I thought the same when I got to this point but I wondered if and how much real damage this does. Fearing things on its own shouldn't be a bad thing. The repelling part is probably that you're lying about what children should fear. Regarding the ocean monster, would it really be less scary for a child to describe in detail the act of drowning, how you last moments have to feel (let's just assume for a moment we can get a 3yo to fully grasp it)?

I think everyone is told a bunch of (in the West, admittedly less dramatic) lies during their childhood to prevent you from doing stupid things. But does that really mess you up in a bad way, or is the average child able to handle this and gradually find out the truth while growing up?