Parents are being warned about the risks of amber teething necklaces after a young mother found her 15-month-old daughter almost strangled to death by one in her cot last month. When Ashleigh Ferguson came into her daughter Ellie's bedroom, she found her usually bubbly child face down and silent, with her amber teething necklace twisted around her neck. 'It was wrapped around her arm and neck with a twist in between and my stomach just dropped with a sickening feeling that something like this could even happen,' Ms Ferguson, 26, told the Daily Telegraph. Scroll down for video . Parents have been warned about using amber necklaces to relieve teething in children . 'If the pressure on her neck had been in a slightly different point, it’s unimaginable,' she said. The amber necklaces, which are widely available through health food stores and chemists are said to have been worn for centuries to reduce teething pain. Retailers claim that when they're worn close to the skin, the amber beads release succinic acid which relieves pain. But the Therapeutic Goods Administration states there is no evidence amber necklaces offer any relief from the symptoms of teething and in 2011, the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission issued a warning on the necklaces. They posed two potential hazards strangulation and choking, the ACCC said. After testing several products, it found the necklaces could break and release small parts 'which could result in choking hazards to children under three'. Ashleigh Ferguson found her daughter Ellie with one of the necklaces twisted around her neck in her cot, face down . 'It is likely that unsupervised teething infants wearing amber teething necklaces or bracelets will mouth or chew the product,' the report warned. 'Is it worth the risk, especially when used unsupervised as in a sleeping environment?' Jill Green, National Manager of Education and Bereavement support at Australian non-profit organisation Sids and Kids, said. Australian not-for-profit organisation Sids and Kids and the ACCC have warned parents against the product . 'We need to need to  look at why they're promoting these products. 'If you go into a nursery store, you'll see so many products that say they will prevent this and that. We need to be very careful that we're not manufacturing anxiety and we need more evidence that it works and more information about the risks associated with it. For more information about Amber necklaces and for parenting support, visit the Sids and Kids website.
15 month-old daughter almost strangled in her cot by amber teething necklace . Parents warned not to leave children unsupervised . The ACCC says the necklaces pose a risk of strangling and choking .