This pillow emulates the position of how a mother brings a baby to breast in the bend of her arm. Notice how the baby is clearly coming to her at an angle. So our angled top surface allows you to bring your babies to the pillow, and position them on their sides, so they are facing you to nurse. A baby should not be placed on a flat surface to nurse, because then he'll have to turn his head sideways to meet the breast. Not only is that position uncomfortable, but it may also impede the natural swallow reflex and digestion. When new, your EZ-2-Nurse Twins Foam Pillow material may have a slight smell. It is completely harmless and will disappear once the product has aired out. Because of the number of people that have handled your pillow during its manufacture, for health reasons, we highly recommend that you wash your cover before using for the first time. Simply unzip the cover, remove from pillow, and zip closed. Machine wash in cold water with mild soap, and like colors.