At a recent Babies R Us Seminar I was asked by an expectant mother about my opinion on some current parenting books and philosophies. This seemed like a reasonable question to ask a captive pediatrician. After all, a stroll down the parenting and childcare aisle at Barnes & Noble shows there’s no shortage of contrary information. Parental punditry runs the gamut from the laissez-faire suggestions of Benjamin Spock to the classically rigid Babywise.
Now I don’t share the opinion of some of my colleagues who reflexively dismiss the any and all advice peddled in the parenting media. In fact, I believe that this attitude is a vestige of the days when the parent-pediatrician relationship was paternalistic and doctor-centered. This is the information age and parents know more now their child’s health than at any time in history. As a pediatrician you could say it was the best of times and it was the worst of times.
As a rule I encourage parents to read as widely as their level of fatigue will allow. An empowered, educated parent stands the best chance of advocating for their baby in a world of shrinking exam room time and impersonal healthcare delivery. And new moms and dads should understand that when it comes to raising a child they’ve got plenty of flexibility. There’s little in the way of absolute rights and wrongs and parents have a way of “finding” their parenting style pretty quick. If you’re stuck, there’s no shortage of books to help you realize what you want to believe.