# Did Nicole Richie use her malnourished unborn infant to seek publicity? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [September 3, 2007, 4:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-nicole-richie-use-her-malnourished-unborn-infant-to-seek-publicity/417908 "2007-09-03T16:01:44Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Maastricht](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/a88e57/32.png) [@Maastricht](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Maastricht)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2007, 4:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-nicole-richie-use-her-malnourished-unborn-infant-to-seek-publicity/417908/1 "2007-09-03T16:01:44Z")
> [@](#): > > A pregnant Nicole Richie was rushed to the hospital after she began bleeding… The 25-year-old, who was rumored to have an eating disorder, insisted that she began eating more for the health of her and the baby. But after Richie noticed bleeding and rushed to the hospital, doctors encouraged her to eat more. The doctors reportedly said the socialite was suffering from nutritional deficiency. Doctors reassured Richie that her baby was safe, but encouraged her to give the baby more nutrition. They found out she’s suffering from both a hormonal and nutritional deficiency,” a source said. Think with me here. A young woman fears miscarriage and goes to a hospital; so far, so good. Doctors tell her her being severly underweight poses a threat to her baby’s health. Normal doctor/patient confidentiality applies here, right? So somewhere, between Nicole talking with her doctor and Nicole being all over te press, Nicole must have made the conscious decision to leak the info on what her doctors told her to the press. Now, if I were anorexic, and my baby would suffer serious risks from malnutrition, I’d be ashamed, and I’d hide that story as much as possible. Absolutely the last thing I would do is announce that fact to the world. Does anyone else think the same way? ---
**Author:** ![LionelHutz405](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lionelhutz405/32/536_2.png) [@LionelHutz405](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LionelHutz405)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2007, 4:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-nicole-richie-use-her-malnourished-unborn-infant-to-seek-publicity/417908/2 "2007-09-03T16:11:13Z")
Normal doctor/patient confidentiality applies, but we don’t know if it was followed by everyone involved. The ‘source’ could be anyone with access to her medical records and it only takes one willing to divulge her information. ---
**Author:** ![Maastricht](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/a88e57/32.png) [@Maastricht](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Maastricht)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2007, 4:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-nicole-richie-use-her-malnourished-unborn-infant-to-seek-publicity/417908/3 "2007-09-03T16:23:24Z")
If this was a case of a blabbing nurse or an intern with access to files she shouldn’t have access to, the very next news we would hear would be “Nicole Richie sues hospital for breaking confidentiality”. I haven’t heard that one yet. Or we would hear from the hospital apologizing profusely and making statements about" finding the source of the leak"And that hasn’t happened either. No, this has a very, very deliberate air to it. ---
**Author:** ![Cub\_Mistress](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ea666f/32.png) [@Cub\_Mistress](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cub_Mistress)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2007, 4:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-nicole-richie-use-her-malnourished-unborn-infant-to-seek-publicity/417908/4 "2007-09-03T16:28:24Z")
There is another explanantion, which is that someone made some assumptions about what a doctor would be likely to say in the situation and has reported it as fact, hedged with the words “alledgedly” and “reportedly said.” ---
**Author:** ![Maastricht](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/a88e57/32.png) [@Maastricht](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Maastricht)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2007, 4:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-nicole-richie-use-her-malnourished-unborn-infant-to-seek-publicity/417908/5 "2007-09-03T16:30:03Z")
The culturally interesting thing about this, to my Dutch eyes looking at American culture, is the clash between two about equally powerful taboos. On the one hand, there is the immense pressure on young female celebs to stay thin; I remember all too well the vitriol aimed at Britney Spears when she “let herself go” during her pregnancy. On the other hand, unborn life and the wellfare of children is valued very, very high in the USA. So I’d wonder which taboo is the strongest. So far, it seems that Thin Celeb Mom thrumps Healthy Baby. ---
**Author:** ![Maastricht](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/a88e57/32.png) [@Maastricht](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Maastricht)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2007, 4:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-nicole-richie-use-her-malnourished-unborn-infant-to-seek-publicity/417908/6 "2007-09-03T16:31:15Z")
[QUOTE=Cub Mistress] There is another explanantion, which is that someone made some assumptions about what a doctor would be likely to say in the situation and has reported it as fact, hedged with the words “alledgedly” and “reportedly said.” [/QUOTE] Then why has Nicole not denied it? ---
**Author:** ![Boyo\_Jim](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/87869e/32.png) [@Boyo\_Jim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Boyo_Jim)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2007, 4:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-nicole-richie-use-her-malnourished-unborn-infant-to-seek-publicity/417908/7 "2007-09-03T16:38:29Z")
You just can’t make asumptions about who’s leaking what based on who’s denied or not denied what was leaked. It could be no one has denied anything because they have no idea the story is out there, and/or no desire to talk to that publication. And how about provideing a link to the story so we can get some sense of the context, not to mention the source? ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2007, 4:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-nicole-richie-use-her-malnourished-unborn-infant-to-seek-publicity/417908/8 "2007-09-03T16:44:26Z")
> [@](#): > > Then why has Nicole not denied it? Because a woman worrying about a miscarriage might not see talking to the press as her biggest priority? ---
**Author:** ![yams](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/848f3c/32.png) [@yams](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/yams)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2007, 6:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-nicole-richie-use-her-malnourished-unborn-infant-to-seek-publicity/417908/9 "2007-09-03T18:52:44Z")
this sounds like a paragraph i read recently in one of those celebrity magazines, like star or US or OK. as a professional afficianado of such magazines, i know that usually, when they are discussing the health (or lack thereof) of the starlet du jour, they’ll quote doctors that arent actually involved in the case. for example, they might print something like this “‘if fancy mcfancypanties doesnt seek help for her cocaine addiction, her nose will collapse on her face and she’ll turn purple,’ says dr. bob, (who does not treat ms. mcfancypanties). ‘she needs to attend a serious rehabilitation facility where she can focus on regaining her health.’” perhaps these quotes about nicole richie are similarly from a doctor who does not treat her, and would therefore be free to make all sorts of educated yet personally uninformed speculations? love yams!! ---
**Author:** ![Maastricht](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/a88e57/32.png) [@Maastricht](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Maastricht)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2007, 9:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-nicole-richie-use-her-malnourished-unborn-infant-to-seek-publicity/417908/10 "2007-09-03T21:55:54Z")
**yams** , there are some articles featuring exactly what you describe; some ob-gyn who isn’t treating Richie, saying she runs a higher risk on miscarriage then other women. [Here is an example.](http://www.richiefan.com/nicole-richies-pregnancy-scare/) > [@](#): > > Nicole’s many health issues make her pregnancy “high risk,” say experts. “She’s absolutely at a greater danger of miscarrying than most women,” says Troy Hailparn, M.D., a San Antonio ob-gyn, who has not treated the Simple Life star. However, in those articles it is clearly specified that the quoted doctor is not treating Richie. In the four articles cited below, there is nothing indicating that anyone but the actual doctors Richie saw are quoted. > [@](#): > > However, doctors quickly assured the four-months pregnant Richie her baby is safe, but did encourage her to eat more to feed the unborn child. An insider tells American magazine Star, "… they found out she’s suffering from both a hormonal and nutritional deficiency. [http://www.rte.ie/pda/entertainment/2007/0810/1155133.html](http://www.rte.ie/pda/entertainment/2007/0810/1155133.html) [http://www.tittertatter.com/news/2007/august/9th/2513.asp](http://www.tittertatter.com/news/2007/august/9th/2513.asp) > **[Nicole Richie ‘Rushed To Hospital’](http://www.sponkit.com/nicole-richie-rushed-to-hospital/)** > > Nicole Richie, who hit the headlines after confirming her pregnancy, was reportedly rushed to hospital recently. The television reality star fears she was suffering a miscarriage. The 25-year-old star noticed bleeding and worried she would [http://www.showbizspy.com/2007/08/09/nicole-richie-rushed-to-hospital-possible-miscarriage/](http://www.showbizspy.com/2007/08/09/nicole-richie-rushed-to-hospital-possible-miscarriage/) **Little Nemo** , that is exactly my point! If she worried about a miscarriage, and got reprimanded by doctors, then why be so looselipped about it that the story is all over the internet the same day? My only explanation is that she didn’t _mind_, or even welcomed the story getting out, and that, more in particular, she made no effort whatsoever to keep out the part where her docors told her she might be harming her baby. And don’t tell me she is so naive that she doesn’t know what “friends” of her will and won’t tattle to the press. She’s been a socialite all her life and has plenty of experience in these matters. Again, my point is that the Richie appears to seek publicity, not with some story of how she screwed up herself _this_ time. No, she is, seeking publicity with a story of how she is screwing up her unborn baby. Which, in my opinion is her right. But I’m just flabbergasted that she doesn’t fear USA public opinion, and judging form the reaction in this thread, rightly so. Now contrast it with this [story,](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=429184) , of a dad being arrested for obliging his daughters, who playfully wanted to be put in the trunk of the family car for a couple minutes. Ther was a huge public outrage. Where’s the outrage in Nicoles case, who is far more [likely](http://www.revolutionhealth.com/blogs/viviandickersonmd/skinny-and-pregnant-5859?msc=S57931) to hurt her baby? ---
**Author:** ![Freudian\_Slit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/5daacb/32.png) [@Freudian\_Slit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Freudian_Slit)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2007, 10:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-nicole-richie-use-her-malnourished-unborn-infant-to-seek-publicity/417908/11 "2007-09-03T22:01:59Z")
Well, I don’t think that Nicole has ever been all that worried about public opinion. I also don’t see the need to be “ashamed” over having an eating disorder just because it threatens a pregnancy. It’s not like she developed an ED on purpose. It’s an illness. ---
**Author:** ![Maastricht](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/a88e57/32.png) [@Maastricht](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Maastricht)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2007, 10:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-nicole-richie-use-her-malnourished-unborn-infant-to-seek-publicity/417908/12 "2007-09-03T22:08:25Z")
[QUOTE=Zoggie] I also don’t see the need to be “ashamed” over having an eating disorder just because it threatens a pregnancy. It’s not like she developed an ED on purpose. It’s an illness. [/QUOTE] But contrast that to “She shouldn’t be ashamed to be addicted to smoking and drinking just because it threatens a pregnancy”. USA public opinion would disagree there, even though just as many people claim smoking is an addiction and therefore an ilness. If doctors told Richie she should stop smoking while pregnant, I bet she would have done her best to keep that story from leaking out. Don’t you folks see the cultural double standard here? ---
**Author:** ![Boyo\_Jim](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/87869e/32.png) [@Boyo\_Jim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Boyo_Jim)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2007, 10:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-nicole-richie-use-her-malnourished-unborn-infant-to-seek-publicity/417908/13 "2007-09-03T22:10:52Z")
Of those 4 clumped links, three of them are the exact same story carried on multiple site. The links at the top and bottom of your post indicate no direct knowledge of her particular medical condition. There is absolutely zero evidence that she or her publicist are the source of ANY of this. It is at least as accurate to say she hasn’t commented upon these stories as it is to say she hasn’t denied them. ---
**Author:** ![PunditLisa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/4af34b/32.png) [@PunditLisa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PunditLisa)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2007, 10:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-nicole-richie-use-her-malnourished-unborn-infant-to-seek-publicity/417908/14 "2007-09-03T22:54:08Z")
There are many, many times that Ritchie has leant herself to criticism. This isn’t one of them since you have zero evidence that she leaked it to the press. As far as privacy laws go, we all heard that Owen Wilson attempted suicide despite that fact that no one in the Wilson camp leaked it. The press here is voracious. And if there’s no story, they’ll make up one. ---
**Author:** ![Freudian\_Slit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/5daacb/32.png) [@Freudian\_Slit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Freudian_Slit)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2007, 3:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-nicole-richie-use-her-malnourished-unborn-infant-to-seek-publicity/417908/15 "2007-09-04T03:49:15Z")
[QUOTE=Maastricht] But contrast that to “She shouldn’t be ashamed to be addicted to smoking and drinking just because it threatens a pregnancy”. USA public opinion would disagree there, even though just as many people claim smoking is an addiction and therefore an ilness. If doctors told Richie she should stop smoking while pregnant, I bet she would have done her best to keep that story from leaking out. Don’t you folks see the cultural double standard here? [/QUOTE] Well, as others have said, it’s not exactly fair to blame Nicole for leaking the story. None of us knows what happens. When it comes to publicity, one never knows who leaks what. And admittedly, smoking and drinking are addictions that do need to be curbed. But addiction is hard to control, as is anorexia. I guess if something is genuinely beyond one’s control, I don’t think I can condemn them for it. Is it the best thing to do, having a child when you’ve got an eating disorder? Most likely not, but as this is something that’s very hard to recover from, I don’t think it’s something shameful. If she herself had leaked the information and said that she felt comfortable discussing her eating disorder along with the toll it is taking on her pregnancy, I don’t know that I’d judge her for that. ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2007, 4:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-nicole-richie-use-her-malnourished-unborn-infant-to-seek-publicity/417908/16 "2007-09-04T04:51:20Z")
Moving thread from IMHO to Cafe Society. ---
**Author:** ![DiosaBellissima](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/a8b319/32.png) [@DiosaBellissima](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DiosaBellissima)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2007, 5:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-nicole-richie-use-her-malnourished-unborn-infant-to-seek-publicity/417908/17 "2007-09-04T05:37:40Z")
In her defense, she has gained 20 lbs in the first 5 months of her pregnancy. When she was originally arrested months ago, her weight was something like 85 pounds and when she turned herself into jail it as like 105. Maybe she did learn her lesson, who knows. ---
**Author:** ![Exapno\_Mapcase](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/exapno_mapcase/32/1051_2.png) [@Exapno\_Mapcase](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Exapno_Mapcase)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2007, 2:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-nicole-richie-use-her-malnourished-unborn-infant-to-seek-publicity/417908/18 "2007-09-04T14:28:59Z")
[QUOTE=Maastricht] In the four articles cited below, there is nothing indicating that anyone but the actual doctors Richie saw are quoted. [/QUOTE] Wrong. What they say is this: > [@](#): > > Reports claim that doctors assured the reality television star that her baby was safe and offered her nutrition advice for the months ahead. > > A source told Star magazine: “Nicole was bleeding so much - it was really scary for her.” A source? Reports? That’s celeb speak absolutely guaranteeing that Star magazine paid someone to leak confidential details. If they had gotten it directly from Nichole, her publicist or the doctors they would have screamed that from the headlines. I don’t care about Nichole or any of her celebrity pest friends, but I hate the gossip mags and the paparazzi even more. **Maastricht** , You apparently don’t understand how the industry works. You’re completely wrong in your accusations. She has no control over these stories. None. As long as people in Hollywood know they can make money by selling out these secrets and the industry knows that there’s an audience for them, she never will have any control. You cannot blame her for this particular story. Amazingly, she is the one who deserves an apology. ---
**Author:** ![KneadToKnow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kneadtoknow/32/3999_2.png) [@KneadToKnow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KneadToKnow)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2007, 2:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-nicole-richie-use-her-malnourished-unborn-infant-to-seek-publicity/417908/19 "2007-09-04T14:32:10Z")
Frankly I’m of the opinion that the answer to the question “Did Nicole Richie \_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_ to seek publicity?” is “Yes, she did.” ---
**Author:** ![WhyNot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c77e96/32.png) [@WhyNot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WhyNot)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2007, 2:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-nicole-richie-use-her-malnourished-unborn-infant-to-seek-publicity/417908/20 "2007-09-04T14:55:40Z")
[QUOTE=Maastricht] The culturally interesting thing about this, to my Dutch eyes looking at American culture, is the clash between two about equally powerful taboos. On the one hand, there is the immense pressure on young female celebs to stay thin; I remember all too well the vitriol aimed at Britney Spears when she “let herself go” during her pregnancy. On the other hand, unborn life and the wellfare of children is valued very, very high in the USA. So I’d wonder which taboo is the strongest. So far, it seems that Thin Celeb Mom thrumps Healthy Baby. [/QUOTE] See, and I see these same set of facts an arrive at the opposite conclusion. IF Richie did leak this, or simply didn’t deny it, perhaps she’s choosing the health of her unborn child, and using this story to gain public “permission” to gain weight. As you say, Britney was torn a new one for being a normal healthy weight pregnant woman. Would the press and pundits have been more sympathetic to her if they knew that her weight gain was medically supervised and encouraged? This way, Richie can just gain the weight she needs to in peace, and if anyone calls her fat, they look like the asshole. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-nicole-richie-use-her-malnourished-unborn-infant-to-seek-publicity/417908.md?page=2)