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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

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Original poster

Huggies Newborn Rebranding

47 replies

Bathsheba · 02/05/2010 16:09

I almost exclusively use Huggies products (nappies and wipes) and I have thought that the new packaging for the newborn range is very sweet...until the penny suddenly dropped that it shows a newborn sleeping on its front.

The advice for over 10 years has been to not put newborns to sleep on their front. The incidence of SIDS has dropped dramatically in this time.

I find it hard to believe that a re-brand such as this, with all the people involved and meetings and huge budgets, that no-one queried this....

OP posts:

Longtalljosie · 02/05/2010 16:21

I'm working my way through a batch of the old ones with the new logo at the top

You're right! What total idiots! Do they not employ any mothers at all?

Perhaps FSID should put them straight...

SloanyPony · 02/05/2010 16:25

Oh I dont know. They are not a guidebook, they are a nappy. Its not illegal to lay a baby on its front. Is it really that bad?

YABsemipossiblyabitU

Original poster

Bathsheba · 02/05/2010 16:30

Yeah, I know there are more things in the world to worry about etc etc

I just find it amazing that they must have had a HUGE amount of people involved, budgets, meetings etc - rebrandings like this cost millions esp if its worldwide - and I can't believe that either

no-one noticed

they did notice but decided that the cuteness of the pic over-rode that..

I know its not a child rearing manual, but people get upset when babies are shown with bottles etc as its kind of a creeping acceptance of what the norm is..

Mind you, about 9 months ago I received an email from the NCT Chief Exec containing a few examples of potential pictures for the front of the new NCT catalogue...and within those choices was a picture of a newborn asleep on its front. There was also an issue of the NCT members magazine that included a cover shot and an inside shot of a baby asleep on its front...

Hence why I look for it I guess...

OP posts:

runnybottom · 02/05/2010 16:30

Do people always take guidance from nappy boxes?

Who cares?

Longtalljosie · 02/05/2010 19:19

Actually, I care. Because it normalises something a charity has spent a lot of time trying to make not-normal.

Ten years isn't that long in terms of the mother-to-daughter information passage you get when babies are born. Because we're on MN we get a wealth of information, but most get stuff from their mums, and a lot of it does go against current advice. One friend weaned at 4 months although she wanted to wait until 6 because if her mum had her way her DS would have been weaned at 8 weeks!

So a picture of a baby sleeping on his front - well, it's another example of something that used to happen, and no longer happens, and given that babies sleep more deeply on their fronts, people may be having to tell an older generation that yes, it may have done me no harm, but it's a no-no now. And then they go to the supermarket at there's a picture of a baby sleeping on its front on the wipes packet. It's not helpful.

StewieGriffinsMom · 02/05/2010 19:28

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn

MumNWLondon · 02/05/2010 20:06

Is the baby asleep or awake? If awake them its fine - important for babies to spend awake time on tummies!

BertieBotts · 02/05/2010 20:12

Longtalljosie has a point - before I had DS I assumed that babies slept on their fronts. I remember seeing my mum put my sister down that way, I remember putting my dolls to bed and carefully turning their heads sideways so that they could breathe.

I didn't take the FSID leaflet very seriously because it was so strongly against co-sleeping, but because I did a lot of research on this I discovered all the research on the back to sleep initiative and decided that actually, it was important. As soon as DS could roll over though I used to let him sleep on his front because it felt more natural to me.

I know a lot of people who still give their babies/toddlers weak tea in bottles or wean them onto rusks at 3-4 months because that is what their mum did with them.

MumInBeds · 02/05/2010 20:13

Baby is asleep: www.huggiesclub.co.uk/images/general/NewbornPackshotNew.jpg

l39 · 02/05/2010 20:15

It's been over 10 years. My oldest niece is 21, my oldest DD is 18. The advice changed between the two of them.

I agree they shouldn't show something dangerous.

Rockbird · 02/05/2010 20:23

It's a baby curled up with no nappy on, not a baby in a sleepsuit in a cot. Therefore it's just a cute picture and YABU. Most people will say 'aw cute baby' and move on. And if they take parenting advice from the outside of a nappy box then they were likely not to follow the guidance in the first place.

MumNWLondon · 02/05/2010 20:23

baby is sleeping with no nappy on!!!!
and no clothes at all other than a hat.

clearly its an artistic pose as no one really is going to put their baby to bed without a nappy or any other clothes on (pretty stupid photo I thought they were selling nappies not hats!)

that looks more dangerous to me than the tummy sleeping (ie totally ruined mattress from the wee and poo) plus freezing cold baby...

caen · 02/05/2010 20:31

And sleeping with a hat on is a SIDS risk too! Tsk tsk.

addictedisinthesecondtrimester · 02/05/2010 20:32

i agree with mum i just thought it was on its front as to not show anything.

pitterpatterfeet · 03/05/2010 08:47

The thing that annoyed me about the rebranding is that they have put fewer wipes in each pack and haven't reduced the price! Also it annoys me that there is a picture of a baby and they have clearly added a pair of weird looking eyebrows to the picture.

londonmackem · 03/05/2010 10:17

I have e-mailed them along the following lines:

I am very disappointed and surprised that on your new packaging you have a baby sleeping on its tummy, in a hat, presumably indoors (but no nappy?!). As I am sure you are aware current guidelines are that all babies should be put to sleep on their backs and hats should not be worn inside.

I appreciate that you will not change this now. although I do think that it beggars belief that no one at Kimberly-Clark thought to stop this inappropriate image, but I do think you should add some sort of warning about current guidelines.

Rockbird · 03/05/2010 10:21

Oh what a silly overreaction! Oh well, you'll give them a laugh.

thisisyesterday · 03/05/2010 10:22

i think you are really overthinking this

if it showed a baby tucked up in a cot on its tummy then fair enough
but this is clearly an artistic shot not supposed to represent actual care of a baby in any way is it?
it just looks cute.

are you going to campaign to ban all Anne Geddes merchandise now too?

sparklycheerymummy · 03/05/2010 10:25

We all know the guidelines so we are free to make our own decisions. This is just a picture on a packet.......i am still able to make my own informed judgement about how to lay my baby to sleep. I am surprised they have done it but think it doesnt make me think.....ooohhh so its ok to do this now!!!!

belgo · 03/05/2010 10:30

Agree with LongTallJosie.

My mum tried to make me put all three of my children to sleep on their fronts because that was what she was advised 30 years ago. Not everyone is aware of the most up to date advice, and this brand of nappies is undermining this advice, not because they are thinking of the best interests of babies, but because they want to make money.

thenameiwantedwastaken · 03/05/2010 10:39

Isn't Huggies an American company? I thought they still advised front-sleeping in the states?

thisisyesterday · 03/05/2010 10:41

but it's clearly NOT a picture of how to put your baby to sleep is it?
if you think people will see it and think it's ok to put their baby asleep on their front then you're saying the'll also think they need to leave them curled up with no nappy or clothes and a hat on

as I said before, if it was a realistic picture of a baby in bed then i think you'd have a point. But anyone can see it's a purely artistic "cute" picture that bears no resemblance to real life whatsoever.

trice · 03/05/2010 10:43

I think they should have been more careful. I think they will need to rebrand.

ImSoNotTelling · 03/05/2010 10:47

Aw that's a cute pic.

trice · 03/05/2010 10:49

I have emailed them. These media types need to take a bit of responsibility for what they get up to rather than just going with what is cute.

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