As a culture, we get excited about celebrities and follow famous people’s moves carefully, perhaps because their riches seem to indicate wisdom. The problem with this practice is that we may end up endangering ourselves or others — like our kids — when we copy whatever crazy fad a celebrity mother is following.
The latest advice on child-rearing is brought to us by Kristin Cavallari, a 29-year-old-woman who became famous as a reality TV Star on a show about aspiring California fashion designers, called “The Hills.” Cavallari is promoting a book, Balancing in Heels, in which she reveals her homemade goat’s milk baby food formula. Be very careful about copying that recipe.
Two Parts Love
People last week wrote an article about Cavallari’s new book, and it included the goat’s milk baby formula recipe on its site. The recipe has since been removed from the media outlet’s site, after some outcry about it.
Cavallari probably knows more about fabric than formula. Pediatricians do not recommend giving children goat milk combined with maple syrup and cod liver oil to children over store-bought processed formula necessarily.
Cavallari told people she prefers her homemade recipe to “a heavily-processed store-bought formula … that contains glucose syrup solids, which is another name for corn syrup solids maltrodextrin, carrageenan and palm oil.” If that quote gives the impression that she is very informed, be wary nonetheless.
The reality TV star said she has not had her three children vaccinated for fear that vaccination leads to autism. She is part of a movement of parents who refuse to give their children vaccines based on a theory that the vaccines are linked to a rise in autism in this country, a theory that is not supported by science.
People and Pediatricians
People pointed out in its post about Cavallari’s book that pediatricians do not recommend using alternative formulas that have not received approval from the Food and Drug Administration. But you should definitely be aware of the risks associated with goat’s milk for babies, just in case you were planning to copy Cavallari.
At the most extreme, the risks associated with goat’s milk for newborn children include life-threatening conditions such as anaphylactic shock, hemolytic uremic syndrome and infections, as well as severe electrolyte abnormalities, metabolic acidosis, megaloblastic anemia and allergic reactions, Raw Story reports.
As Cavallari herself says, “I’m just a mom. I’m trying to make the best decision for my kid.” Make sure you do the same for yours, including deciding not to follow all celebrity mothering advice.
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