Alicia Silverstone Pre-Chewing: Actress Talks To ET About Backlash

Last month, actress Alicia Silverstone caused an uproar on the Internet by pre-chewing food for her son, Bear Blu -- and posting a video of their shared meal online.

Now, Silverstone has addressed the issue in an exclusive interview with ET.

"I can understand that [pre-chewing] would make some people feel uncomfortable possibly, because it's new to them," the actress explains. "But I do want to let you know that this has been going on for thousands of years. [It's] still going on all over the place. And it's natural."

Silverstone says she "didn't expect [the video] to do what it did," but that she doesn't regret putting it online. Despite considerable outcry over the video (a poll of Guardian readers found that nearly 80 percent thought the video was "gross"), Silverstone tells ET: "I've had nothing but great feedback. ... I think it's more like the media makes it ... maybe more sensational than it is."

This isn't the first time Silverstone has spoken out in defense of pre-chewing since she posted the video in March. Earlier this month, she told moviegoers at the Brooklyn Academy of Music: "I wasn’t saying this was anything somebody should do. I wasn’t trying to be independent or cause such a ruckus. I’m very glad that I did it."

For more on pre-chewing and its potential risks, click here.

Watch the original video of Alicia Silverstone pre-chewing food for her son:

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Comments

[m edsall]

02:57 PM on 04/30/2012

I used to think she was cute, now I want to gag. Does she know mant mothers that pre-chew their babies food in the animal world also eat their nbabies feces to keep the nests clean ?

[Barbara Tahir]

02:29 PM on 04/30/2012

When my children were born my mother-in-law told me about this way of feeding a baby. It was very common in India where she was from. She said she did this with all four of her boys. And let me tell you that all four of them are great big LARGE men today. I did not decide to use this method mainly because of the germ factor but when I told my pediatrician about this he said he had heard about it in the old days when he first began practicing.

[imforfrogs]

02:17 PM on 04/30/2012

Great for her, not for me, but posting it, nah, rather tacky.

[ullrules]

02:01 PM on 04/30/2012

Wait a second...she named her son Bear Blu? Where is the uproar over that??

[JIM GAMINO]

12:52 PM on 04/30/2012

CLUELESS!!!

[cschafer]

12:44 PM on 04/30/2012

When I first saw this I thought it was absolutely disgusting. Now that it's come into the limelight again, and since I really do not like to judge people, it's not as gross to me as it was before. The only thing that concerns me is bacteria. Alicia, being an adult, must have more bacteria in her mouth than her son does...and is his body capable of fighting against those germs??

[scorpian777]

12:42 PM on 04/30/2012

Leave the woman alone its her child not yours!!!!

[pin10]

02:12 PM on 04/30/2012

and I suppose if she wanted to kill her baby that would be ok by you because it's HERS.

[PeterGator]

12:21 PM on 04/30/2012

Yawn ! People have been doing this since before recorded history. It's no longer common in the US but many people do it worldwide. People haven't always been able to run to the store and buy "baby" food. Nothing new here

[chris784100]

02:17 PM on 04/30/2012

Many people also drink water that eventually kills them all over the world and have been doing it for thousands of years. I guess that makes it a good idea also. Women have been topless for thousands of years as well and I am pretty sure it is frowned on in the US. Alicia has no idea about other cultures that do this. She is a dope and is clearly babying this child by chewing its food. She trys to make it sound like she has studied other cultures that do this, sorry but Im not buying it. she is simply a dummy.

[PeterGator]

03:47 PM on 04/30/2012

People drink water of poor quality when they have no clean water to drink. It is a matter or dying of thirst today or dying of disease later. Which would you choose ? As for topless women, I have no objection. I like topless women. And how do you know if Alicia is knowledgable about other cultures ? Have you monitored her reading list or followed her in her travels to give you this personal knowledge ?
You don't have to buy it, you simply have to realize that not everyone thinks the way you do or chooses to live the way you do. It is a big world and the US is only 5% of the population.

[harolddundee]

11:51 AM on 04/30/2012

Alicia is a nasty sick woman.

[berryhill]

12:36 PM on 04/30/2012

Where is your tolerance...I see none demonstrated by you!

[rjcate14]

01:55 PM on 04/30/2012

why because she is feeding her child in a way that many other mothers do in other places?

[rspapril281]

11:50 AM on 04/30/2012

There is nothing wrong with feeding your child like this...it is a personal choice. would I feed my child like that today? no I wouldn't but I'm not going to put someone down who does.

[BAPPO]

11:49 AM on 04/30/2012

Anyone ever hear of a blender?!

[berryhill]

12:37 PM on 04/30/2012

Sure, but from an environmental point-of-view, pre-chewing is much more eco-friendly...Are you an environmentalist? It sure doesn't appear that way!

[scorpian777]

12:43 PM on 04/30/2012

Why? are you a blonde??

[jacmed]

11:41 AM on 04/30/2012

Okay, I've read the comments - all 96 of them at this point. So, why are people so judgmental and feel the need to take sides for or against Ms. Silverstone's pre-chewing her baby's food? There are so many pseudo-scientists and pseudo-sociologists on this thread that I can't help laughing. She doesn't need anyone's approval and couldn't care less about anyone's disapproval. For those who don't like it and find it disgusting, don't do it, period. Okay?

[kevin foley]

11:53 AM on 04/30/2012

Is she a flipping bird?

[jacmed]

12:15 PM on 04/30/2012

Are you a flipping arbiter of other people's choices, Kevin?

[berryhill]

12:39 PM on 04/30/2012

I'm wondering if we saw into your life, things we could comment on, that others would find gross? Do you put dirty clothes on the floor - GROSS! Do you put dirty dishes in the sink or do you wash them right away - not washing them would be GROSS!

[entone]

11:31 AM on 04/30/2012

"Nothing but great feedback"? "Completely natural"? Wacko.

[retiredgram]

10:59 AM on 04/30/2012

60-70 years ago (and beyond), mothers could just go to the grocery store and buy baby food in jars. NOT!!!!!! Why? Because it didn't exist. So, how were babies fed? Breast milk and pre-chewed food. I am 65 years old and that's how I was fed solid food. People, how do you think babies (your grandparents, great-grandparents, etc.) were fed 80 years ago? 150 years ago? And so on? Granted, pre-chewed food was the only option then, and now there are many choices on the grocers' shelves. These choices sometimes have too much salt, artificial ingredients, preservatives. While I shudder to think that my mother gave me pre-chewed food (ugh!), it didn't kill me. I have had a relatively healthy life. And I don't think my generation (and past generations) had as much autism, ADD, ADHD (if any) as there is in this day and age. So, as long as you don't have to eat pre-chewed food, let the woman raise her child her way. This is nothing new.

[LkeToRead]

11:43 AM on 04/30/2012

How about just smashing up the food and stirring it with a fork...perhaps mixing in some juice or water to liquify it.

[retiredgram]

11:59 AM on 04/30/2012

That is another way to do it and is a good option in this day; but I think in the "olden" days, as long as 'mom' was eating, I think it was easier and more convenient to just give baby some of the food from her mouth.

[berryhill]

12:41 PM on 04/30/2012

Are you implying your method would be better than pre-chewing. I detect intolerance here!!!

[Imvallyann]

12:50 PM on 04/30/2012

Gram I agree with you but with time comes progress not all that is old is good. Personally, I think there was just as much ADD and ADHD as there is now per capita but we just didn't know about it then. People also died of natural causes back then because Drs. didn' tknow as much as they do now. There are natural babyfoods out there on the grocery sotre shelves if that is this persons concerns, But for the most part I see this as wrong. Call me more old fashion then you are (we are close in age) It's like with breastfeeding although I see nothing wrong with that I don't want to go to out to eat or to a movie and watch some young mother whip it out and start nursing her baby out in the wide open without a cover over everything.

[Ken Holden]

10:59 AM on 04/30/2012

What does she think she's a bird! Just wrong! did some dr say this was good ?

[berryhill]

12:42 PM on 04/30/2012

Do you need to consult a doctor for everything you do? I doubt it! Do you drive over the speed limit - Better consult a doctor! Have you ever taken illegal drugs - better consult a doctor! Have you ever taken a drink - Better consult a doctor!

[scorpian777]

12:44 PM on 04/30/2012

It's n one of anyone business what she does!!