[donna]

Fat kid - where's mom.

[RKV]

No brainer, that one. If you and your spouse can't afford to spend (at least) the first five years with your child, you can't afford to have a child. And it may mean that you don't have all the toys you want. Those things are pretty low on the scale compared to your child's love and future happiness.

[Humidston]

AMEN! I not for one minute fault divorced moms, but do take issue with mom working outside the home before her child is five or six.

I realize how hard it is to survive on one salary (read: excessive taxes), but kids need love and TLC till they become well-adjusted enough to spread their wings.

[mysterio]

I'm sure being destitute trying to live on one salary is excellent for the child's health.

If you want mothers to stay home, stop the government from stealing half of our salaries. Right now, one partner works just to pay taxes.

[Old Professer]

What about pre-kindergarten?

[nmh]

"He said lack of contact between children and parents was directly to blame for rising levels of mental health problems, sleep disorders and anorexia in young people."

Absolutely correct!

Kids overseas in orphanages that don't get the close nurturing, holding and caring have ISSUES - mentally and with their health. They need their MOMS, not rented people to "care" for kids they could care less about.


"The comments were dismissed by child care groups, which said studies showed that youngsters benefited from increased contact with other children as early as possible."

LOL! Kids are MEAN. The smaller they are the MEANER they can be. At THAT young age it's ME, ME, ME that are important. Little kids develop a pack mentality and LOVE to pick on other kids.

[Valpal1]

This must be uncomfortable reading for many parents because they have chosen to leave their tiny children in day care and they know inside themselves that it is often not the right thing to do.

[DennisR]

"Last year, research by Professor Michael Lamb, of Cambridge University, found that nurseries caused distress to young children. He found that levels of the stress hormone cortisol doubled in youngsters during the first nine days of child care without their mothers present and continued to be much higher among children five months after starting nursery compared with those who stayed at home."

Interesting that it can actually be measured. This whole thing shows just how evilly selfish feminism has become. Instead of Mom staying home, feminism has duped her into thinking "she can have it all." What idiots. Unfortunately, it is the child who pays. And society wonders why we have the situtation we have today. Trust me - it is largely because mothers are not home during the day taking care of the kids in the neighborhood! And subconsciously, kids must be thinking they are not as important as their mother's career. So they are lower on the priority list.

[Valpal1]

". . youngsters benefited from increased contact with other children as early as possible."

Mainly what they acquire from each other consists of bad habits and bacteria.

[TASMANIANRED]

If you aren't implanting your values in your child, someone else is.

[Liberty Wins]

I've seen a lot of changes in my 30 years as a Montessori teacher. The failure to bond is real. Years ago little girls would usually say they wanted to be a "mommy" when they grew up.

Now they say they want to be a babysitter.

[HarmlessLovableFuzzball]

..their child's health..

You would expect better grammar from the Brits.

[LisaMalia]

This is a rather gray area.

When my children were under 5, I babysat other kids, or worked parttime jobs, and then my mom babysat. That gave them time with Grandma, with me still being there the majority of the time.

Both of my sisters worked full time, and used daycare, and their children turned out great.

I know it's a cliche, but I do think it's the QUALITY time that counts. What good is a mom who stays home with her kids......and surfs the net all day, or watches tv, and doesn't give her children much attention, if any.

[Talking_Mouse]

I wonder how the children more than 300 years ago learned. Not the children of those people wealthy enough to let the wife just look after their home. Those people had hired people to work in the field. Most people only farmed their own land. Most women worked in the fields with their husbands.

[FourPeas]

However, Hayley Doyle, spokesman for the National Day Nurseries Association, said: "Many parents need to work and should not be criticised for choosing to send their children to a nursery. The vast majority of nurseries are recognised as being of a high standard and studies have shown that children who have been to them are, in the long term, higher achievers and better earners."

This is all fine and well if you believe the purpose of life is to be high achievers and better earners. I notice there's no response to the mental health issues, anorexia, etc.

[Liberty Wins]

Nobody's making any "sweeping indictments."

There is a crucial period for emotional development between birth and the age of 30 months. It's just an unfortunate fact that it is much more difficult for a group daycare to provide a one-on-one nurturing environment than it is for a parent, grandparent, or a babysitter.

[Liberty Wins]

I wish the experts were wrong. It would make me feel better if children did great in daycare, because there are a huge number of single moms out there who are trapped on the working treadmill, trying to provide a living for themselves and their kids and not doing a very good job of it.

Please don't condemn me for saying this but things WERE better when there were very few single moms. Divorce and single women having babies are creating a large underclass of dysfunctional kids. This is something the studies are showing us bigtime, and we'd better wake up to it.

[org.whodat]

I think I would rate this story as the biggest load of manure I've seen in a long time.

[lndrvr1972]

Well, if the American family was not taxed to death there could be a one bread winner for the family.

[Salvation]

I agree with this article. Stay home with your kids. Cut back -- we can all live on less.