A 22-year-old mother reveals she lets her 8-month-old baby lick shopping cart straps and chomp on sand, rocks, and dirt.
Alice Bender from Arizona also shared a video of her baby Fern chewing different objects, including a brown rock and sand while playing at the beach.
The vegan mom, who also raises Fern as a vegan, insists that germs are nothing to be afraid of.
In her TiikTok video which has been viewed more than 12 million times, Bender blamed a ‘series of billion-dollar campaigns’ in Western medicine over the last two centuries for ‘shifting the public’s perspective’ on germs and babies.
“I do not fear bacteria. In fact, I welcome it. I trust nature and my baby. It is not a coincidence babies have this instinct while they are breastfeeding,” Alice said.
She believes that babies should expose themselves to germs as long as they are breastfeeding.
“Babies only have this instinct while they are breastfeeding for a reason. Our milk is there to protect them while they build their immune system,” she continued.
“Breast milk is incredible. Breast milk is the original medicine. It is far superior to any man-made medicine.
“Breast milk is alive and constantly changing to meet our babies’ current needs.
“I would not want Fern to continue doing this after we’re done breastfeeding, because there would be nothing for him to fall back on if he were to get sick.”
Bender continued: “Looking into the pharmaceutical industry as a whole made me realize so much of our society is built on us remaining customers to pharma.
“I think we all need to take a good look at our preconceived notions about health and figure out what made us this way.
“We should not be at a war with nature. We are nature. I’ve noticed Fern is incredibly healthy compared to other babies.
“He is the first chunky baby in our immediate family. People always compliment us on how healthy, calm, and alert he is when we’re in public.”
People online had mixed reactions on her parenting style.
One person commented: “Are you not worried about parasites? What would you do to protect him from the possibility of getting them by eating dirt?”
Another wrote: “My baby, unfortunately, isn’t exclusively breastfed but I don’t shelter him from dirt and shopping carts either. Eight months and totally healthy.”
A third said: “This is how babies build their immune systems! Go mom!”
Someone else added: “All fun and games till the baby gets a parasitic infection.”
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