Retro ads that should’ve come with their own health warning

When Michigan man Henry Trombley died in December at the age of 79, his daughter Mary sorted through newspaper clippings and cards he’d saved since he was a child.

One of them was particularly surprising – it was a 1938 letter from Wrigley’s, the chewing gum company, that said, “Dear Toddler … at two years, you are just about old enough to enjoy Wrigley’s gum … Wrigley’s chewing gum is fine for children. It’s good for children’s teeth which need more exercise than they can get with modern soft food”.

Mary Trombley sent the old letter on to The New York Times, which looked into the history of it. It turns out Wrigley’s founder, William Wrigley Jr, was a direct marketing pioneer, who ran a campaign to mail free chewing gum to every American child when they turned two.

Unfortunately, he was mistaken on quite a few points. Chewing gum that contains sugar – which all gum in the 1930s did – increases the risk of cavities. Not to mention the risk of a toddler attempting to swallow and choking on the gum. 

But as the NYT points out, Wrigley’s was far from the only company that promoted things for babies and children that have since been recognised as unsafe or even harmful.

“Toddlers used to sit on parents’ laps in the front seat of cars before car seats were invented; children’s hands were strapped to the side of the crib to prevent thumb sucking; babies slept on their bellies; and a bit of brandy for teething was a thing,” Laura Jana, a paediatrician, told the newspaper.

The evidence of that abounds. Seven-Up used to boast that an 11-month-old baby “wasn’t our youngest customer by any means”, while Cellophane told mothers that “children need the energy that candy gives”.

What now outdated child-rearing advice or products do you recall from your childhood?