Normally, I discard "Sesame Street Parents" without looking at it.  I made
an exception, however, for the current issue.  It is in two parts, and the
second part is a special on "Growing Up Healthy," funded by Merck Vaccine
Division (lots of pages of ads for their vaccines).  I thought that many of
you might be interested in writing to the editor on these issues.

=================================
The masthead lists the following:

Editor: Cherylann Coutts

Medical Advisor: Kathie Teets Grimm, M.D., vice Chair, Dept. of Pediatrics,
Mt. Sinai School of Medicine, New York (perhaps a copy of your letter to the
editor could go to her, too.)

"This supplement was created by CTW with funding by Merck Vaccine Division"

Children's Television Workshop
One Lincoln Plaza, New York, NY 10023

Unfortunately, I don't have part one of the magazine with me, and can't
check to see if this is the address where letters to the editor should be
sent.  I will check on this and let you know if they should go to another
address.

=====================
Now for the contents:

"Growing Up Healthy" is divided into sections by age.

"Baby Basics: The First 12 Months" has a section on common illnesses, which
includes the following statement "Infants are particularly vulnerable to
ailments during the first year...However, many children are born with
maternal immunities that help fight off a handful of childhood diseases."
There is no mention of the immunological benefits of breastfeeding, and the
paragraph on preventing disease lists ONLY washing hands and toys as
preventive measures.

SIDS is also noted as a rare danger, however no mention of smoking or
artificial feeding is made with relation to SIDS.  Precautions to prevent
SIDS are to place baby on his side, remove fluffy comforters and stuffed
animals from crib, use a firm mattress, and avoid overheating the room.

"Toddler Tactics: Ages One to Three" cites ear infections as a common
illness.  To prevent ear infections, they recommend, "Elevate your child's
head while breast or bottle feeding to keep the middle ear clear of fluids."
No mention is made of the fact that artificial feeding causes an increased
incidence in ear infections, as well as other illnesses, or of the fact that
breastfed babies are normally fed lying on their side, not their backs,
which effectively prevents fluid from passing into the ear.  There is the
positive note, however, in the assumption that children from 1 - 3 years may
be expected to be breastfeeding!

There are (predictably) lengthy sections on immunization schedules, and much
attention is given to accident and poisoning prevention.


Margaret K.K. Radcliffe               [log in to unmask]
Dept. of Mining & Minerals Engr.
Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, VA