From Molly Remer

This is Molly's answer to a mom in our Holistic Moms Network group who was concerned about spoiling her baby and her families opinions on the subject.

I had all kinds of arguments come to mind about why you are
not spoiling him by responding to his needs (why do people have such an
issue with other people holding babies?), but then I thought of all the
typing and realized that quite simply, you are NOT spoiling him.

I am 100% certain that you are not. I am 100% certain that it is impossible to "spoil"
any baby under the age of one by answering him when he cries and giving him
what he needs (which at this point is food, warmth, safety, love, and
physical closeness). One of LLL's other pearls is "a baby's wants are a
baby's needs"—-there is no difference between them at this age. A baby is
not "manipulating" you by crying for you to come to him and then stopping
when you pick him up—-that is a *perfect* example of skillful mother-baby
communication. If someone says, "he is only crying to get you to pick him
up" the answer is "yes! He is! Isn't he smart!" Another pearl is simply
"listen to your baby"—-does he seem "spoiled" to you or does he just seem
like he wants to be with you? Smart baby!