Effective Parenting

Effective Parenting

Every parent has his own personal philosophy of child rearing. Many issues are controversial because there are supporting facts to both opinions. One major issue in today’s society is whether to breast or bottle-feed an infant. Another difficult issue is how to discipline a child. Some parents believe that spanking in certain situations is acceptable, and some view it as child abuse. Kirkwood believes “religion is an essential part of growing into a moral person”, but there are many who disagree with this idea also. Family meals are important to some families and growing closer. Another big controversy is placing a child in daycare. Some couples believe it is completely wrong for the mother to work outside the home. Other couples say that without two incomes, they would not make it financially.

Breast-feeding a child has many benefits to not only the child but parents too. I think it is very important to the infant’s health. “Colostrum, the fluid that comes in before the real milk, allows the baby to receive immunity to many infections, and also enables the infant to gain necessary weight faster than bottle-fed infants” (Mukai). In breast milk, eight percent of the cells are macrophages. Macrophages are cells that kill bacteria, fungi, and viruses (Mukai).

Breast-feeding is much easier and more convenient, because it can be done at any time of the day, without preparation. With bottle-feeding, there are bottles to wash, formula to mix, refrigeration to worry about, and warming of the milk that must be done. This is all very time consuming for a new mother to deal with. Another advantage to breast feeding is the low cost factor. The mother must have a healthy eating plan, but it does not cost more for her diet than usual. Formula tends to be very expensive for new families to have to worry about.

Mukai says that breast-feeding satisfies the infant’s natural instinct to suck. Being at the breast allows the child to suck as long as he needs to, and this may reduce the chances of thumb-sucking later. But most importantly breast-feeding builds a bond between the mother and infant. It allows them to feel closer together than a bottle would provide. Mukai explains that in most cases it is important to try to breast feed a baby until he is at least six months old. This is an important time for the bonding to occur.

Discipline is another decision that must be made when raising a child. Most believe that spanking, with limitations, is necessary in disciplining a child. Discipline means to teach, not to punish (Blum). I know that some parents cannot discriminate the difference between beating a child and lovingly correcting a child. For that reason, some parents should not spank their children. A regular beating, by a parent that is rejecting, causes the child to become depressed, easily frustrated, or aggressive (Obatusin). A child should never be abused,