Actor Alicia Silverstone, the star of the classic '90s film Clueless, has frequently spoken about her hands-on parenting style and close bond with her son Bear.
A bond so close, in fact, she still sleeps with Bear who is 11-years-old.
In an interview with podcaster Ellen Fisher, Silverstone said she is simply "following nature" by continuing to co-sleep with her son, comparing the practice with what wild animals do.
Her comments raised quite a few eyebrows.
Of her unconventional parenting choice, Silverstone told Fisher:
"Bear and I still sleep together. And I’ll be in trouble for saying that, but I don’t really care.”
"[I'm just] following nature..."
"If you were in any kind of wild setting where there are animals ... if you put your baby over there, your baby is going to get eaten. It's not ideal for the baby to be over there."
The difference of course is Alicia Silverstone and her son Bear are not animals being stalked by predators all night.
Co-sleeping is an increasingly common practice among parents today. Most pediatricians say it's fine so long as it doesn't begin until after the first year, to prevent suffocation, and its not disrupting sleep for the child.
But speaking to Insider, pediatrician Dr. Rebecca Fisk said co-sleeping should stop at pre-pubescence—a process that often begins as early as age 9 for some boys.
Talk about first-world problems.
While many might look down their noses at Silverstone's choice, the fact remains the choice is not there for much of the world where entire families or clans share single dwellings. The fact Silverstone went to wildlife for an example of lifelong co-sleeping demonstrates how unaware the first world is of Indigenous cultures and customs.
On social media, some people were on board with the practice and felt it was totally natural.
But most were used to the luxuries of homes with multiple rooms and sleeping options as "normal" instead of "privileged."
Silverstone is somewhat notorious for her unconventional parenting techniques.
In 2012 she went viral after posting a YouTube video in which she demonstrated how she chews her son's food for him, feeding Bear like a bird so to speak. Her son was 11-months-old at the time.
