Baby Bottle Pop : Nipple Confusion

The New York Times and many other bloggers and public interest groups have been giving Topps Candy company a hard time for creating, selling and marketing Baby Bottle Pop, a nipple shaped sugar candy that is dipped in more sugar, corn syrup, and artificial dyes, and licked or sucked. These sources are also outraged that a young teen age girl rock band, the Clique Girlz, will be promoting this product with commercials viewed on children's programming. I agree with all of their outrage, With childhood obeisty and diabetes on the rise we do not want our children encouraged to eat sugar, but why is this candy worse than any other candy?

What's not being said about Baby Bottle Pop that needs to be said?

Young teenage girls have babies. Young teen age girls are influenced by other young teenage girls especially if they are on television. Young teen age girls watch children's programming. In a culture with few visible role models for appropriate parenting, where do young teens find information?

There is already a common misguided, unnecessary, and potentially harmful practice to put sugar water in a bottle for a baby. Baby Bottle Pop is in the shape of a bottle nipple. The word "baby" is in the name of the product. I don't think it is too much of a leap to worry about young mothers seeing a candy nipple and offering it to their baby; sugar, corn syrup and a variety of artificial sweeteners, yum. That is the real horror of this candy.