Celebrities endorsing and promoting products isn’t an old concept.
Everywhere you look, you’re likely to see an ad in one form or another. But the product Australian model and new mum, Nicole Trunfio, 29, is peddling has taken paid promotion to a dangerous new level.
Trunfio shared a picture on her Instagram account of her newborn son, Zion wearing amber beads around his ankle, as well as a necklace which he was yet to wear. They were sent to Trunfio by the company Summer and Storm, who specialise in amber beads.
“When we decided to start making our own teething necklaces and bracelets, we were inspired by the the different energies that crystals and also the healing properties that amber has been used for thousands of years,” their website reads.
But in recent years, research shows that the use of amber beads can be dangerous for children as they present themselves as a strangulation and choking hazard. In 2011, The Australian Competition and Consumer Association issued a warning for this exact reason.
According to Huggies, "Many parents claim that their child is calmer, cries less and seems to experience less teething discomfort when they have been wearing an amber bead necklace." Yet there is no scientific evidence to support that this assumption holds any truth.
Yet despite all of the literature to show amber beads aren't very safe, Trunfio captioned her image with, "The power of healing #amberbeads. I don't know what I would have done without them! Thank you @summerandstorm and @daniellarech for these beautiful gems. Xox love NT & Zion"
While some commenters were quick to praise the beads and how much they aided their children, others thankfully, were not so sold.
One commenter wrote, "That does not look baby proof." Another added, "It's a load of cr*p, there is zero scientific evidence. Stick with baby Panadol and Bonjela. Certainly wouldn't be wasting money on ridiculous and ugly beads, or promoting them."
