Do as I Say, Not as I Do (or Did)

The article by Joyner et al¹  is effective in pointing out that in our office waiting rooms and clinics, 64% of magazine pictures that show sleeping infants who are not being held by an adult are in the prone position. In addition, many more of our waiting-room magazine pictures show infants sleeping together with another person. Neither is considered a safe sleep environment by the American Academy of Pediatrics.²  Although we pediatricians verbally urge parents to use proper and safe prone sleep positions, these cited examples were in articles and ads in magazines kept in our own offices and waiting rooms. Many of the photographs were of celebrities and their infants and children, particularly those in ads. Celebrity endorsements are particularly influential in changing attitudes and behavior,³  and those endorsements that are in contrast to the “Back to Sleep” campaign^4–6  to prevent sudden infant...