Fear-Mongering Among New Mothers Is A Profitable Business
Avital Norman Nathman & Deborah Wage
When a parent stands at the cross-section of Perfection and Fear, they are opening themselves up to being preyed on by a host of companies.
It’s no secret that maternity care in the U.S. is under a lot of scrutiny. We continue to have the costliest maternity care in the world, yet despite all that spending, we still have one of the highest maternal mortality rates among industrialized nations. And that rate continues to rise. With just these two devastating and frustrating statistics at play — not to mention a host of other roadblocks to affordable, quality maternity care — it’s no wonder that many people are apprehensive about giving birth in this country.
All of which has led to an unsettling question: Could these fears and insecurities about birth and motherhood be exploited for profitable gain?
Two birth-related items give credence to this line of questioning. The first is a study on the too-high rate of C-sections performed for babies that are misdiagnosed as being too big to be birthed naturally. The other is a product designed to monitor every poop and snooze your baby takes, effectively turning your baby’s first few months of life into…
