation apart is its first-to-market visual confirmation technology. Flow Nipple Shield+ features a unique channel that allows parents to actually see milk transfer during feeding – addressing one of the most common anxieties new mothers face. Made with 100% food-grade silicone and packaged in a convenient travel-friendly steam sterilizer case, Flow Nipple Shield+ is designed to support better latch, confirm milk transfer and reduce postpartum stress.

“We know that feeding doesn’t look the same for everyone and that’s okay,” said Kristin Pagano, GM Infant Nutrition at Munchkin and mom of two. “The Flow Nipple Shield+ was created to offer compassionate, judgement-free support for parents navigating the ups and downs of feeding. This month, we’re proud to make it even more accessible because every parent deserves the right to feel confident, capable and supported in how they nourish their baby.”

Beyond individual families, Munchkin is committed to making a broader impact. The company has donated more than $100,000 worth of Flow Nipple Shield+ units to WIC (Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children) chapters throughout the U.S. this year ensuring that underserved families across the country have access to this game-changing support. WIC is a division of the USDA’s Food & Nutrition Services that provides breastfeeding support, touching more than 43% of births in the U.S. with its services.

The Munchkin Flow Nipple Shield+ Starter Kits (shield, cleaning syringe, and travel case) retails for $39.99 at Munchkin.com, Walmart, Target and Amazon. This August, Munchkin is making it even more accessible by offering a FREE Flow Replacement Kit (brand-new nipple shield and a travel case that doubles as a steam sterilizer) with every Flow Nipple Shield+ purchase.

To learn more about Munchkin and first account testimonials from moms using Flow, please visit munchkin.com, munchkin.com/flow or follow us on Facebook and Instagram.

*Completed clinical trial of approximately 300 U.S. moms, Munchkin Inc. x Emmes, Evaluating the Efficacy and User Satisfaction of Flow, August 2023-July 2025.
**According to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the national U.S. average of mothers continuing to breastfeed at 12 months for infants born in 2021 was 39.5%. Source:HERE.

About Munchkin Inc.

For more than 30 years, Munchkin Inc., the baby lifestyle brand owned by WHY Brands Inc, has produced innovative products and functional gear for children and their caregivers. Munchkin has 350+ patents to date, and more than 250 international product and brand design awards. Munchkin products are sold in more than 50 countries and have received over 1.45 million five-star reviews.

Munchkin has been awarded Great Place to Work for four consecutive years and is recognized as a 2024 Best Places to Work by Built In. Munchkin has been honored on Fast Company's annual "Brands That Matter" list for two consecutive years, including 2024, and ranked number eight on Fortune's list of "Most Innovative Companies" in 2023.

As the only baby brand in the United Nations Global Compact, the company prioritizes corporate social responsibility with commitments to environmental protection and animal welfare, which are highlighted in its annual Sustainability Report. Learn more at www.WHYBrands.com and www.Munchkin.com.

About WHY Brands Inc.

WHY is a portfolio of brands that invent, develop, and design creative products across an array of categories. With every new idea and undertaking, we ask and end with WHY. That spirit of inquiry drives our commitment to innovation, highlighted by 350+ patents to date. We believe great ideas and next-generation design can be lifechanging. WHY's portfolio includes baby lifestyle brand Munchkin and Curio Home Goods. Learn more at www.WHYBrands.com.

Munchkin announces new groundbreaking research during National Breastfeeding Awareness Month, showing how its Flow Nipple Shield+ is revolutionizing breastfeeding success.

Munchkin announces new groundbreaking research during National Breastfeeding Awareness Month, showing how its Flow Nipple Shield+ is revolutionizing breastfeeding success.

PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — A group of mostly Democratic U.S. senators sent a letter Thursday to the U.S. Postal Service, voicing concern that mail processing changes could affect postmark dates for mail-in ballots during an election year that will determine control of Congress.

Updated agency policy says postmarks might not indicate the first day the Postal Service received the mail but rather the day it was handled in one of its processing centers. Those centers are increasingly likely to be further away from certain communities because of recent USPS consolidations, which could further delay postmarks, the 16 senators wrote.

“Postmark delays are especially problematic in states that vote entirely or largely by mail,” they wrote to Postmaster General David Steiner, noting that many states use postmark dates to determine whether a mail ballot can be counted. “These changes will only increase the likelihood of voter disenfranchisement.”

The consequences could be particularly acute in rural areas where mail has to travel farther to reach regional processing centers, they added.

“In theory, a rural voter could submit their ballot in time according to their state law, but due to the changes you are implementing, their legally-cast ballot would not be counted as it sits in a local post office,” they wrote. “As we enter a year with many local and federal elections, the risk of disrupting this vital democratic process demands your attention and action.”

The Postal Service has received the letter and will respond directly to those who sent it, spokesperson Martha Johnson said.

The agency addresses the issue on its website.

“While we are not changing our postmarking practices, we have made adjustments to our transportation operations that will result in some mailpieces not arriving at our originating processing facilities on the same day that they are mailed,” its website says. “This means that the date on the postmarks applied at our processing facilities will not necessarily match the date on which the customer’s mailpiece was collected by a letter carrier or dropped off at a retail location.”

Johnson said the language in the final rule “does not change any existing postal operations or postmarking practices.” She added that the agency looked forward to “clarifying the senators' misunderstanding.”

“Our public filing was made to enhance public understanding of exactly what a postmark represents, its relationship to the date of mailing and when a postmark is applied in the process,” she said.

People dropping off mail at a post office can request that a postmark be applied manually, ensuring the postmark date matches the mailing date, the Postal Service's website says. Manual postmarks are free of charge.

The agency said the “lack of alignment” between the mailing date and postmark date will become more common as it implements its initiative to overhaul processing and transportation networks with an emphasis on regional hubs. The aim of the initiative is to cut costs for the agency, which has grappled with losses in the billions of dollars in recent years.

Under the plan, the Postal Service got rid of twice-daily mail dispatches from local post offices to regional processing centers. That means mail received after the only transfer truck leaves sits overnight until the next daily transfer, the senators wrote.

Election officials in states that rely heavily on voting by mail expressed concern with the change.

“Not being able to have faith that the Postal Service will mark ballots on the day they are submitted and mail them in a timely manner undermines vote-by-mail voting, in turn undermining California and other elections,” California Secretary of State Shirley Weber said in a statement.

She said her office will “amplify messaging to voters” who use mailed ballots that they must return their ballots early if they plan to use the post office.

Election officials in Washington state, where voting is done almost entirely by mail, are recommending that those who return their ballot within a week of Election Day do so at a drop box or voting center.

“Given the operational and logistical priorities recently set by the USPS, there is no guarantee that ballots returned via mail will be postmarked by the USPS the same day they are mailed,” the secretary of state's office said in a statement.

The senators urged Steiner to restore “timely postmarks” and fully stand up an election mail task force. The lawmakers who signed the letter represented California, Nevada, Oregon, Washington, Minnesota, Wisconsin, Illinois, Maine, Connecticut, New Jersey and Maryland. All are Democrats but one, an independent who typically aligns with the Democratic Party.

FILE - Employees sort vote-by-mail ballots from municipal elections on Election Day at the Miami-Dade County Supervisor of Elections Office, Nov. 4, 2025, in Doral, Fla. (AP Photo/Lynne Sladky, File)